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About John D. Willome

I post a blog of daily devotions that are my prayer journals based on scripture.

Roman 10:5-13

09 Mar

5 Moses writes concerning the righteousness that comes from the law, that “the person who does these things will live by them.” 6 But the righteousness that comes from faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say?

“The word is near you,
    in your mouth and in your heart”

(that is, the word of faith that we proclaim), 9 because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For one believes with the heart, leading to righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, leading to salvation. 11 The scripture says, “No one who believes in him will be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call on him. 13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Romans 10:5-13

Dear God, I never get excited about reading Romans. I probably should. I guess it just seems so academic to me. It feels like he’s teaching a class, and I cannot just take bits and pieces here and there like I prefer to do. For example, today, Sister Miriam just has verse 11 as her verse of meditation from Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation, but it’s really out of context without the verse around it. But then they are out of context without chapter 9. And when you go back to chapter 9, you realize it is a continuation from chapter 8. It’s just very verbose and almost cryptic. I’d rather someone like Paul, Peter, or John just beat me over the head with what they are saying instead of taking so many words to build the foundation and justification for their argument. Don’t get me wrong. I understand why they did it that way, and I think that way is right. It can just be hard for me to digest given how I tend to read scripture (which is probably wrong since these were mainly written as letters to groups of people or individuals).

So what is Sister Miriam trying to get me to focus on by just pulling out Romans 10:11?

On this first Sunday of Lent, we are led by the Spirit into the desert with Jesus…In the desert, things become very clear. We see our idols–the things we grasp at for salvation other than God. We see where we hide behind our fig leaves of self-righteousness and shame. We see where our sin has wreaked havoc in our lives and in the lives of others.

I had an email exchange with a friend whom I respect as a Godly man. He loves you. He is also very upset right now and some developments in the world. While we lament the same things, I feel like I am reminded time and again the last few years that there is a difference between despair and lament. As long as you are my God, I will not despair (except when I lose faith and I do, indeed, despair), but I will lament things that make me sad and concerned. And you use that lament to comfort me, motivate me, and draw me closer to yourself. If someone came along tomorrow and fixed everything that I am currently lamenting, I might be tempted to worship that person and turn my eyes from you. I might want to make them my idol. I like how Sister Miriam says, “In the desert, things become very clear. We see our idols.” Why does it often take a desert to reveal our idols? Maybe because we look to our idols to comfort us in the desert, and when they fail us (and they will always fail us eventually) we see them for what they are. Or at least you are trying to reveal them for what they are. We just have to be willing to let go of them and allow the Holy Spirit to help us see them as you see them.

Father, I know I still have idols I’m not aware of. My bank account and how much is in it is an idol. I’m sure it is. I know how I feel if I have different amounts in it. A lot makes me happier. Just a little makes me fearful. So it’s certainly in there somewhere. And I know there are other idols. I know I can look to see who is or isn’t in any given political office and make it an idol to get my person in that position one way or another. But that is fool-hearted. One I’ve talked to you about in the past is my interest or need for the U.S. military to be the strongest in the world so I will feel safe. But am I really safe? Do I need to be safe? My nice little neighborhood in my small town can be a place where I find refuge instead of finding my refuge in you. The examples are everywhere. I confess them to you this morning, in this desert place. Be glorified. You are my God.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 9, 2025 in Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation, Romans

 

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Psalm 69:16

08 Mar

Psalm 69

Prayer for Deliverance from Persecution

To the leader: according to Lilies. Of David.

1 Save me, O God,
    for the waters have come up to my neck.
2 I sink in deep mire,
    where there is no foothold;
I have come into deep waters,
    and the flood sweeps over me.
3 I am weary with my crying;
    my throat is parched.
My eyes grow dim
    with waiting for my God.

4 More in number than the hairs of my head
    are those who hate me without cause;
many are those who would destroy me,
    my enemies who accuse me falsely.
What I did not steal,
    must I now restore?
5 O God, you know my folly;
    the wrongs I have done are not hidden from you.

6 Do not let those who hope in you be put to shame because of me,
    O Lord God of hosts;
do not let those who seek you be dishonored because of me,
    O God of Israel.
7 It is for your sake that I have borne reproach,
    that shame has covered my face.
8 I have become a stranger to my kindred,
    an alien to my mother’s children.

9 It is zeal for your house that has consumed me;
    the insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.
10 When I humbled my soul with fasting,[a]
    they insulted me for doing so.
11 When I made sackcloth my clothing,
    I became a byword to them.
12 I am the subject of gossip for those who sit in the gate,
    and the drunkards make songs about me.

13 But as for me, my prayer is to you, O Lord.
    At an acceptable time, O God,
    in the abundance of your steadfast love, answer me.
With your faithful help 14 rescue me
    from sinking in the mire;
let me be delivered from my enemies
    and from the deep waters.
15 Do not let the flood sweep over me
    or the deep swallow me up
    or the Pit close its mouth over me.

16 Answer me, O Lord, for your steadfast love is good;
    according to your abundant mercy, turn to me.
17 Do not hide your face from your servant,
    for I am in distress—make haste to answer me.
18 Draw near to me; redeem me;
    set me free because of my enemies.

19 You know the insults I receive
    and my shame and dishonor;
    my foes are all known to you.
20 Insults have broken my heart,
    so that I am in despair.
I looked for pity, but there was none;
    and for comforters, but I found none.
21 They gave me poison for food,
    and for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.

22 Let their table be a trap for them,
    a snare for their allies.
23 Let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see,
    and make their loins tremble continually.
24 Pour out your indignation upon them,
    and let your burning anger overtake them.
25 May their camp be a desolation;
    let no one live in their tents.
26 For they persecute those whom you have struck down,
    and those whom you have wounded they attack still more.[b]
27 Add guilt to their guilt;
    may they have no acquittal from you.
28 Let them be blotted out of the book of the living;
    let them not be enrolled among the righteous.
29 But I am lowly and in pain;
    let your salvation, O God, protect me.

30 I will praise the name of God with a song;
    I will magnify him with thanksgiving.
31 This will please the Lord more than an ox
    or a bull with horns and hoofs.
32 Let the oppressed see it and be glad;
    you who seek God, let your hearts revive.
33 For the Lord hears the needy
    and does not despise his own who are in bonds.

34 Let heaven and earth praise him,
    the seas and everything that moves in them.
35 For God will save Zion
    and rebuild the cities of Judah,
and his servants shall live[c] there and possess it;
36     the children of his servants shall inherit it,
    and those who love his name shall live in it.

Dear God, this is the passage for today’s Lenten meditation from Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation. Sister Miriam has us focusing on verse 16, but as I read the psalm this morning, it was verse 6 that struck me:

6 Do not let those who hope in you be put to shame because of me,
    O Lord God of hosts;
do not let those who seek you be dishonored because of me,
    O God of Israel.

I want to love you. I want to love others. But one thing that scares me is leading others who earnestly love you astray. Or leading those who are earnestly seeking you astray. Or just having some failing that comes back on you and on those around me who worship you. I have a friend who is becoming a good friend. He is a pastor. I have my little pieces of theology that go against the grain and can be considered kind of weird. And I could be incredibly wrong. I have found myself regretting saying some things about what I think to him because, if it is heresy, I don’t want to lead him down the wrong path and away from you.

Father, I am about to spend time today with that very friend, a relative, and many other men as we hear encouragement about what boys in our world need to be a man in today’s culture. I confess I am skeptical of the topic and what will be taught. But with this reading today, I want to be careful about how I share that. I want to be careful how I love them, love the boys in my life, and love my own children, who are now grown. I certainly made mistakes in their lives. I might have done things that put a wedge between them and you, I don’t know. But I know that I have this day. This moment. Help me to be very careful in it.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 8, 2025 in Psalms

 

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Collect for Mass of the Day (Thursday after Ash Wednesday)

07 Mar 
Prompt our actions with your inspiration, we pray, O Lord
And further them with your constant help
That all we do may always begin from you
And by you be brought to completion

Collect for Mass of the Day (Thursday after Ash Wednesday)

Dear God, I accidentally did the wrong day yesterday. I skipped a day in Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation. I did today’s yesterday. Oops. So let me back up and get yesterday’s meditation.

I remember 23 years ago, after having been inspired to leave a safe job to venture out and follow you blindly, listening to another guy talk (or maybe I read it) and he was talking about being in the middle of your will. He said that there was a moment in his life when he had followed you faithfully, and he knew that he knew that he knew he was doing something weird but he was doing exactly what you wanted him to do. It’s what he said next that stuck with me: “Knowing I was in God’s will in that moment made me not want to cross the street if I thought it wasn’t in his will.”

Knowing your will is hard because my will can be a powerful influencer over me. I can justify just about anything I want as being your will. I recently purchased a new vehicle and part of how I justified it to myself was that we were selling our old vehicle, which ran fine, really cheap to a sweet family that could use it. Surely that was in your will, right? Well, I don’t know, but I sure used that to justify it to myself whenever I had misgivings.

To quote Sister Miriam from the book: “During Lent, the Lord is calling us to something very intimate–far beyond the mere surface of ‘praying more’ or ‘giving up dessert.’ He is calling us into union with him in the heart. This is why we must allow the Lord to prompt our actions with his inspiration and further them with his help. We are not making the journey of Lent on our own or from our own will. We are being led by the Lord as the Holy Spirit led Jesus out into the desert.”

Father, lead me today. There were a couple of times yesterday when I felt you answering my prayer from yesterday morning about sharing the piece of you I know with others and receiving that piece they know back from them. You are good. You are so good. There is so much of you to know. Help me to know you just a little better today, and lead me into the center of your will, whether I end up there intentionally or accidentally.

In pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 7, 2025 in Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation

 

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Psalm 30

06 Mar

Psalm 30

Thanksgiving for Recovery from Grave Illness

A Psalm. A Song at the dedication of the temple. Of David.

1 I will extol you, O Lord, for you have drawn me up
    and did not let my foes rejoice over me.
2 O Lord my God, I cried to you for help,
    and you have healed me.
3 O Lord, you brought up my soul from Sheol,
    restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit.

4 Sing praises to the Lord, O you his faithful ones,
    and give thanks to his holy name.
5 For his anger is but for a moment;
    his favor is for a lifetime.
Weeping may linger for the night,
    but joy comes with the morning.

6 As for me, I said in my prosperity,
    “I shall never be moved.”
7 By your favor, O Lord,
    you had established me as a strong mountain;
you hid your face;
    I was dismayed.

8 To you, O Lord, I cried,
    and to the Lord I made supplication:
9 “What profit is there in my death,
    if I go down to the Pit?
Will the dust praise you?
    Will it tell of your faithfulness?
10 Hear, O Lord, and be gracious to me!
    O Lord, be my helper!”

11 You have turned my mourning into dancing;
    you have taken off my sackcloth
    and clothed me with joy,
12 so that my soul may praise you and not be silent.
    O Lord my God, I will give thanks to you forever.

Dear God, a psalm of reorientation. That’s what this is. I thought about Walter Brueggemann’s classifications for psalms as I read that this morning, and also as I saw the heading for this psalm the compiler of Psalms provided. Things were good, then they were bad, now they are good again because you provided. I was oriented, I was disoriented for a time, and now I am reoriented in a wiser, better position that I was before the disorientation. I’ve lived this psalm. I am still living it in some ways. In some ways I am oriented. There are parts of my life that are disoriented, and I still can’t make sense of them. And then there are areas in which I am reoriented and wiser than I was before. I suppose that is the journey I will continue to be on as long as I am here.

Sister Miriam James Heidland, the author of Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation focused on verse 10 today: “Hear, O Lord, and be gracious to me! O Lord, be my helper.” That is the cry of a lot of hearts right now. It is the cry of people in war zones. It is the cry of victims of domestic abuse, human trafficking, the poor, the sick, parents, etc. It is the cry of so many.

Here is a quote from Sr. Miriam’s entry for today on this verse that resonates with me: “Each person’s relationship with Christ is unique and unrepeatable. As God loves each of us in a way he loves no other person, so too we love God in a way that no one else loves God. The shape of our heart is precious to him; he knows the distinct contours that belong to us alone.”

Father, one of the reasons I like to be around other Christians is that I get to know they God they know. And I get to share with them the God I know. The piece of you that I feel like is unique to me. The pieces of you that is unknown to me, but they can share. Thank you for…well, everything. Thank you for everything, Father. Thank you for everything, Jesus. Thank you for everything, Holy Spirit. May I use everything you’ve given me to honor you and take the piece of you I know about to others.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 6, 2025 in Psalms, Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation

 

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Wisdom 11:21-26

05 Mar

21 For it is always in your power to show great strength,
and who can withstand the might of your arm?
22 Because the whole world before you is like a speck that tips the scales
and like a drop of morning dew that falls on the ground.
23 But you are merciful to all, for you can do all things,
and you overlook people’s sins, so that they may repent.
24 For you love all things that exist
and detest none of the things that you have made,
for you would not have formed anything if you had hated it.
25 How would anything have endured if you had not willed it?
Or how would anything not called forth by you have been preserved?
26 You spare all things, for they are yours, O Lord, you who love the living.

Wisdom 11:21-26

Dear God, my wife and I have decided to use a Lenten devotional book together called Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation that a friend gave her. Since she’s Catholic and her friend is Catholic the books is Catholic as well. I’m actually interested to see what kinds of things might be outside of my experience. What scriptures from the Catholic Bible will be new. In this case, we are starting off with something from Wisdom. Okay. I’m in. What do you have for me this morning from Wisdom?

When I read this, I think about your restrained power. I saw a YouTube video yesterday of actors being asked, “If there is a heaven, what do you hope God says to you when you arrive?” In it, Dustin Hoffman leads off by quoting Robert DeNiro in saying, “If there is a God, he’s got a lot of explaining to do.”

My thoughts immediately went to Job and your words to him starting in chapter 38. Who are we to question you. You owe me no explanation. You owe me nothing.

But then I also thought about kind of my age-old questions when people complain about how you work: “How would you prefer God act?” Do we want you to smite and kill evildoers? Well, what if my sins put me on the wrong side of that line? Do we expect you to stop all natural disasters and question why you didn’t make the earth completely stable and safe for us? That doesn’t seem reasonable. Do we want you to eliminate all illness? I don’t think we want to never die. That doesn’t make sense. Do we want you to eliminate all injustice and harm we do to each other like human trafficking, war, etc.? Maybe that should be our responsibility. I guess I would ask Mr. Hoffman and Mrs. DeNiro what you have to answer for and how they would prefer you handle it.

Father, there is a lot of anger in people out there, and I’m sorry it gets misdirected at you. I know that is Satan’s plan, and it’s a good plan. And I know I’ve blamed you for things. There have been times when I haven’t liked how you get things done. I haven’t liked your plan. But you are my God. I am your creation. You owe me nothing. I owe you everything. And yet, as Wisdom puts it here, you show such restraint! You overlook my sins so I have a chance to repent. You could smite the whole lot of us, but you don’t. Thank you, Father. And thank you for the reconciliation you gave to all of us through the journey of Jesus. The entire journey of a piece of you. From before creation to this moment, you made a way for all of us. You made a way for me. You have done more than I could ever have asked you to. I love you.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

P.S. I forgot to read the commentary for this passage from the book. The first paragraph is important: “Here we begin, dear friends. Ash Wednesday. Our foreheads are marked with the blackness of death while the words ‘Repent and believe in the gospel’ or ‘Remember that you are dust, and to dust you shall return’ are spoken over us.” That’s a nice humble reminder of our place in this world and your creation as well. Why do any of us think we deserve your goodness. We don’t. You freely give it. You freely love us. But it’s not something that you owe us. So here I am to worship you with nothing to offer but the life you gave me.

 
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Posted by on March 5, 2025 in Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation, Wisdom

 

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Mark 10:17-28

04 Mar

17 As Jesus was starting out on his way to Jerusalem, a man came running up to him, knelt down, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

18 “Why do you call me good?” Jesus asked. “Only God is truly good. 19 But to answer your question, you know the commandments: ‘You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. You must not cheat anyone. Honor your father and mother.’[e]”

20 “Teacher,” the man replied, “I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was young.”

21 Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him. “There is still one thing you haven’t done,” he told him. “Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

22 At this the man’s face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.

23 Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God!” 24 This amazed them. But Jesus said again, “Dear children, it is very hard[f] to enter the Kingdom of God. 25 In fact, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!”

26 The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked.

27 Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But not with God. Everything is possible with God.”

28 Then Peter began to speak up. “We’ve given up everything to follow you,” he said.

Mark 10:17-28

Dear God, Peter reveals in verse 28 that they all had the same question this man had: What must I do to inherit eternal life? The same is true today. This can be a preoccupation for some. It can be what everything is all about. Why do I worship God? So I can have eternal life. Why do I do nice things for others? Go to church? Because I think there is a carrot for me at the end of it. There is eternal bliss. Power.

So why am I here this morning? Is that my goal? Am I trying to check a box and justify myself to you like Peter did in verse 28? Or am I just here to worship the God of the universe? Am I here because this is where I find peace, comfort, and direction for my life? Like most things in my life, the majority of the time I am here for the right reasons, but I know there are times when I’m here because I’m trying to justify myself before you.

Father, you are my God. I worship you. My life is worth nothing to me (mostly). At least, I want my life to be worth nothing to me. If the reality is that I lived this one life on earth and I used it to worship you and love others and there is no eternal reward at the end of it, then I’m okay with that. It’s not about me anyway. It’s about you. I don’t know what being with you one day will be like. “I can only imagine.” But I trust you that, if that is what you have for me, then it will be an existence that transcends everything I can know now. And I recognize that I will be the least in your new earth. But I welcome that if it means I get to keep worshipping you. So, for however many days I have left on earth, I offer then to you with no reservations or regrets. Prepare my heart today for Ash Wednesday and the Lenten season. Be glorified through me.

I pray all of this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 4, 2025 in Mark

 

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Isaiah 55:8-9

03 Mar

8 “My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord.
    “And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.
9 For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,
    so my ways are higher than your ways
    and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

Isaiah 55:8-9

Dear God, this kind of goes back to what I was praying yesterday about comparing who you are to us by comparing who we are to dogs. And the distance between you and us is infinitely greater that the distance between me and a dog, but it’s at least a metaphor I can get my head around a bit.

The interesting thing is that, while your ways are far beyond anything I can imagine, I am on a journey of discovering just a little more of you each day. Learning how to love you. Learning how to love others. Learning how to choose to not be cruel or mean out of spite. Learning to forgive.

I thought this morning about something that I heard someone say back when I was in school. Maybe high school. They were talking about mathematics and how mathematicians had come up with different formulas for solving different problems. But what they said that stuck with me was, “It makes you wonder: Is mathematics something we create to solve problems, or is it something that already exists that we are discovering?” That’s you, God. You aren’t something I’ve created, but you are certainly something that I am discovering just a little more each day.

Father, I have some friends who are afraid and frustrated right now. Afraid for their children. Afraid for their parents. It might be health-related. It might be addiction. It might simply be bad choices. So I offer each situation up to you in prayer. Be a powerful healer. Be a powerful God. Draw them into yourself. Don’t let this pain be wasted. Make it count. Make it count for your glory. Help me to be the mean you need me to be in each situation I encounter. Help me to be an agent of your love, grace, and mercy. Help me to encourage others to draw closer to you.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 3, 2025 in Isaiah

 

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Luke 6:37-42

02 Mar

37 “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven. 38 Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.”

39 Then Jesus gave the following illustration: “Can one blind person lead another? Won’t they both fall into a ditch? 40 Students are not greater than their teacher. But the student who is fully trained will become like the teacher.

41 “And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? 42 How can you think of saying, ‘Friend, let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye.

Luke 6:37-42

Dear God, I’m not sure I’ve ever put the whole “blind leading the blind” part of this speech by Jesus with the part about not judging people, but it’s right in the middle of it.

What a weird God you are! Don’t you realize you have all of this power you could use to just zap any of us or anything? Everything. In my head, I’m going back to the illustration a local pastor did a couple of Christmases ago about the incarnation when he compared humans on earth to a planet of ravenous dogs who needed saving. As I sit and think about your love and mercy to us, I think about my wife’s and my dog. She is not the smartest we’ve ever owned, but she’s awfully sweet. And we are sweet to her even though we have all of the “power” in the relationship. We love on her. We greet her warmly in the morning. We take her out for walks. We take her to the park. We feed her regularly and even pick up her poop, whether she poops in public or in our yard. We lie on the floor with her and cuddle with her. We will bring her onto the sofa and cuddle with her there too. And for the first time with all of the pets we’ve owned, we will take her on trips with us. We want her with us. We love her. Yes, we have all of the power in our relationship. Yes, we could be cruel to her, and we have nothing compelling us to be extra good to her beyond it being illegal for us to be abusive to her, not feed her and not give her an opportunity to go to the bathroom. But we are comfortable with ourselves. We have nothing to prove. And we know that our home will be more harmonious–we will be more harmonious–if we show her the love she deserves as our pet.

So, in a weird way, that is you with us. Yes, you put this world in motion and we are living in it, but that’s not enough for you. You want to know us. You want to be kind to us. And as much as I get frustrated if other dogs are aggressive with her or mean to her at the dog park–or if she is the same way with them, which is almost never–you get frustrated with me when I am mean to someone, judgmental, or even blind and leading them astray out of my ignorance and am acting out of my judgment that they need my ignorant “wisdom” to improve their life.

Father, I get to talk about the nonprofit where I work this morning at a church. Ostensibly, I’m going there to inspire them to give money to us for our work, but I want it to be more. I want to help bring people out of their ignorance when it comes to the opportunity to love their neighbors. So give me your words for your people this morning. I am too ignorant to know what they need. I am just a little person who touches a little piece of our society that most of them don’t touch. Help me to share that piece of your creation with them, and use involvement with our work to bring them joy.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 2, 2025 in Luke

 

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“Trees We’ll Never See” by Amy Grant

01 Mar

“Trees We’ll Never See” by Amy Grant

Good sweet earth
Sleeves rolled up and hands buried in the dirt
I can see you there in one of dad’s old shirts
Showin’ me how life’s supposed to work

Good straight lines
You need seed and sweat and soil and sweet sunshine
And once those roots take hold, you’ll be just fine

It’s a beautiful design
It just takes love (love) and faith (faith) and grace, a little time

We’re all sons and daughters, just ripples on the water
Tryna make it matter until our time to leave
One day, they’ll carve your name in stone
And send your soul on home
‘Til then it’s prayin’ for rain and pullin’ up the weeds
Plantin’ trees we’ll never see

First day of spring
The whole world’s wakin’ up and turnin’ green
And everything connects to everything

It’s a beautiful design
It just takes love and faith and grace, a little time

We’re all sons and daughters, just ripples on the water
Tryna make it matter until our time to leave
One day, they’ll carve your name in stone
And send your soul on home
‘Til then it’s prayin’ for rain and pullin’ up the weeds
Plantin’ trees we’ll never see

Statues fall and glory fades
But a 100-year-old oak tree still gives shade

We’re all sons and daughters, just ripples on the water
Tryna make it matter, until our time to leave
One day, they’ll carve our name in stone
And send our souls on home
‘Til then it’s prayin’ for rain and pullin’ up the weeds
‘Til then it’s prayin’ for rain and pullin’ up the weeds
Plantin’ trees we’ll never see

Trees we’ll never see

Source: Musixmatch

Songwriters: Michael White / Marshall Altman

Dear God, well, I would have lost the song-selection BINGO I wanted to play last night, coming up with the songs I thought Amy Grant would play for her concert. She did nothing from her first three albums, which really surprised me (“Old Man’s Rubble,” “My Father’s Eyes,” “Walking Away with You”). But some of the songs she released since I followed her career closely were lovely. This is the one that really struck me.

So much of my life–of every life–is about the seeds we plant that we never see the fruit from. And some of those seeds die. Some fall on the path. Some on the rocks. Some in the vines and thorns. But for those seeds that find the good soil… Well, that fruit can be stunning.

I remember when my kids were young and I would pray that the good seeds we were planting would find good soil and grow. Perhaps I should have prayed against the bad seeds we planted. That they would land on the path or in the rocks. But I still pray for the good seeds my wife and I tried to plant. That some of them are still in there. Still growing. Maybe dormant. Maybe I can’t see it above the soil. Not that I don’t see tons of good fruit in their lives and I know you had us have a role in planting. Especially my wife. She’s such a great woman. And our children have amazing and wonderful strengths. Oh, Father, continue to love them and grow them into people who are wholly yours. For their significant others. For the people around them who invest into their lives. I pray that you will live in and speak through all of them. Fill them all with your Spirit.

Father, I might not live to see all of the fruit from the seeds my life has planted. Both the good fruit and the bad fruit. That’s what the weeding is about, I suppose. I certainly made mistakes. I continue to make them. But my heart is to worship you with everything I have, love others, and then that will be enough for me. I don’t have to see the fruit. I don’t have to see the results. In fact, that is zero chance I will know all of the effects of my life. That’s good. Because it’s not about me. It’s about you. Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 1, 2025 in Hymns and Songs

 

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2 Timothy 1:5-7

28 Feb

5 I remember your genuine faith, for you share the faith that first filled your grandmother Lois and your mother, Eunice. And I know that same faith continues strong in you. 6 This is why I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave you when I laid my hands on you. 7 For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.

2 Timothy 1:5-7

Dear God, “…fan into flames the spiritual gift God Gave you…” That is where my head is this morning. Frankly, it reminds me of what I was taking about yesterday with Amy Grant’s song “1974.” Ostensibly singing of the day of her conversion almost 15 years before, she was hoping the passion that night wouldn’t fade. I guess I’ll get to see at least a little of how she is doing tonight when we see her in concert. Of course, she will show the audience what she wants to show the audience, but I think even what she wants to show us will speak volumes about her and where she is now. Will she be vulnerable and share her weaknesses and struggles? Will she just put on a plastic “Jesus loves us” faith? Will it be somewhere in between. I’m expecting somewhere in between, which I think will be appropriate. We don’t deserve to know all of her struggles, but I do think there is strength for us if she shares with us the fact that it hasn’t all been rosy over the last 51 years, since 1974.

So going back into fanning the flames. And what are my spiritual gifts. I feel like these daily prayer journals are key to be keeping the embers of the fire going. The provide a foundation for the fire to ensure it doesn’t go out. At the same time, what do I do extra to fan the flame? Am I doing enough? Am I putting myself in a position to be inspired and challenged by fellow Christians, good teachers, and opportunities to serve others? I think those are the ways for me to fan this faith. It’s not enough for me to be here praying to you. And it’s not enough to do those other things and not pray regularly. I need it all.

Father, help me to know how to love you and love your creation, starting with the woman you created for me to share my life with. Help me to know how to love everyone around me. Show me what to do and what not to do. For those who are most precious to me, I pray that you will pour yourself into them. I pray that they will feel your love and your peace. I pray that they will be in a position in their lives where you Spirit will grow in them and produce the fruit you designed us to produce. Do it for their sakes and not mine. Be glorified in all our lives.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on February 28, 2025 in 2 Timothy

 

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