Dr. Harold McNabb

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And he called the place Massah and Meribah because the Israelites quarreled and because
they tested the LORD saying, ?Is the LORD among us or not?? Exodus 17:7

This past week in our prayer group,Georgina and I asked for prayers for our families in Houston, and my nephew in Galveston, Texas. Our prayers were answered. Also this week, we watched an aircraft circle Los Angeles waiting to land because the nose wheel had turned at ninety degrees and would not retract. I along with millions watched on TV in the safety of home as the plane managed a safe landing. I prayed for them too, I am sure along with millions of others. God answered those prayers.

But what about all the others who were not so fortunate? Did God love Houston better than New Orleans, or south Texas better than the gulf coast of Mississippi?
Or better than any others who lost their lives in mishaps.
Why does God seem to respond to one request, and seemingly not to another?

Read more: Where is God?

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One of the routines in worship is our practice of saying the Lord's Prayer in unison.
As you know, the Lord's prayer says, "give us this day our daily bread".
That's a simple enough statement. I suppose most of us think of it from time to time, but I have to confess that repetition doesn't always cause me to think more deeply. In fact as often as not I find myself having to work at thinking about what I am saying.
I suspect you experience the same.

So, give us this day our daily bread.
When we are eating all we need, and often, more than we need, this does not strike at the heart of our concerns.
But when you don't have enough to eat or enough to pay the bills, it is uppermost on the mind.
This prayer is for God's provision for our daily needs. Food to eat, a roof over our head, clothes, school supplies...you know the list. Maybe when we pray it next time, we should pause for a moment and think about the significance. It is enormously important.

Read more: What Is It?

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Have you ever been on the Universal Studios tour? If you have, then you have seen the secret of how Cecil B. DeMille parted the Red Sea. Have you ever wondered how God did it?
These past couple of weeks watching the effects of hurricane Katrina, you get a bit of an idea of what a strong wind can do with a body of water. Did you know that in hurricanes, most of the fatalities are from drowning? I guess the Egyptian army found that out long before there was Doppler radar.

Up to now, Pharaoh had been in charge.
Moses had been sent to Pharaoh to persuade him to let the Hebrews go. It was up to Pharaoh to give a thumbs up or a thumbs down to the idea.
God told Moses that he would not have to do all the persuading just on his own. God gave him a stick of wood and told him to use that as well.
Sure, face down Pharaoh with a wooden staff. Oh yes, and he had his brother Aaron too.
This was Pharaoh's realm as far as the eye could see and well beyond it.
Pharaoh was the law and . . .

Read more: Goodbye Pharoah

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I suppose that for some people, the word "certainties" is a bit of a hot button. I hope it is, anyway. Some like their faith certain. Others prefer a bit of mystery. I think the accounts of the resurrection have some of both.

But I like to have some certainty in my life. I enjoy the routines of the day. I like it that I often stop at the Subway in the strip mall near our home to get a coffee I take into the office in the morning. I like it when my teams keep the same roster, though that is less certain now. There are a host of ways we each anchor our life to what is reliable and dependable.

Today we will repeat the Apostles? Creed once again as part of our worship at the Lord's Table. The form is reliable but what of the content? Well I want to tell you again today that the content is reliable and that you can build a life around it. Particularly, I am certain about the part that says:

"...suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to . . .

Read more: Resurrection Certainties

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We live with tension in our lives between conflicting beliefs and obligations. Most are resolved easily with common sense.
The right of free speech does not mean the right to yell "fire" in a crowded theatre when there is no fire.
Some can only be resolved by making a conscious choice to ignore competing claims.

In the second world war, Christians in Holland hid Jews from the Nazis. They chose to disobey one authority and even tell lies about it for what the believed to be the higher authority.

In Romans, Paul tells us that magistrates are appointed by God for the common good. We understand this generally to be true.
But there are times when we choose to disobey a law if it is unjust.
Civil disobedience is a time-honored tactic for advancing a more righteous cause. Sometimes the gesture can be made peacefully with little consequence. But on other occasions, the consequences can be . . .

Read more: Baby in the Bulrushes

  1. Don't Be A Victim
  2. The Whole In One
  3. Between The Rock and a Hard Place
  4. What Goes Around, Comes Around

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