On July 18 of this year, Jewish people celebrate the Ninth of Av, the date in the Jewish calendar, which recalls the destruction of the two Temples in Jerusalem. It is a day of mourning and sadness for all of us, for the way in which the forces of darkness seek to reduce God’s presence to rubble in the world.

For Christians, the various attempts to eradicate the temple of the living God in the members of Christ’s body, the New Temple, is our way of sharing in the losses of our ancestors. Yet what martyr is celebrated with sadness! They live on in the temple in the heavenly Jerusalem.

The flow of mourning in this chapter is suddenly interrupted by verses 22–23. The late Thomas Chisholm, a former member of The First United Methodist Church in Vineland, N.J. (where I serve as pastor from 2000 to 2008), composed the famous hymn “Great Is Thy Faithfulness.” He beautifully expresses the profound feelings of the writer of Lamentations.

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Mondays are dedicated to the reading of the Hebrew Prophets.
In this season we read Hosea; in the 9th week, we read Lamentations 3.

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.

Here we go is again—wilderness and hunger. Does Jesus flash back to the desert and the forty-day fast, tempted by the devil to turn rocks into bread for himself? No, today will be different—no food for himself, but for others; no rocks will be magically turned to bread, but a boy’s small lunch explodes to feed a crowd.

Bring what you have to the Lord. God has made you good; the Lord will multiply your goodness so you too can feed a multitude. However, first nourish your spirit with the Word of the Lord, handing you miracle bread of his life right now. Walk with Jesus on top of the turbulent waters of your life. He will bring you through a new Exodus to life on the other side of anguish and pain.

John 6:1–21

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Sundays are dedicated to the Gospels from the Revised Common Lectionary.
In year B, we read from the Gospel of Mark. However, from today until the last Sunday
in Pentecost, we’ll be following the lectionary which offers these Sundays
from the 6th chapter of the Gospel of John.

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 Ten Commandments are not impassioned principles of law from an impersonal ruler of the universe. The Commandments set the basic boundaries and terms of the covenant relation that the Lord is offering to us. If you want to have a life with God, then here is what not to do so that this can occur.

The People of God knew what would happen if God spoke directly to them; they would die. Hence, Moses was a mediator for them. We have a Mediator in Jesus who is both God and man. He makes the connection through the Holy Spirit from the heart of God to yours. Receive the Ten Commandments warmly and reflect on them deeply.

Deuteronomy 5—6

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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.