I have been reading through Charles Spurgeon's Morning and Evening and it has been a very helpful and edifying experience for me. Over the years I have heard so many people quote Spurgeon in sermons and realized that while I'm always helped by their quoting of him, I have very rarely read anything by him. When we moved last year we found a copy in a box of books and I'm so glad we kept it. Here is what Mr. Spurgeon has to say about our (seemingly) unanswered prayers. I hope it encourages you this morning like it did me.
Friday is for Food: Grilled Dijon Chicken
It's grilling season around here. Well, actually it was such a warm winter that it never stopped being grilling season. Earlier this week I made this chicken and we really liked it. I can't remember where I got the recipe, but I'm pretty sure I adapted it from something I read on a website a few years ago. So here it is!
Love the Church
I've heard it said a number of times from young people (and old people), "I really love doing ministry for Jesus, but I just don't see the importance of being super involved in my church." It's really easy to separate the two, especially in a world where there are many really good organizations out there that, while not connnected to any particular church, are doing things in the name of Jesus.
A Tale of Two Responses
How would you respond if you were in constant fear for your life, abandoned by everyone you thought were loyal to you, and were stuck hiding in a cave? How do you respond when the storms of life come? Maybe you aren’t in fear for your life, but you might have just received some really bad news. Or maybe you have been asking God to deliver you from a particular trial for a number of years and he seems to be answering the opposite of what you are praying for. Does it cause you to abandon your hope in God?
Pain in Childbearing
I’ve been in the thick of lesson planning these past few months. As a first semester teacher, my prep is never done. And since I’m teaching a marriage and family class, we covered some basic foundational truths related to God’s design for marriage in the first few weeks of class. Obviously you can’t teach these things without talking about the reality of sin early on. The Bible doesn’t get very far before sin comes on the scene, so it only made sense that we went where the Bible went as we began.
Friday is for Fotos: An Awkward Video
Strength in Weakness
A couple of years ago a girl I knew faced a period of tremendous heartache with miscarriage, infertility, and the late pregnancy loss of her baby girl. As she commented on her period of grief she remarked that it was really hard for her when people told her that she must be a strong person to be able to handle such loss. For her, the feelings she felt in the aftermath of her losses were anything but strong. She felt weak, vulnerable, and overwhelmed by the pressure that as a strong person she should face this trial with her head held high, when she really just wanted to crumble up in a ball and cry in the corner.
Something to Cling To
"In the darkest night of the soul, Christians have something to hang onto that Job never knew. We know Christ crucified. Christians have learned that when there seems to be no other evidence of God's love, they cannot escape the cross. 'He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he now also, along with him, graciously give us all things?'" (Romans 8:32)
Creation Glorifies God
Rarely do I stop and marvel at God’s creation. When I drive around I’m usually focused on where I’m going or what I want to do next. When I run all I can think about is how much longer I have to run. I go from my car to the apartment without ever taking in the beauty of the world around me. I’ve never been one to be super aware of nature, and growing up in a big city only heightened my ignorance to it all. Skyscrapers and concrete have a way of sidelining the beauty of green trees and flowers.
The Complete Gospel
I’m pretty sure there are two types of people: those who see themselves as too bad or too sinful for salvation, and those who see themselves as capable and not bad enough. When I heard people talk about “works righteousness” or trying to save themselves by their good behavior I would often think to myself “that’s not me.” And it wasn’t. You see, I have long struggled with a form of morbid introspection that only intensifies the more sinful I feel. This introspection leads to overwhelming guilt which then often leads to despair. In these moments I can’t see the gospel as good news for me. I don’t believe God’s promises are true in my life. And I don’t trust that the blood of Jesus actually covers sin like mine. I’m too bad. I’m too broken. I’m just too sinful.