Author Archives: Pete

Wanting More

Posted on October 10, 2023 by Pete

“Please sir, I want some more!” Now that’s a dickens of an incentive for obedience. Better than following the rules just because they’re the rules is playing the game for the sheer enjoyment of playing it. Better than doing what … Continue reading →

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One Shepherd with a Capital “S”

Posted on October 9, 2023 by Pete

Of all that’s been written in Ecclesiastes, Solomon may have been the Teacher (Eccl. 12:10 CSB, NIV, NLT) or, if you like, the Preacher (ESV, NASB, and NKJV), but he wasn’t the originator. In addition to the Teacher being a … Continue reading →

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The Happiest of Endings

Posted on October 6, 2023 by Pete

I think I’ve mentioned it before, I’m a sucker for happy endings. I always want the guy next door to find the girl next door. For the girl next door to find her Prince Charming and with him live together … Continue reading →

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Joy, Unspeakable Joy (2013 Rerun)

Posted on October 5, 2023 by Pete

Written 10 years ago. Could have written it this morning . . . As I worked my way through my reading plan this morning, I was pretty aware of how distracted I was. A number of concerns . . . … Continue reading →

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Satisfied

Posted on October 4, 2023 by Pete

It occurred to me this morning that I most often read the prophets with the hard-hearted in mind. As I read Jeremiah this morning, for example, I know that he knows that the LORD knows that, by in large, his … Continue reading →

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Good Figs in a Bad Land

Posted on October 2, 2023 by Pete

Babylon, bad! Isn’t that how we tend to think about “that place.” You know, that place of exile. That place where the people, who had polluted their own land through their spiritual adulteries, had been sent for a 70-year timeout. … Continue reading →

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The Reins

Posted on September 28, 2023 by Pete

A sermon illustration comes to mind from the foggy past as I’m reading. Something about a little girl who’s decided to go toe-to-toe with her mom. Mom finally has enough and tells the five-year-old, “Go sit in the corner, right … Continue reading →

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Disciplined with Justice

Posted on September 27, 2023 by Pete

If there’s sub-plot that you pick up from Jeremiah, it’s that he wasn’t just a prophet, he was a person too. He didn’t just speak the mind of God concerning “current events”, he endured them. And it wasn’t just his … Continue reading →

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“Appropriate” is Appropriate

Posted on September 26, 2023 by Pete

I’ve always known the verse as “beautiful.” But this morning, reading a new translation this year, it seems “appropriate” is appropriate. He has made everything appropriate in its time. (Ecclesiastes 3:11a CSB) If I had ever been an NASB reader … Continue reading →

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A Sword Swallowing Act

Posted on September 25, 2023 by Pete

The latter part of the first chapter of James has to do with the word of God. Three observations tell me so. The first observation reminds me that, in God’s sovereign determination, I was born again by the word of … Continue reading →

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