Tag: Anchor Hymns

Preachers

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Today is Monday, the eighth day of June, 2026, in the Season of the Church.

May the peace of Christ dwell within you today!

It is day 159 of 2026, and there are 206 days left in the year.

Day 24,924 of my life

21,631 days since I was baptized into Christ

Thirteen days until Father’s Day

Today is National Best Friends Day. Try to do something with your best friend. If not, at least let them know you are thinking about them. Now, I know that I frequently mention my library bestie and my pastor/sister/friend, but my true “best friend” is C, my wife. We’ve been best friends for over 40 years, now. 💜💜💜💜💜

Daily writing prompt
What’s the best way to build self-confidence?
View all responses

I think the best way is to forget about seeking acceptance and approval from others. That will only serve to lower self-confidence. I get mine from knowing that God sees me and cares for me, and that there is nothing more that I need to do to gain His acceptance.

It’s an off-work Monday for me. C is working from home. I do have a Urologist appointment at 1:30 this afternoon, so I had to schedule the grocery pickup a little earlier than usual. I will be picking them up at 11:00-11:30, this morning.

Tonight’s dinner will be tomato basil soup (from H-E-B) and grilled cheese sandwiches.

My first cup of coffee, this morning, is CAFE Olé by H‑E‑B Taste of DFW. “Offering the delicious flavor of caramel, chocolate and pecans, CAFE Olé by H-E-B Taste of DFW coffee is a medium roast variety.” My second cup is Coconut Macaroon, by Angelino’s, another new variety for me. “Buttery coconut flavored coffee. . . . Rich toasted coconut flakes and buttery cookie flavors combine perfectly to deliver the satisfying deliciousness of a beloved treat in this smooth flavored coffee. Coconut lovers, this one’s for you.” I can definitely smell the coconut. It has a great aroma. The taste is pleasant, not overpowering. I like that, when the flavors don’t get in the way of the coffee, but rather, enhance it. I can taste the coconut, but it still tastes like coffee.

I forgot to show you my coffee cup for the week. The Rabbit Room is an excellent source for books and other things.

JESUS TIME

Lord, in this morning hour I come boldly to Your throne of grace in full assurance that there I shall obtain mercy and find grace and help in time of trouble. I need Your help and Your grace as I again return to the routine of my vocation and schedule. Grant me true faithfulness in the performance of my calling. Guard me against becoming selfish, careless, and lazy in carrying out my daily work, so that all I do has not only the appearance of being pleasing among men, but is also true service to my neighbor, that I may be a servant of Christ, doing the will of God.
Grant to all who are out of work useful employment. Feed us all with food necessary for our lives, and teach us to receive it with thanksgiving. Grant us the godliness and contentment without which there can be no true happiness, and let us so walk through the things temporal that we may not lose the things eternal; for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
(Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 6, Monday Morning)

With You, Lord, I begin my task, praying You direct it. For Your aid and counsel, I ask, knowing You will perfect it. Every morn with You I rise, and when this day is ended, in Your name I will close my eyes and be to You commended (see LSB 869:1). Lord Jesus, may such words always jubilantly ring in my ears that I never lose confidence or hope. Amid the stresses that arise with work and life, let my heart not be filled with anxiety or impatience with You or others. Bless all my family and especially protect all those whose work is dangerous or life-threatening. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Monday Morning)

Father in heaven, words cannot measure the boundaries of love for those born to new life in Christ Jesus. Raise us beyond the limits this world imposes, so that we may be free to love as Christ teaches and find our joy in your glory. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
(For All the Saints, Monday of the Week of Pentecost 2, Opening Prayer)

O LORD, you have searched me and known me!
You know when I sit down and when I rise up;
    you discern my thoughts from afar.
(Psalms 139:1-2 ESV)
GOD, the Lord, is my strength;
    he makes my feet like the deer’s;
    he makes me tread on my high places.
(Habakkuk 3:19 ESV)

Today I am grateful:

  1. That God sees me and knows me
  2. That my worth and identity are not tied to human visibility
  3. For the steadfast love of the Lord that endures forever; in the heart of Christ, this is clearly seen
  4. For daily opportunities to practice solitude, where I can enter the presence of Love and encounter God
  5. For my pastors, who faithfully preach God’s Word, and fill my ears “with the good news that [I am] free and forgiven in Jesus, who gives [me] true contentment in himself” (Chad Bird, Untamed Prayers)
Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

Psalm of the Day, Psalm 73:13-17

All in vain have I kept my heart clean
    and washed my hands in innocence.
For all the day long I have been stricken
    and rebuked every morning.
If I had said, “I will speak thus,”
    I would have betrayed the generation of your children.

But when I thought how to understand this,
    it seemed to me a wearisome task,
until I went into the sanctuary of God;
    then I discerned their end.
(Psalms 73:13-17 ESV)

Untamed Prayers, Until I Went into the Sanctuary, by Chad Bird

In yesterday’s segment, we saw Asaph envying the “prosperity of the wicked” (v. 3). This results in the complaint seen in verse 13, today: “All in vain have I kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence.” He was not only envious, but also angry and bitter. But, in the end, he kept this all to himself. One might think, but wait, he’s writing about it here. But we have to keep reading, don’t we? Verse 15. I admits that if he had fallen prey to the temptation to voice these opinions and feelings to others, he would have “betrayed the generation of your children.”

Complaining is betrayal. Now, there’s a concept that I have never really pondered until today. I have been trying to reduce, significantly (as in “eliminate altogether”) the amount of my complaining in my life. So far, I haven’t done a great job of that.

But where does Asaph get his clarity? In the presence of God. “Only in the Lord’s presence did he sober up from his intoxicating envy and begin to think clearly.” There are two ways to interpret this idea of going into the “sanctuary of God.” And I believe both of them are valid. One of them is solitude. Solitude is important, getting alone with God. Jesus did it on a regular basis. We are told frequently that He went of to a “lonely place” to pray. I “hide” in this study for several hours a day, away from the rest of the family. I’m not alone in the house, but I am able to practice solitude in this room.

And while I am always in God’s presence, no matter where I am, there is something about being alone in a place like this that lends itself to a deeper feeling of that presence. I feel closer to God when I am in solitude with His Word.

The other way to think about going into the “sanctuary of God,” and Brother Bird nails that in the last paragraph today.

“We all need a preacher. We need a voice not our own, who can take the Word of God and speak the light of divine truth into us when we are stumbling in the darkness of our temptations, envies, bitterness. Left alone, we go astray. So our Lord has seen fit not to leave us alone, but to send us preachers in the sanctuary of God. To call us to repentance, yes. And most importantly, to fill our ears with the good news that we are free and forgiven in Jesus, who gives us true contentment in himself.”

This is why it is not enough to be alone with God. We simply must be in communion with other believers, under the tutelage of pastors/preachers who faithfully preach God’s Word of Truth and Life. And I praise God that I am. I love my pastors and am so very grateful for them!

For All the Saints, Monday of the Week of Pentecost 2

As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies, which promote speculations rather than the stewardship from God that is by faith. The aim of our charge is love that issues from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. Certain persons, by swerving from these, have wandered away into vain discussion, desiring to be teachers of the law, without understanding either what they are saying or the things about which they make confident assertions.
(1 Timothy 1:3-7 ESV)

“Today you join the company of those who, like the Good Shepherd, gather the lambs in their arms and carry them in their bosom. They are not hirelings, but are faithfully leading the lambs of Christ into the green pastures and by the still water. They are doing this because they believe that their Good Shepherd bought them with His blood, bought them with His tears, bought them with His thorny crown, bought them with the agonies of Calvary. They reckon, therefore, that their ministry is a debt which they cannot choose but pay.

“You link yourselves with men and women who look to Jesus Christ and say: ‘Thy love to me is wonderful,’ with Christian teachers whose holy calling requires the long and penetrating look of faith. To be a teacher worthy of the name given to Him, Who was called ‘A Teacher sent from God,’ you must understand by faith that not until you yourself have passed in at heaven’s gate and beheld its lofty thrones, not until the palm of victory is in your own hands and a blood-bought crown is on your own head, not until you walk the streets that are paved with gold and join the songs of the heavenly choir, not until then will you full understand what you owe to the love of Christ, and why you may justly say: ‘thy love to me was wonderful!’ And on that day, when souls redeemed claim you as the friend who put their hands into the clasp of the Friend of sinners, then shall you better understand why I say that you are about to find yourself in a great tradition and a great ministry. . . .

“By the grace and mercy of our God, today you are declared fit to enter the great tradition of men and women who count it a joy to spend themselves and be spent in serving the people of God. You will find yourself working at the side of people who are earthen vessels of the treasures of His grace. They are far from the point of being perfect saints fit for a perfect heaven. They are sinful servants, and you, being what you are, will fit into their company. You will need to join them in daily intercessions for the pardoning grace of a faithful Father in heaven. . . .

“Go, then, to work for the God Who loves you; work for the Savior Who bled for you; work for the world that, sinking into its doom, needs men and women who have tasted of the Lord’s mercies and found that they are good.”
(Martin Luther Koehneke, My Sons and Daughters in Christ, addressing graduates of Concordia Teachers College, 1955)

I believe this fits hand-in-hand with the Chad Bird reading up there, the part about the preachers. My pastors fit firmly into the category of those that Koehneke describes in this address.

O Lord, who calls Thine own sheep by name, grant, we entreat Thee, that all whom Thou callest by the voice of conscience may straightway arise to do Thy most compassionate will, or abide patiently to suffer it. Amen.
(For All the Saints, Monday of the Week of Pentecost 2, Closing Prayer, Christina Georgina Rossetti)

“Lord, thank You that I am fully known and fully seen by You. Help me release the need for human approval and rest in Your constant presence. Teach me to walk in quiet confidence, trusting that my life matters deeply to You, even in unseen moments. Shape my heart to seek faithfulness over recognition, and obedience over applause. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
(Grant Fishbook, A Miracle Every Day)

Dear Lord Jesus…. Through your human heart we can catch a glimpse of the divine love with which we are loved and with which you yourself love us, because you and your Father are one.
It is so hard for me to believe fully in the love that flows from your heart. I am so insecure, so fearful, so doubtful and so distrustful. While I say with my words that I believe in your full and unconditional love, I continue to look for affection, support, acceptance and praise among my fellow human beings, always expecting from them what only you can give… O Lord, why is it that I am so eager to receive human praise and human support even when experience tells me how limited and conditional is the love that comes from a human heart.
(Henri Nouwen)

Father, I praise You for my pastors, who are, indeed, faithfully leading the lambs of Christ into green pastures and by the still water. Their love for Christ and His Word is unparalleled, in my opinion, and I am so very grateful that You have led me to this congregation. Keep me faithful to serve You in any way that I can, here, Lord.

And please help me to stop complaining about things.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen.

Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters!

CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!

Into the Light

Jeff

Today is Sunday, the seventeenth day of May, 2026 in the seventh week of the Easter season. It is the seventh and last Sunday of Easter.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

Today is the fifteen month mensiversary of the beginning of my transformation.

It is day 137 of 2026, with 228 days remaining in the year.

Day 24,902 of my life

193 days until Thanksgiving!

Today is National Graduation Tassel Day. I think we may be celebrating graduates in one of our worship services, this morning. Today focuses on that swishy little dangly thing that hangs from the weird hat that graduates wear. It’s also Emergency Medical Services Day. If you know someone who does that, show them some love. And it’s National Idaho Day. Why May 17th? That’s a really good question.

Daily writing prompt
How do you stay motivated when learning something new?
View all responses

That’s also a really good question. At this stage of my life, it’s not difficult to stay motivated when learning something new, because if I’m learning something new, it’s because I really want to learn something new. For example, I’ve been learning Spanish for close to a year, now. One way I stay motivated is by doing it in community. I use an app to learn, and I have several friends who also use the app (they are not all learning Spanish; some are learning French and other languages). But the app makes a game out of it, so there are motivational “quests,” some of which involve my friends, and we also have “friend streaks” to keep alive, so we “nudge” each other, along the way.

Today, S and I have to be at church by 8:05, to practice with the choir and instrumental ensemble. We sing in both services. I also have a solo rehearsal between services. It is right after the first service, so I should be able to be present for most of the Sunday School class, as it is the final one for this season. Then, right after the choir sings in the second service, we will leave and pick up our grocery order on the way home.

My first cup of coffee, this morning, is CAFE Olé by H‑E‑B Taste of San Antonio, one of the Favorite Five. “For a trio of cinnamon, chocolate and vanilla flavors, try CAFE Olé by H-E-B Taste of San Antonio coffee.” My second cup is Moka Java, from Angelino’s. “Full-bodied with nutty and chocolate notes.”

This week’s cup

JESUS TIME

Heavenly Father, who on this first of days called forth light out of darkness, shine into my soul with the power of Your love, give me a new heart, and create a clean spirit within me. Enlighten also my heart through Your Gospel to know You.

Glorious Savior, on this day You rose from death and the grave and proved Yourself the Redeemer of all the world; give me faith to trust You wholly for the forgiveness of all my sin, and grant me grace to rise to newness of life.

Holy Spirit, who on this day charged the Church with joyous faith and vigor, fill me also with Your healing, Your gift to speak, and Your strength to love.

O Holy Trinity, my glorious God, my strength and shield, set apart my heart to Your service this day, give to my worship sincerity and earnestness, and to my praise joy; grant that my fellow believers and I be kept at all times in the unity of faith, and refresh me with Your Word; in Jesus’ name. Amen.
(Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 18, Sunday Morning)

Heavenly Father, this is the day of resurrection and rest. Thank You for this day to hear Your living Word and obtain the blessed Sacrament of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ! Forgive me all my sins and prepare me rightly in heart and mind to joyfully receive all Your generous gifts so that I may serve You well in Your kingdom. Bless all pastors who powerfully proclaim the truth of Christ’s death and resurrection that all may come to repentance and new life! Bless Your church throughout the world in order that it may be a burning lamp, attracting all who see it to You. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Sunday Morning)

Father, help us keep in mind that Christ our Savior lives with you in glory and promised to remain with us until the end of time. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
(For All the Saints, Sunday of the Week of Easter 7, Opening Prayer)

“Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”
(John 7:38 ESV)
Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
(Romans 11:33 ESV)

Today I am grateful:

  1. For another opportunity to gather with the community of saints, worship the Lord, sing His praises, and be fed by Word and Sacrament
  2. That rivers of living water flow out of my heart
  3. For the depths of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God
  4. That I am not fighting for freedom, but learning to live from it
  5. That it is promised: We WILL be like Him! (1 John 3:2)
  6. For breathing new life into me!
Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

Psalm of the Day – Psalm 68:4-6

Sing to God, sing praises to his name;
    lift up a song to him who rides through the deserts;
his name is the LORD;
    exult before him!
Father of the fatherless and protector of widows
    is God in his holy habitation.
God settles the solitary in a home;
    he leads out the prisoners to prosperity,
    but the rebellious dwell in a parched land.
(Psalms 68:4-6 ESV)

Untamed Prayers – Father of the Fatherless, by Chad Bird

“Our God is the ‘Father of the fatherless and protector of widows . . . [who] settles the solitary in a home; he leads out the prisoners into prosperity’ (Ps. 68:5-6). This does not mean, of course, that he is deaf to the prayers of millionaires, or that he leaves healthy, intact families to fend for themselves. No, our Father is concerned for all, from the highest to the lowest, the haves and the have nots. The lowest, however, such as widows and orphans, the hungry, and the weak, are often singled out as the special recipients of divine compassion – and as those who are to be the recipients of our compassion. The Lord is near to the broken-hearted; let’s make sure we are, too.”

“Father of the fatherless is he, as well as Friend of sinners. He makes us his own, fills us with his Spirit, and bids us love and care for those around us.”

For All the Saints – Sunday of the Week of Easter 7

Now Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian, and he led his flock to the west side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. And the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush. He looked, and behold, the bush was burning, yet it was not consumed. And Moses said, “I will turn aside to see this great sight, why the bush is not burned.” When the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Do not come near; take your sandals off your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” And he said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

Then the LORD said, “I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters. I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come, I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring my people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the children of Israel out of Egypt?” He said, “But I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”
(Exodus 3:1-12 ESV)

For you have not come to what may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest and the sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. For they could not endure the order that was given, “If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For if they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates the removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.
(Hebrews 12:18-29 ESV)

The seventy-two returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”

Then turning to the disciples he said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see! For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”
(Luke 10:17-24 ESV)

“[Writing in a novel about the curate, Thomas Wingfold] The weeks passed and seemed to bring him no light, but only increased the earnestness of his search after it. He would have to find an answer before long, he thought, or he would have to no choice but to resign his curacy and look for a position as a tutor.

“Of course all this he ought to have gone through long ago. But how can a man go through anything till his hour is come? Wingfold had all this time been skirting the wall of the kingdom of heaven without even knowing there was a wall there, not to say seeing a gate in it. The fault lay with those who had introduced him to the church as a profession, just as they might introduce someone to the practice of medicine, or the bar, or the drapery business – as if the ministry were on the same level of choice with other human callings. Never had he been warned to take off his shoes for the holiness of the ground. And yet how were they to have warned him when they themselves had never discovered the treasure in that ground more holy than libraries, incomes, and the visits of royalty? As to visions of truth that make a man sigh with joy and enlarge his heart with more than human tenderness – how many of those men had ever found such treasures in the fields of the church? How many of them knew, except by hearsay, whether there be any Holy Ghost? How then were they to warn other men from the dangers of following in their footsteps and becoming such as they? Where in a community of general ignorance shall we begin to blame? Wingfold had not time to accuse anyone. He simply had to awaken from the paralyzing struggle between life and death. He thought afterward, when the time had passed, that surely in this period of darkness he had been visited and upheld by a power whose presence and even influence he was completely unaware of. He did not know how else he could have gotten through it. Strange helps had come to him from time to time. The details of nature wonderfully softened toward him, and for the first time he began to notice her ways and shows and to see in them all the working of a different humanity. He later remembered how a hawthorne bud once set him weeping; and how once, as he was walking miserably to church, a child looked up in his face and smiled. In the strength of that smile, he had been able to confidently approach the lectern. He never knew how long he had been the agony of his most peculiar birth – in which the soul is at the same time both the mother that bears and the child that is born.”
(George MacDonald, The Curate’s Awakening)

I include this excerpt from George MacDonald, today, because of its relevance to the day. Again, I note, it is the 15th mensiversary of the beginning of Christ’s transformation of me, that began in February of last year. And MacDonald’s excerpt seems so on point to that event. 60+ years, I went . . . I do believe I was “in Christ” through all of that, having been baptized into Him at the age of 9 (March 19, 1967). But missing so much, because I had no one to “mentor” me through all of that. Then I got to this Lutheran church, with this pastor of discipleship that blew into my life like a hurricane, with her vibrant, living love of Christ and His Word! Through her influence, the Holy Spirit began breathing new life into me, and hasn’t stopped since.

Jesus,
You came not to be ministered unto
    but to minister.
Your ministry was your presence,
    and it still is.
So we thank you for your presence
    among us and within us.
Since we are most ourselves
    when we are most attentive to you
    and obey you,
Help us to go about our daily business
    with your spirit
and to know that when we pray,
    it is you praying within us.
So may we carry out our ministry
    and yours.
Amen.
(For All the Saints, Sunday of the Week of Easter 7, Closing Prayer, John B. Coburn)

Thank You for loving me, Jesus; thank You for filling me with Your Spirit; thank You for teaching me to love others as You have loved me (I’m still learning that one). Thank You for being near to the broken-hearted and working on me to do the same. You are the Friend of sinners, of whom I am one of the worst. You have loved me, You have made me love You more than I ever have before, and You are helping me love others.

Thank You, thank You, thank You. And even though it often looks like the light is not making progress, not winning, You have kept on loving us. We have faith and confidence that the Light will win. The Light has come and shined into the darkness, and the darkness will never overcome it. You have loved us; we are the beloved, even though we are still sinners, and You have made lovers out of us.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

“Breathe it in, soak it up; You’re surrounded by beauty and love!”

Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! Drink deep of His love!

CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!

I Have Seen Him

Jeff

Today is Thursday, the ninth day of April, 2026, in the first week of Easter.

May the Lord of peace Himself give you peace at all times in all ways!

It is the 99th day of 2026, with 266 days left in the year.

31 days until Mother’s Day

Day 24,864 of my life

Today is National Unicorn Day. It is also National Chicken Little Awareness Day. Perhaps this should be a “national holiday.” As a society, we have gotten very good at jumping to conclusions with little to no evidence. But I’m a fantasy lover, so I will be thinking about unicorns today. And singing this song!

Daily writing prompt
What’s the most fun way to exercise?
View all responses

Hahahaha! Hahahaha! I’m sorry. I don’t understand the word “fun” and the word “exercise” in the same sentence. The most “fun” way to “exercise” is running through the terrain of the Commonwealth in Fallout 4, as my video game character. Unless I’m running from a radscorpion, which is never fun.

Today is a very laid-back Thursday. S has some kind of bronchial infection going on (again), so I likely won’t be taking her to get her weekly injection. Which reminds me, I need to send a message to her doctor through their portal, about something else. Be right back.

I have a couple loads of laundry to fold, today, and dinner to make, and will, of course, venture out to get Sonic drinks. Someone asked me, the other day, what my drink of choice is, there. I know this is weird, but it is Diet Dr. Pepper with peach flavor. I tried that, one day, on a whim. I mean, worst case, I hate it and have wasted a couple of bucks, right? But I loved it! So that’s what I get every time. Every now and then, I will get cherry instead, but it’s peach 99% of the time.

My first cup of coffee, this morning was Hazelnut Spread, by Angelino’s. “Chocolaty fudge and roasted hazelnut flavored coffee.” Quite delicious! My second cup (and yes, I always have two) is Cafe Ole Taste of DFW, from HEB. “Offering the delicious flavor of caramel, chocolate and pecans, CAFE Olé by H-E-B Taste of DFW coffee is a medium roast variety.” This is one is my favoritest coffee ever. The Jamaican Me Crazy from Angelino’s is my favorite of their varieties.

Tonight’s dinner is a crockpot dish I got from a Facebook friend. The originator calls it “Crockpot 3-Pack Beef and Noodles.” Two pounds of cubed beef (he used “stew meat,” I use HEB’s “Beef for caldillo,” which is perfect for this recipe, as well as beef tips), a pack of onion soup mix, a pack of ranch dressing mix, a pack of brown gravy mix, a can of cream of mushroom soup, a cup of beef broth, and a block of cream cheese. All of that cooks for about four hours on high, and then you add in 12 oz of cooked egg noodles. Delicious!! I noticed that someone had suggested adding sour cream, so I might try that today.

Here is this week’s devotional from my church.

JESUS TIME

Our Father who art in heaven, forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. O dear Lord, God and Father, do not enter into judgment against us, for in Your sight no one who lives is justified before You. Do not count it against us as sin that we are so unthankful for all your indescribable spiritual and physical blessings. Do not judge us on account of our daily sin. We stumble and sin many more times than we even know or recognize. ‘For He who avenges blood is mindful of them; He does not forget the cry of the afflicted’ (Psalm 9:12).

Look away from our accomplishments as well as our wickedness; in Your boundless compassion look instead upon Your dear Son, Jesus Christ. Forgive also those who are our enemies or who have wronged us, just as we forgive them from our heart. By their actions against us, they around Your anger and hurt themselves, yet we are not helped by their ruin and would much rather that they be saved with us. Amen.
(Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 54, Thursday Morning)

Omnipotent, heavenly Father, as I awake to a new dawn, I entrust my life to Your care and favor. I thank You for another day to serve You. The apostle Paul exhorts, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5); may my thoughts be fixed on You. As my body is Your temple, enable me to remember that my physical life is not my own, but is Yours. As my soul can find satisfaction only with faith in Christ, help me to bring honor and glory to Him in both word and deed. In the name of Jesus Christ, Your dear Son, I pray. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Thursday Morning)

“Father, you gather the nations to praise your name. May all who are reborn in baptism be one in faith and love. Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.”
(For All the Saints, Thursday of the Week of Easter 1, Opening Prayer)

He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.
(Hebrews 1:3-4 ESV)

Today I am grateful:

  1. for Jesus Christ, the radiance of the glory of God, and that He upholds the universe by the word of His power
  2. for the pardoning love of Christ, “so free, so sweet” (Indelible Grace Music)
  3. that the peace of God gets the final say in my life; but I cannot manufacture that peace; God, in Christ, has already given it
  4. that there is “no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved;” the name of Jesus Christ
  5. that I have seen Jesus, and He continues to transform me
Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.
(Colossians 1:15 ESV)

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.
(Colossians 3:1-2 ESV)

I can already see where today’s devotionals are heading. Jesus Christ . . . He is the “radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power.” And “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation.” The motto of my life: Christ is everything! Everything is about Christ!

And then two different sources gave me this verse:

“And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
(Acts 4:12 ESV)

Psalm of the Day – Psalm 44:17-26

All this has come upon us,
though we have not forgotten you,
and we have not been false to your covenant.
Our heart has not turned back,
nor have our steps departed from your way;
yet you have broken us in the place of jackals
and covered us with the shadow of death.
If we had forgotten the name of our God
or spread out our hands to a foreign god,
would not God discover this?
For he knows the secrets of the heart.
Yet for your sake we are killed all the day long;
we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.

Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord?
Rouse yourself! Do not reject us forever!
Why do you hide your face?
Why do you forget our affliction and oppression?
For our soul is bowed down to the dust;
our belly clings to the ground.
Rise up; come to our help!
Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love!
(Psalms 44:17-26 ESV)

Untamed Prayers, “Awake! Why are you sleeping, O Lord?” by Chad Bird

“Bad things” happen to “good” people all the time. Of course, the real answer to the question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?” is that “there are no ‘good’ people.” Jesus, Himself, stated that “No one is good except God alone” (Mark 10:18). Nevertheless, we do think of some people as being “good.” As Bird writes, “There are no perfect congregations with perfect pastors, but there are very good congregations with excellent pastors who do a bang-up job of preaching the Gospel and caring for their communities.” But there are times when these congregations keep shrinking and the church closes its doors. I was a part of just such a church.

But of course, that church closing its doors and its pastor resigning is part of the set of circumstances that led me to where I am today. And this is why I usually put “bad things” in quotations marks. Because sometimes, those things that humans see as “bad” eventually have “good” consequences. And why is that? Say it with me:

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.
(Romans 8:28 ESV)

But I digress. When things like this happen, we all ask “Job-like questions.” Why did this happen? What did we do wrong? In the case of the man in Scripture who was born blind, Jesus’s disciples asked Him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” We haven’t changed much, have we? There are certain circles of Christianity in which all “bad things” are seen as consequences of sin, or even punishment for sin, which is absurd, because why? Because Jesus already took all of the punishment for our sins! That’s why!

The writers of this psalm, in their questioning, are not claiming to have been sinless. However, they point out that they aren’t, say, burning incense to Baal or any of the other foreign gods that the cultures around them worshiped. Verse 18, “Our heart has not turned back, nor have our steps departed from your way.” Yet these things happen.

“Confused and hurt, to whom do they turn? To God! He is our only hope. ‘Awake!’ they cry, ‘Why are you sleeping, O Lord?’ anticipating the question of the storm-tossed disciples when they rouse a snoozing Jesus (Mark 4:38). Anticipating our question, too, when storms rage and heaven seems to snore. ‘Why do you hide your face? Why do you forget our affliction and our oppression?’ (Ps 44:24). In such times, when storms roar, so does our Lord, that untamed lion, as C.S. Lewis so memorably depicted him. He will rise and roar. Indeed, he already has when Jesus leapt from the tomb. Awake. Alive. And redeeming ‘us for the sake of [his] steadfast love’ (44:26). He will pull us close and shield us with love till the storms pass and peace returns.”

My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers

After these things he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country.
(Mark 16:12 ESV)

Chambers asks the question, today, “Have I Seen Him?” Now, of course, we are not speaking of actual, physical sighting of Jesus, even though the verse referred to does speak of Christ appearing to two disciples on the road to Emmaus.

We are able to, in a spiritual sense, “see Jesus.” I certainly do not doubt that there have been people who have truly had a vision of Christ, and seen Him. Glory to God for occurrences such as this! Would that I could have one! Oh, how I long to see His face!

Says Chambers, “Many are partakers of God’s grace who have never seen Jesus. When once you have seen Jesus, you can never be the same, other things do not appeal as they used to do.”

There is a difference between “seeing Jesus” and knowing what He has done for you. “If you only know what He has done for you, you have not a big enough God; but if you have had a vision of Jesus as He is, experiences can come and go, you will endure ‘as seeing Him Who is invisible.'” We cannot know when this will happen, it may come at any turn.

We must also acknowledge that our friends, family, and acquaintances must also see Him. And, to a degree, “Severance takes place where one and not the other has seen Jesus. You cannot bring your friend unless God brings him.” But we should desire that others see Him, as well, and we should tell others about our vision, even though they do not believe or understand.

Brothers and sisters, I have seen Jesus! Back to February 17, 2025. He revealed Himself to me in such a way that I had never seen before! He began tearing down walls and rebuilding Himself within me, and is still working. But I have no doubt that, even though I have not seen His face, I have, nevertheless, “seen” Him. As evidence I have the truth that there are things that simply no longer appeal to me. There are attitudes and sins that are gone from my life (there are still a few that I am struggling with, but they are getting weaker and weaker as Christ gets more and more present in my life). The amount of love that my heart feels for others has grown exponentially.

I have seen Jesus! And I want you to see Him, too. But He must bring you along. I cannot do it. I can show Him to people, as much as my limited nature can do. But Christ must do the revealing. I pray that He will.

Walking in Grace 2026, Thursday April 9, Marci Alborghetti

“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. These things I command you, so that you will love one another.”
(John 15:12-17 ESV)

Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.
(Romans 14:13 ESV)

Remember what I just wrote up there? About attitudes that are still being worked on? Romans 14:13. And Marci, one of my favorite Guideposts writers, in today’s reading, talks about how much stronger prayer can be when we join with the “commitment and faith of others.” Prayer is good; faith is good; worship is good. But all are so much more effective when we are in a community of saints, doing all of these things together. My life has been so much richer since I have been in my current church!

We need each other so very much! And we need to be united under the banner of Jesus Christ. I pray daily, that He would eliminate any threat of idolatry from our midst, that we might only care about and know Christ and Him crucified, as Paul says.

“Because for our sake you tasted gall, may the Enemy’s bitterness be killed in us.
Because for our sake you drank sour win, may what is weak in us be strengthened.
Because for our sake you were spat upon, may we be bathed in the dew of immortality.
Because for our sake you were struck with a rod, may we receive shelter in the last.
Because for our sake you accepted a crown of thorns, may we that love you be crowned with garlands that never can fade.
Because for our sake you were wrapped in a shroud, may we be clothed in your all-enfolding strength.
Because you were laid in the new grave and the tomb, may we receive renewal of soul and body.
Because you rose and returned to life, may we be brought to life again.
Amen.”
(For All the Saints, Thursday of the Week of Easter 1, Closing Prayer, Communion Hymn)

Thank You, my Jesus, for revealing Yourself to me last year, in the way that You did. While I still long to see Your beautiful face, I can rest in the knowledge and assurance that I have, indeed, “seen” You, my Lord! I thank You that certain things appeal to me no longer. I praise You that You have delivered me from many things along the way, especially lust! Praise Your name, Lord! And I pray that You keep working in me, that I will never be the same again, Lord, because You are continuously making all things new. I long for the day when I will stand in Your presence, on the other side of glory. But until then, I pray that You keep giving me transformation, growth, maturity, and You keep molding me by Your beautiful Word!

I thank You for the community of saints that You have placed me in. I thank You for my pastors who faithfully teach me. I thank You for my sister, whom I believe has also seen You, Jesus! And I thank You for the other good friendships that are developing in my life.

All glory to You, Lord, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, amen. You are everything!

Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! May You see Jesus!

CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!