Musings from My Sun Porch

                 I just completed three weeks of Boot Camp for 55+!   If I said that it was not difficult, I would be lying.   If I said that it was not challenging, I would be lying.   If I said that it was not invigorating, I would be lying, and if I said that I didn’t enjoy it, I would be lying.   Any kind of strenuous workout is both difficult and invigorating at the same time.   While I felt stretched to the limit, when it was finished for the day, I felt renewed energy despite the sore muscles.               In many ways, Bible Study is like Boot Camp.   At Boot Camp, we had coaches who carefully guided us to keep us on track and showed us exactly how to do the various exercises.   In Bible Study, teachers do the same to help us better understand the Scripture.   Our Boot Camp coaches were carefully selected to ensure that they had...

                 As the day dawned that Friday morning some 2000-plus years ago, I’m sure that the Pharisees and Religious Leaders could almost smell victory.   For three years they had struggled to stop the One who challenged their authority and often made them look like fools.   Now, He had acknowledged to them that He is the Son of God—blasphemy in their eyes (Matthew 26: 63 – 66).   It was time to end His nonsense once and for all.   The only thing standing in their way was the Roman government.   The Jewish leaders only had to convince the Roman governor, Pilate, that this man was worthy of death, and then the victory would be complete—or so they thought.             Those men had been educated in the Jewish law and should have known all the prophecies that God had given over thousands of years concerning the Messiah.   Unfortunately for them, the...

                 This is Holy Week, or what some refer to as Passover Week.   It is the time between Palm Sunday, when the crowds welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem, and Resurrection Sunday when Christ rose from the dead.   The days between those two Sundays were filled with many noteworthy events.               On Monday, Jesus cleared the money changers and various markets from the Temple.   More important than the cleansing was His declaration that “My House will be called a House of Prayer” (Matthew 21: 13 NIV84).             Tuesday was the day that He had a final confrontation with the Pharisees and Religious Leaders.   He knew what they were planning, and He took one last opportunity to show them the error of their ways.   As educated men, they should have recognized the Messiah when He stood b...

                 In my last post, I talked about the fact that we have unlimited access to the Creator of the Universe.   We don’t need a special invitation or have a fear of punishment.   We can talk to Him anytime, and the best part is that He listens.   However, His response to us may depend on how we approach Him.             First and foremost, remember that you are talking to the God of all gods and the Lord of Lords.   Come before Him with reverence and awe.   Jesus began the Lord’s Prayer with “Father, hallowed it be your name” (Luke 11: 2 NIV84).   Hallowed means holy.   Never forget that God is a holy God.   The Lord, Himself said through the Psalmist, “Be still and know that I am God” (Psalm 46: 10 NIV84).   Begin by knowing Who you are talking to.             Next, you ...

Have you ever met or talked to someone powerful or famous? The closest that I ever got to having a conversation with a celebrity was many years ago on my birthday.   At that time, the Christian speaker and writer, Liz Curtis Higgs, still worked at WHAS radio station as a disc jockey.   She often called people to wish them a “happy birthday” on the air.   One year, my staff conspired behind my back to convince her that I should be the “one”.   Imagine my surprise when my Secretary told me that Liz Curtis Higgs was on the phone.   It was an interesting conversation and brought a lot of smiles, but it was not the norm. It’s not easy to contact someone famous for a variety of reasons.   You can’t just show up at the White House and say that you want to speak to the President.   You can’t call up your favorite celebrity and invite them to dinner.   Surprisingly, in some cultures, even attempting to contact someone powerful could lead to imprisonment ...

                 I’ve been reading and studying God’s Word for most of my life.   I’ve been teaching Bible Studies since I was in college—many, many years ago.   Yet, I must admit that there are still many verses that I don’t understand.   Over the years, I’ve had times when verses that I’ve read over and over suddenly come to life as the Holy Spirit guides me to a new revelation.   Still, I am confident that when I get to Heaven, I’ll have questions about the thousands of verses that I still don’t understand.             While we all have verses that we don’t understand, I wonder if we all have verses that we don’t like.   I’m not talking about those verses that convict us, or, in our stubbornness, we don’t want to obey. I’m talking about those verses that tear at our hearts as we consider who God is and what He has done for us. Here are a few of mine. ...