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Probably Doomed and Perplexingly Merry

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I recently finished a novel about a near-future American dystopian society. Although the book itself was not my favorite, the author’s chapter titles were unique and the title above particularly stood out to me. It resonated with me as a somewhat tongue-in-cheek summary of our journeys as exiles here on planet Earth. In a lot of ways our man-made plans for the future are probably doomed and in light of that we, as believers, have the opportunity to be perplexingly merry. This past Christmas, our family of six, who was spread out over three states, was able to be all together for about 24 hours. It wasn’t near enough time but we were thankful to be together. As we make plans to take a family vacation this summer, we have to set realistic expectations. With car trouble, work schedules, illness, and other unknown variables, what is the likelihood that our desire to be all together will be met? It’s probably doomed. If so, will I still find myself being merry? That is the promise of Psalm ...
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Counseling Yourself Through the Hard

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When we find ourselves in situations that tempt us to question the goodness of God (and I don’t mean when we can’t find our keys— although that is frustrating), we can respond in many ways. The situations we find ourselves in are common enough: a chronic illness, the death of a loved one, financial burden, broken relationships, a distant spouse, unsaved loved ones, and the evil and suffering we see around us everyday. If God is all-powerful, all-loving, and all-sovereign (which He is), then we must do battle with our own minds to believe and be thankful for this truth even when the circumstance right in front of us beckons us to believe otherwise.  Because we struggle with wanting our lives to turn out a certain way, we can respond to continued loss in a way that reveals what our hearts are worshipping. For some, the tragedy of their circumstances with what they believe about God cannot be reconciled. They begin to question God’s goodness and sometimes this leads to apostasy. This ...
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Help and Hope Amidst the Struggle with the Fear of Man

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In 1997, Ed Welch wrote a book titled When People Are Big and God Is Small: Overcoming Peer Pressure, Codependency, and the Fear of Man. 1 The fear of man is not an uncommon struggle. Indeed, it is a struggle, we may say, that everyone faces to some degree. Welch writes, “Fear of man is such a part of our human fabric that we should check for a pulse if someone denies it.” 2 Furthermore, this struggle manifests itself in numerous ways. Consider the following questions:   Have you ever struggled with peer pressure? Are you over-committed? Do you “need” something from your spouse? Is self-esteem a critical concern for you? Do you ever feel as if you might be exposed as an imposter? Are you always second-guessing decisions because of what other people might think? Do you get easily embarrassed? Do you ever lie, especially the little white lies? Are you jealous of other people? Do other people often make you angry or depressed? Do you avoid people? 3  Of course, we could a...
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Sanctity of Human Life Sunday is coming!

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What a blessing it will be, Lord willing, to bring Psalm 139:13-16 before you this Sunday--on Sanctity of Human Life Sunday. When preparing a sermon, there is so much to say, but one cannot get to everything. I'm leaving a small portion of my sermon here on the blog in case I can't get to it on Sunday. What is below is a screenshot of my manuscript. The screenshot speaks to how to lovingly and graciously talk to our friends who may have a pro-choice standpoint. Notice I say "friends" because they are made in God's image as well. They have a soul that we want to see come to know Christ as their Savior. With that in mind, I've come across the acronym SLED. Hope it is helpful! Ben Davidson
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Opportunities & Inconveniences: Making Best Use of the Time in 2024

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It was the end of the week and my paper was due on Monday. I had about 25% of my paper done; the rough draft that is. I had studied and mapped out the passage I was writing on in Ephesians chapter 5, but inevitably things came up and my laptop closed. With an appointment a few towns over - and in an effort to remove myself from distractions in my home - I decided to leave early and go to a coffee shop there. I set up my office-away-from-home and planned to spend several uninterrupted hours writing my paper. I had roughly 3 hours to spend at the coffee shop until my appointment would necessitate I leave. I was nearly one hour in with a lot of work yet before me when I noticed a woman in front of me. From my table I noticed her at the checkout aisle asking a lot of questions with her strong accent to the barista. After ordering, while she waited for her food, she began taking pictures of the coffee shop and menu with permission from the workers. When her food came she began taking pictur...
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Christmas and Loss

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For some, Christmas is a wonderful and joyful time, filled with family and friends and many fun festivities. For many, though, Christmas holds a mix of emotions including joy and pain. The mix of emotions is certainly true for our household. During the merriment and fun with our two children there is the reminder of two others who are not with us this Christmas. On our beautifully lit and decorated tree is an ornament placed annually as a testament to their absence. Even as I'm preparing this post and writing these things out, the emotions rise and tears flow as they always do when I get close to this subject . . .  The loss of loved ones comes in many different forms and with this holiday having such a family element to it, it is almost impossible to not experience some of the weightiness amid the joy. Honestly though, I remind myself that in some ways, this should not really be a surprise, for even the wonder and joy of the very first Christmas was the foreshadowing of suffering ...
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Pizza and Neighbors

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A couple of years ago, Jeff decided to get a pizza oven - his mid-life crisis purchase. He has enjoyed learning how to make pizzas and sharing his new found love with family and friends. This summer we prayerfully decided to do a once a month neighborhood pizza night in our driveway as a way to get to know our neighbors. We have lived in our home for 11 years and shamefully had not met many of our neighbors. We invited everyone on our street and those behind us on the other street. We put flyers in their doors not knowing if anyone would be interested. The first night, as we were setting up chairs and tables, we were anxious and felt a bit silly wondering if anyone would come. We were shocked to have 8 households show up and several we had never met before. We were surprised at how much they enjoyed meeting each other. We had neighbors and even their children asking us when the next pizza night was. The last pizza night of the summer, so many came that we ran out of pizza. I think Jeff...
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