Daily Devotions
New devotions are posted Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
Keep Our Doors Open
Today’s author is Prince of Peace’s Intentional Interim, Pastor Steve Sylvester.
As I stand in the pastor’s study here at Prince of Peace on Wednesday morning, I am hearing the “squeak, squeak, squeak” of tricycle wheels on the gym floor across the hallway. Along with the squeaky wheels in need of grease there are excited yelps, background chatter and the occasional sleep deprived squall. In order to hear all of this, and to see the “So good to see you again!” drop offs and the “Did you have fun today?” pick ups, I keep my door open.
Considering that I am actually working—reading and writing emails, studying Scripture in preparation for writing my sermon tomorrow, etc.—it’s fair to ask why I would invite these distractions. My answer is that they are not distractions. They are not distractions because I am listening to God, and most of the time, listening to God means paying special attention to the simple realities of everyday life.
As I listen to God through the interactions across the hallway, I am reminded—no, I am put on notice—that the decisions I make must be more about those children than about myself. Seventh Generation decisions would, of course, be ideal, but at the very least I need to act on behalf of the children two generations behind me who are already here.
This kind of listening and acting doesn’t come naturally for congregations. For example, a church I served in the past paid for the “Pastor for Senior Ministries” out of the general budget, but the salary of the Director of Confirmation Ministry was mostly offset by fees paid by parents. This “pay for what you need” model of support made perfect sense in the context of our consumer economy, but it did not make sense if one took the time actually to listen to God.
Am I passive-aggressively saying something here to the good people of Prince of Peace? No. I’m from Missouri, so if I have something to say to you, I’ll say it to you directly. What I will say directly is that it is well for us to remember to keep our doors and our ears open.
Previously…
Beyond our Fears
The study of Revelation has been a great adventure—some will rejoice to hear that we are getting close to the culmination of the prophecy of John to the seven churches of Asia Minor.
Defeated the Dragon!
Meditating upon Revelation 13 in the scriptures the past few weeks, I honestly have never gotten so many revelations and parallels to other scripture in the Word as I have this one! Thank You, Lord! I pray that you also will be enlightened by the Holy Spirits’ divine knowledge and He speaks Truth to your heart as we dive into His Word!
A Rev Review, part 2
What an impressive image, this messenger of God! I think of the theophanies of God in Exodus: the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night assuring the Israelites of God’s presence guiding them through the wilderness; the rumbling thunder on Mt Sinai; and how Moses’ face was shining when he came down the mountain from God’s presence, his face shining with God’s glory.
A Rev Review
We’ve spent the month of July getting to know the Book of Revelation a bit and still have a couple more weeks to go with it. Such a strange book! Many a time that has been said this past month! Do you still feel a bit confused and not sure what to think about it? Maybe a recap at this point would be helpful.