07/03/2023
The Lord is my Constant Companion
Each week we are featuring a prayer that sets an
example for the answered prayer we are emphasizing. This
week we’ve got a prayer, based on the 23rd Psalm, which is
called: The Lord is my Constant Companion. I invite you to
make this prayer yours as you ask for God to give you peace.
You, O Lord, are my constant companion.
There is no need that You cannot fulfill.
Whether Your path for me points
to the mountaintops of majesty
or to the valleys of suffering,
continue to be by my side.
I hold You to Your promise to be beside me
when I walk the dark streets of danger,
even when I flirt with death itself,
I know You will not leave me.
When the pain is severe, Lord,
Be near with Your comfort.
When the burden is heavy,
Help me to lean upon You
And not try to carry it by myself.
When depression darkens my soul,
touch me with joy.
When I feel empty and alone,
fill my aching heart with Your power.
My security is in Your promise
to be near to me always,
and to remind me, over and over,
that You will never let me go.
Amen.
Archived Posts
One of the Longest Benedictions I Ran Out of Time to Share
Maybe you know the story of how Joseph and Mary accidentally left Jesus at the gas station on their way home from Jerusalem. Well, not the gas station bathroom in Jesus’ case. Joe and Mary are far down the road before they realize Jesus isn’t with them...
So many quips and quotes...
So little time to preach
I wonder what Mary and Martha’s phones might look like:
* Martha = the open browser with 27 tabs
* Mary = the single window that matters
* Psalm 46 = God saying, “Close the tabs.”
Quotable Outtakes That Didn’t Make the Sermon This Week
“When you try to control everything, you don’t just exhaust yourself—you quietly replace trust in God with trust in you.” & more
There is a challenge when it comes to preaching the Word of God.
Preachers are called to open up and interpret the word—inspired and written down thousands of years ago—and make it relevant to a very different world. On top of that there’s a degree of persuasion that goes along with the process.
What Jessica Really Meant to Say in Her Sermon…
When Jessica or Rick or a guest preacher takes the pulpit it’s hard for me to write a One More Thing Blog. I can’t share with you what didn’t make it into the sermon because I have no idea, not having written or delivered it.
Jesus Keeps On Ruining Funerals!
I didn’t have anything this last week that didn’t end up in the sermon. No catchy illustrations that didn’t make the cut. No theological insights that slowed down the main point. No one can ruin a funeral like Jesus. Told as I saw it and that was it. So I did some quick research and I thought I’d share just a reminder of what Easter is all about.
When I Don’t Get To Give My Benediction
Yesterday’s sermon talked about how we are in the thrall of self-centeredness—caught in a system that rewards those who climb to the top, even when you have to climb on the back of others. I talked about a famous sermon by Dr. Martin Luther King, ....