“This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. John 3:16

Lingering on the heights of Pentecost, Trinity Sunday prompts us to look once again at this deepest mystery of God, and adore. A searching Pharisee in the middle of the night is lead to the heart of Jesus.

The Trinity, not bound by our brains, is adored in our spirits. What the mind cannot grasp, the heart receives. God is community—Father, Son and Holy Spirit. God wants nothing less than the intimacy of community with the human family.

We have come to the middle of the church year. In Advent and Epiphany, we looked to the Father in preparing for the coming and manifestation of the Son. In Lent and Easter, we contemplated Jesus and his passage from death to life, which became our passage as well. Now the time of the Holy Spirit is here—Pentecost. Be ready for what the Spirit is going to do in your life!

John 3:1–17

We’re using The Message translation of the Scriptures.
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Sundays are dedicated to the Gospels from the Revised Common Lectionary.
In year B, we generally read from the Gospel of Mark.

For the next several weeks, the Firestarters will be from the original version of this program. For these Firestarters I recommend the ebook.  You will have the entire program of well over a thousand of these introductions with you on your phone or tablet. Check the menu options at the site for more information.

The presence of the Lord in the cloud by day and the fire by night: picture this abiding presence, and the direction that this presence will give. It is time for the Chosen People to move on from Sinai. The Law has been given. The tablets become part of the sacrament of God’s presence to them. Hear the sound of the trumpets as the lives of our ancestors are quickened. The Lord says, “It is time to move on.” There is joy when we know that the Lord is calling us to move forward in life.

In Revelations 8 to 12, the trumpets spark the final war in the heavens. There is a spiritual war waged on the battlefield of your own soul. However, Jesus won the victory already. May the cross go before you.

Numbers 9:15—10:34

We’re using The Message translation of the Scriptures.
Learn about this. unique translation

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The Saturday passages follow the reading list that Jewish people use in their synagogue worship
throughout the world. They are taken from
“The Torah,” the first five books of the Bible from Genesis to Deuteronomy
that are read each year beginning with autumn.

For the next several weeks, the Firestarters will be from the original version of this program. For these Firestarters I recommend the ebook.  You will have the entire program of well over a thousand of these introductions with you on your phone or tablet. Check the menu options at the site for more information.

As the Good News spreads, so does the opposition. Jesus’ family thinks he has gone out of his mind. Opposition of the scribes and Pharisees increases to the point of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, to conclude that Jesus’ miracles are the work of the devil. Jesus teaches that such a sin cannot be forgiven.

Do not be afraid of this. If you are reading God’s Word and want to grow in Christ, you are far from this devastating, pernicious, premeditated sin. However, we do live in a world that quietly mocks and disdains the gifts of the Lord. If there is not outright blasphemy, there is that indifference and lukewarmness that John said is worse than being cold to the Lord (Revelation 3:16).

Put on the mind of Christ and do not be afraid of those who think you are out of yours! 

Mark 3:20–35

The mid-range of the date of Easter (April 10 to 16) results in all four seasons being thirteen weeks long. When an early Easter shortens Epiphany by one or two weeks (very rarely three), then Pentecost is lengthened by the corresponding number of weeks. This is the case for this year; the 8th week in Epiphany “leaps ahead” to the beginning of the season of Pentecost–summer in the northern hemisphere.

We’re using The Message translation of the Scriptures.
Learn about this. unique translation

Create your own Bible Breaths Learn More…

Fridays are dedicated to the Gospels. This year, we generally read from the Gospel of Mark.

For the next several weeks, the Firestarters will be from the original version of this program. For these Firestarters I recommend the ebook.  You will have the entire program of well over a thousand of these introductions with you on your phone or tablet. Check the menu options at the site for more information.