Does God Know You?

Posted on July 20, 2025 by Barbara Harper

Some of the scariest Bible verses to me are Matthew 7:21-23:

Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.

The people here were doing and saying “religious” things, even calling Jesus Lord. But He professed not to know them.

Of course, He is omniscient. He knows everything about everyone. But He doesn’t know these people in the sense of having a relationship with them.

How can this be?

Many passages talk about doing, not just hearing, the Word of God. But the reverse is true as well. It’s possible to do religious things without knowing God at all. The Pharisees were famous for knowing the Old Testament law but missing the point of it.

It’s possible to grow up in or become part of Christian culture without really knowing the Lord.

How can we know that we know Him and He knows us?

Psalm 1:6 says, “The Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.” That righteousness isn’t our own–we could never measure up to the perfect righteousness required. “We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.” (Isaiah 64:6).

Philippians 1:11 speaks of the “righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ.” Only He is righteous enough. And He graciously gives His righteousness to us when we repent of our sins and believe in Him.

He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed (1 Peter 2:24).

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthian 5:21).

He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life (Titus 3:5-7).

“The Lord knows those who are his” (2 Timothy 2:19). He’s the good shepherd who knows His sheep (John 10:14). He “knows those who take refuge in him” (Nahum 1:7).

Do you know God? Does He know you?

Please read here for more information.

(I often link up with some of these bloggers.)

Laudable Linkage

Posted on July 19, 2025 by Barbara Harper

Here are some good reads found this week:

Sometimes, Worship Should Be Hard. “We plan our worship services several months in advance. We choose themes for each service and discuss how to introduce them. Last Sunday, our chosen theme was ‘Our Good God.’ In the canon of worship themes we use, the goodness of God is not as difficult to explain as something like transcendence or immanence. But on Sunday, July 6, 2025, it was hard. As we filed into the church and greeted one another, nearly 100 people were still missing due to flash floods in Texas.”

Trying to Make Sense of Bad Things that Happen, HT to Challies. “Most people find it pretty easy to accept that the good things which happen are from the hand of God. But we find it hard to accept any bad, tragic, or painful experiences that come our way. Can they really be from God? Are they really under his governance? Can they really be for a good purpose? The Bible says, ‘Yes, they are. Yes, they can.'”

Boaz: A Pillar of Leadership. Boaz is one of my favorite OT people. “Boaz wasn’t a king, prophet, or warrior. He was a businessman and landowner, yet he exemplified godly leadership. His leadership wasn’t flashy, but it was faithful. It wasn’t about personal gain but about a godly impact. So, what made Boaz a leader worth emulating?”

Leviticus and the Right Hand of Fellowship, HT to Challies. “What we fail to realise is the catechetical nature of the book of Leviticus. As the centre point (and, I would argue, climax) of the Torah or Teaching, its goal is not to simply lay down a law to live by, or to provide fodder for debates over what verses we use. The goal of Leviticus is teaching. And it is hands on teaching much like that of a missionary landing in foreign culture.”

Staying Afloat in Summer. A mom of a newly-graduated high school student looks back at ways she wished she had handled summers.

When You’re Dreading Monday Mornings, HT to Redeeming Productivity. “Maybe you’re currently in a job you once longed for—even prayed for—and couldn’t wait to start, but now you have the Sunday scaries, dragging yourself out of bed on Monday morning only to count down the days until Friday. Or maybe you’re in a job you never really wanted but took out of necessity, expecting to move on to something different after a short time—but you haven’t. So what do you do when you’re no longer excited to go to work?”

Daily prayers and religious readings and churchgoing are
necessary parts of the Christian life.
We have to be continually reminded of what we believe.
C. S. Lewis

Friday’s Fave Five

Posted on July 18, 2025 by Barbara Harper

I’ve had better weeks. 🙂 I’ve had an elevated heart rate since Monday, 105 to 119 beats per minute. I saw the cardiologist’s PA on Wednesday, where they did an EKG and diagnosed me with atrial flutter. He said it wasn’t uncommon after an ablation for atrial fibrillation, which I had eight years ago.

The first step for treatment is to increase a medicine I am already on for a few days. If that doesn’t work, they’ll try a new one–but I’ll have to be off the old one for three days first. because they can’t both be in my system at the same time. So it might get worse before it gets better. If the new medicine doesn’t work, the next step is to go into the hospital to have my heart “shocked.” And if that doesn’t work, I’ll probably have to have another ablation.

My hope is the first option will work, though it doesn’t seem to be having an effect so far. Prayers are appreciated! (Update: Just heard from my doctor. They want to go ahead and do the cardioversion, shocking my heart back into the right rhythm, rather than trying the new medication. Someone is supposed to call me next week to schedule it.)

In the meantime, even with this new complication, there have been bright spots along the way. I’m sharing them with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story.

1. The cardiologist’s physician’s assistant. I had never seen him before, and he’s very young, but he was great at explaining what was going on and what the options are. Jim took me to the doctor since we felt I probably shouldn’t drive, and he was able to ask some questions to help understand some of what happened with my heart in the past.

2. No cooking except heating up leftovers. Mittu sent dinner over a couple of nights. Timothy made cookies. We’ve gotten take-out a couple of nights and Jim made dinner last night. I always appreciate a night off in the kitchen. 🙂

3. Understanding family. We were supposed to watch Timothy while Jason and Mittu went to a meeting Monday night. I think we probably could have, but Jason and Mittu felt it would be better not to in case things escalated. Then the guys had planned to go camping the latter half of this week, but canceled it. I felt bad, but they were good sports.

4. Going through more old boxes from the shed and finding more old treasures. One was a sock monkey I’d had since childhood and lost track of. I thought it had been lost or tossed ages ago. He’s got patches and holes and has kind of an icky feel to him. I’m going to try soaking and washing him out to see what happens. I may end up having to throw him out anyway, but I figure I’ll give him a chance. Another was an invitation to a Valentine banquet from Jim when we were dating. It was done in the style of a knight to a lady, lettered on parchment paper and stained. Fun!

5. Goldfinches. I rarely see them at the bird feeder, but they like the wildflowers. They usually come as a couple.

How was your week?

Review: Blue Moon Bay

Posted on July 15, 2025 by Barbara Harper

Blue Moon Bay is the second novel is Lisa Wingate’s Shores of Moses Lake series, contemporary fiction set in a small town in Texas. The first was Larkspur Cove (linked to my review).

In Blue Moon Bay, Heather Hampton is an architect working in Seattle. Her father was from Moses Lake, but the family only lived there a short time when Heather was in her teens. She felt like an outcast at school and protested the family’s presence in Moses Lake by dressing somewhat Goth-style. Her mother wasn’t very popular in Moses Lake, either, since she stole away a hometown guy.

When Heather’s father died, Heather, her mother, and brother moved away as soon as they could. Heather never wanted to look back.

Now her firm is about to negotiate a big deal for an industrial plant in Moses Lake, with the sale of the family’s land as part of the deal. Heather’s two older great uncles (called the “Uncs”), have plans to move to live with one of their sons. Heather thinks this is the ideal solution to provide for the family, settle the land, and close the door to Moses Lake forever–as well as look good to her boss.

Everything is set, only awaiting her mother’s signature on the documents.

But her mother doesn’t show up for the appointment.

When Heather calls her mother, she gets vague references about considering another offer, which is total news to Heather. And what’s weirder is that her mom is actually in Moses Lake with Heather’s brother, Clay.

Since Heather can’t get any clear details on the phone, she decides to fly to Moses Lake. After a series of mishaps, she finally gets there. But she still can’t get any answers from anyone. And, mysteriously, Blaine Underwood, the handsome football hero of her high school days, is somehow involved.

I know a story needs conflict to have any kind of plot. But the kind of conflict here frustrated me. It’s supposed to, though–the main character is frustrated as well. Heather is more like her father, and her mother and brother are like each other. Her free-spirited mother gives ambiguous answers, getting Heather nowhere in figuring out what’s going on. The Uncs and Clay and Blaine are not much help, either.

Nevertheless, the story wraps up nicely in the end, including some edge-of-your-seat action. Then the reason for the lack of details becomes clear.

A subplot involves the Uncs’ former housekeeper, Ruth, the one person whom Heather had loved when she lived in Moses Lake. Ruth now has cancer, and Heather visits her several times, learning more of her Mennonite history and how she came to the US from Germany as a child. I had thought this was just an interesting side trail, but it ties into the main plot.

Like the first book in the series, this one opens each chapter with “Wall of Wisdom” quotes left by visitors at the Waterbird Bait and Grocery. Some characters from the first book show up there as well as in the story.

Even though I didn’t enjoy this book quite as much as the first, I did like how it came together in the end.

(Sharing with Bookish Bliss)

When “Should” Irritates

Posted on July 13, 2025 by Barbara Harper

I am in a writing critique group where we take turns presenting a piece to the others for their feedback. Few things have impacted my writing more than having others read it and make suggestions to improve it.

With my last submission, I asked the group about what tone came across. I wanted to sound like an encouraging friend sitting across the table, not a lecturer.

Some of the ladies pointed out that I used “should” a number of times and suggested that I reword those sentences.

They were absolutely correct. Writing what people “should” do can sound like wagging my finger in their faces while frowning over my eyeglasses at them, even when that’s not how I’m thinking as I write.

For instance, instead of writing “You should read your Bible every day,” it’s more encouraging to say “Reading the Bible regularly helps us know God, His character, and His will for us.” The first sentence seems guilt-inducing (not only the “should,” but also saying “You” instead of “we”).

Those thoughts led to a rabbit trail concerning “should.” The word often grates. Buy why?

For instance, recently I bristled in response to an article which said I should read a certain author’s books. I didn’t know the author. None of his book titles interested me. Nothing I read about the author inspired me to read him. I left the site feeling irritated rather than inspired. .

“Shoulds” can seem to imply judgment. I don’t think they are always judgmental; but they feel that way. If we don’t want to do what the other person says we should, we feel guilty–even when we disagree with what they think we should do.

Also, when someone says we should do a thing, it makes them sound superior. Their way, their foods, their health practices, their books, their preferences–whatever they are recommending, they think it’s better than what we’re doing. And that makes us (or at least me) think, “Who do you think you are?” They may be sharing excellent advice, but it hits wrong.

Even if others don’t sound superior, they can seem like busybodies. An older lady at one of our churches told a young married lady she and her husband needed to get busy and have kids, and an older woman with six kids that she needed to slow down her baby production. That advice definitely crossed lines and caused hurt. But even lesser “shoulds” can do that.

Sometimes “should” affects us negatively because we just don’t like being told what to do.

Often, though, I think “should” deflates us because we’re heaped up with so many “shoulds” already that we can’t keep up with. We’re pressured by a whole list of unmet “shoulds” for family, our spiritual lives, health, friends, church, neighbors, our homes . . . we never get it all done, leaving us in an endless guilt cycle.

However, “should” is not always negative.

If I’m teaching my child to brush his teeth, I might say, “You should brush your teeth twice every day.” My dentist told me I should floss daily. “Should,” in those cases, is helpful.

Sometimes “should” is instructional. A math teacher will tell students why they should do long division or multiply fractions a certain way. A science teacher will tell students what they should and shouldn’t do in the lab, for everyone’s safety as well as their learning.

“Should” can even be a promise, or at least a hope. A financial advisor might recommend certain investments which should yield a profit.

“Should” is somewhat easier to take from an authority. We expect a parent, teacher, coach, or boss to tell us what we should do. In fact, we often welcome it. I would feel lost and frustrated in class or at a job where I had no idea what was expected of me.

“Should” also comes across better when there is a relationship behind it. I could probably handle “should” better from my husband or a good friend than from a casual acquaintance or an Internet stranger.

The Bible is full of shoulds and should nots, even when that exact word isn’t used. God is our ultimate authority. But His instructions and requirements are also based on His relationship with His own, His love for them, and His desire for their best interests.

Some of my favorite “shoulds” in the Bible:

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you (Psalm 32:8).

There is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God (Ecclesiastes 2:24).

The Lord is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him. It is good that one should wait quietly for the salvation of the Lord (Lamentations 3:25-26).

Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem (Luke 24:46-47).

For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you (John 15:16).

They should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance (Acts 26:20b).

One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind (Romans 14:5).

But all things should be done decently and in order (1 Corinthians 14:40).

Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted (Galatians 6:1).

And this is love, that we walk according to his commandments; this is the commandment, just as you have heard from the beginning, so that you should walk in it (2 John 1:6).

“Should” has its place.

In my writing, I need to be careful with “should.” It’s usually best to avoid it and reframe my sentences to sound more encouraging.

But when I read or hear “should,” I need to consider it prayerfully and take into account who is saying it and what they are saying I should do. If they are heaping more on me than I can take, imposing their own opinions, or trying to induce shame or guilt, it may be best to ignore their “shoulds.”

But if the admonition is coming from someone who knows me and cares for me, who is responsible for me, who has my best interests in mind, they might be trying to help or guide me. I should probably heed what they say.

(I often link up with some of these bloggers.)

Laudable Linkage

Posted on July 12, 2025 by Barbara Harper

Happy Saturday! Here are a few good reads found this week:

The Privilege and Responsibility of Freedom. Though Independence Day has passed, rightly considering our freedom is a timeless topic.

There Is No Pit So Deep that He Is not Deeper Still, HT to Challies. “Life had been incredibly hard for years, but this latest trial felt like more than I could bear. To be honest, I felt utterly hopeless. I didn’t want to live in my diseased and hurting body; I didn’t want to live in the chaos of our special-needs challenges; and I certainly didn’t want to live in a flea-infested home. Everything in me wanted to escape, but I had nowhere to run.”

The Stranger, a neat, short film (about 12 minutes) based on a true story about a stranger who shows up in the middle of the night to attend a mission conference.

Three Lies of Comparison: How to Help Your Teen Find the Truth. “If she’s like most teens, there came a day when her eyes fluttered open to comparison. Her sunny giggle faded, and her carefree personality fell as she began placing her measuring cup next to someone else’s, asking, ‘How do I measure up?’ So, what can you do? How can you help? How can you keep her from retreating to dark corners of isolation and insecurity? How can you stop her from driving herself to exhaustion with endless perfectionism?”

A Time to Be Tired, HT to Challies. “There are times when we must save our strength. The question is: what are we saving it for? Our strength may be limited, but it is real. God gave it to us, and he gave it for a reason. There has never been a shortage of meaningful work to do, people to love, and problems to solve. In all our talk of looking after ourselves, I wonder if we sometimes forget that overprotecting ourselves is at least as dangerous as burnout—it is one of the quickest roads to weakness.”

Tattoos as Confession, HT to Challies. “Gullett says many Americans instinctively judge tattoos — deciding whether they approve of the image or the act of getting inked at all. But he and Dayhoff encourage a different approach: suspend judgment, ask about the story, and listen.”

We do not study the Bible just to get to know the Bible.
We study the Bible that we might get to know God better.
Warren Wiersbe

Friday’s Fave Five

Posted on July 11, 2025 by Barbara Harper

It’s been a good and relatively quiet week here. We’ve had a slight break in temperatures–80s instead of 90s–and a bit of welcome rain. I’m pausing once again with Susanne and friends at Living to Tell the Story to recount the good things from the week.

1. Independence Day. The kids came over for burgers, made by Jason, Mittu, and Timothy this time. They also brought over some non-fireworks fireworks–“Pop-its,” which you throw on the ground, where they make noise when they hit, and these other things shaped like a cone or bottle where you pull a string, and it makes a loud pop and shoots out colored streamers. We saw a few larger fireworks from other places in-between trees. We played a few games and ate cookies with red, white, and blue sugar toppings. A good day, all in all.

2. Sunday lunch. We usually get take-out on the way home from church. This last Sunday, I wasn’t in the mood for any of our fast-food choices. I had a hankering for Cracker Barrel’s meatloaf, so I asked Jim what he thought about eating there. That’s not his favorite place, but he’ll indulge me every now and then. 🙂 Thankfully, his food was great (as was mine, but I always like the food there) and we had an excellent waiter, so it was a fun experience. There was a long wait, so I don’t know if I’d suggest it for Sundays again. But by the time we were finishing up, the restaurant was starting to clear out and quiet down.

3. The Princess Bride was scheduled to be on regular TV last Sunday night. Even though I know it well, I thought it would be fun to watch it again. Coincidentally, our pastor had made a passing reference to one of the characters in the movie that morning. So when I asked Jim if he wanted to watch it, he said, he needed to because he didn’t get the pastor’s reference. 😀 Once we started watching, he remembered having seen it before. It was fun seeing again and anticipating favorite parts.

4. Good lab reports. I had a six-month follow-up visit from my physical with my doctor this week, which mostly involved checking blood work. I’m not diabetic, but my blood sugar is slightly elevated. I get the lab work done a day ahead of time, so I got the results before I went in. I thought I read that my A1C, which measures blood sugar, was 7, which is way high–they want you to be around 5.7, and my last test was 6.2. I was bracing myself for a scolding. But when I got there, they said it was 6, lower than last time. Whew! I looked back at the report when I got home, and it did say 6–I don’t know how 7 got into my mind. And my cholesterol and everything else was normal. So the doctor and I were both pleased.

5. Picture hung. I found this picture online and requested and received it for Mother’s Day. I hadn’t hung it up yet because it turned out to be a little small for the space I had in mind. So I was pondering other places to put it, then finally decided to go ahead and put it where I wanted it in the first place, in my bedroom above a small bookcase.

I love the verse, the colors, everything about it. I love that it looks like it could have been painted in our area, with the Blue Ridge mountains in the background.

Bonus: Jim is cleaning out our shed and brought in some boxes for us to go through. One contained mostly school and Sunday school papers from when our oldest two were younger, but we found some treasures in their notes to each other, Jeremy’s plans for a boys club with “no girls aloud” and “no smoking” but with snacks, postcards Jim had sent from his travels, etc. Another box had some of Jim’s and my high school and college notebooks. My high school Algebra and college Zoology notebooks went straight into the trash (I was never sure why Zoology was needed for a Home Economics major. All I remember from it was some worm that could get into people’s skin in tropical watery places, grow the length of their leg, and have to be slowly pulled out centimeter by centimeter lest it break. Bleah.). But we found some fun treasures in that box, too, like this unusual to-do list:

Miss Barker was the Dean of Women. We got married over Christmas break my second senior year (I crammed four years into five, as the saying goes . . .). I had to see her for “permission” to get married and do whatever paperwork was involved. Then Mrs. Forsythe was the director of the girls’ extension ministries–groups from the college that went out to various places, like kids’ Bible clubs and nursing homes. I was going to need to drop out of the nursing home ministry I was in after we got married. We both had a laugh over this list, especially seeing the Dean about marriage.

Well, that wraps up another week here. How was yours?

Stray Thoughts

Posted on July 9, 2025 by Barbara Harper

Occasionally I post a series of random thoughts.

Can we get rid of the phrase, “Unless you’ve been living under a rock . . .”? It’s used to indicate a subject that most people know. But if you’re not aware of the subject being discussed, it sounds like a put-down.
_____

Why do people start sentences with “I’ll be honest . . . ?” Are they not honest unless they add that qualifier?
_____

I read of a group of women meeting for lunch at a restaurant who were offended at male the server calling them “ladies,” as in “What can I get you ladies?” I don’t understand why. This was long before the gender confusion of our day.

I commented to the writer that when I facilitated a ladies’ group at church, I usually used that word when addressing them (especially when trying to call the meeting to order). Neither “women” nor “females” sounded right in that context. “Girls” made me cringe; “gals” even more so. “People” sounded passive-aggressive, “folks” too . . . folksy.

The writer backed down a little from her stance. But I still didn’t understand the reason for the objection.

I suppose the poor server could have avoided an appellation at all and just said, “What can I get you to drink?”

For a brief time in my teens I worked in the bakery department of a grocery store. Once when I came into the stockroom for something, several of the teen guy employees were there. One of them said, “Watch your mouths, guys. A lady entered the room.” I felt honored, not offended.
_____

In my twenties and thirties, yearly physical exams were very hands-on, literally. Nowadays, a physical consists primarily of the doctor looking at the computer discussing lab work. Is this a trend of medicine in general? Or something that happens as one gets older?
_____

Speaking of doctors–I had on my list of things to discuss with him a recurring pain at the top of my shin, right below my kneecap. But as I prepared to go to my exam, I realized I had not felt that pain in some time. Perhaps it was some injury that had righted itself. So I skipped asking about it.

Guess where I felt pain the very next day?
_____

I’ve mentioned Elisabeth Elliot many times as my mentor-from-afar. Her books and newsletters shaped my thinking about Christianity in general and Christian service and womanhood in particular.

She used to say that whenever she spoke on a particular subject, she would be tested on that subject before or after her talk. I have found the same to be true in my writing. When I posted about irritability last week, I had the worst problem with irritation for several days.
_____

Speaking of Elisabeth Elliot, I got an email from the Elisabeth Elliot Foundation this week on the occasion of their fifth anniversary. Years ago, I remember seeing a video of Elisabeth’s daughter, Valerie, saying she felt the legacy of both her parents was too heavy. I’m thankful this foundation was formed, both so it could do far more than Valerie could do on her own, plus it would outlive her. Many of Elisabeth’s books are being repackaged and republished, digitized, and turned into audiobooks. Many are being translated to other languages. Elisabeth’s newsletters and radio programs are being gathered and added to the resources at the web site. An exhibit of her life was at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, DC, and is now traveling around the country.

When Elisabeth died in 2015, I was afraid her influence and wisdom would die out over the next several years. I’m so thankful to see that it hasn’t and won’t for a long time to come.

Sharing Our Struggles, not Our Perfection

Posted on July 6, 2025 by Barbara Harper

Several years ago, our ladies’ group asked some older married women in the church to be on a panel for discussion about marriage at a ladies’ meeting. We didn’t want to put them on the spot: we just figured they had more experience, and we wanted to glean their wisdom.

However, we had the hardest time getting anyone to agree to be on the panel. Some ladies didn’t want to participate because they thought their own marriages were far from perfect. Some felt that they were still learning: rather than answering other women’s questions, they still had plenty of their own.

In hindsight, it probably would have been better not to have particular women on a panel in front of everyone. One advantage to a panel is having known and trusted people there, whereas opening questions to the crowd in general might lead to some questionable answers. But perhaps the disadvantages outweighed the advantages.

Still, the evening ended up going very well (details are here). One even said we needed a session like that once a year.

Many of us would shy away from portrayal as an expert in most areas, especially areas of Christian life. We know we fall short. We don’t want anyone looking to us for answers, because we still struggle ourselves.

But an experienced Christian is not the same as an expert Christian.

When we’re struggling in a given area–marriage, devotions, hospitality, motherhood, work environments, or life in general–we’re not drawn to those who have their act together, whose lives are perfect, who never seem to struggle.

We want to hear from people who have been in the trenches, who know how we feel, who won’t give us pat answers, who have experienced the things we have and overcome them.

Andrew Peterson writes in Adorning the Dark: Thoughts on Community, Calling, and the Mystery of Making:

“O God,” you pray, “I’m so small and the universe is so big. What can I possibly say? What can I add to this explosion of glory? My mind is slow and unsteady, my heart is twisted and tired, my hands are smudged with sin. I have nothing—nothing—to offer.

Write about that.

“What do you mean?”

Write about your smallness. Write about your sin, your heart, your inability to say anything worth saying. Watch what happens (p. 11, Kindle version).

Though Peterson was praying about song-writing here, the principle is true in any area of life.

We can’t bless others with packaged advice from a position of perfection. Even if we could, our ministrations would probably be rejected as cold and unfeeling.

But God says His power is made perfect in our weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9).

One day on a hillside, over 5,000 people came to hear Jesus teach. Jesus had compassion on their physical needs as well as their spiritual needs. He told the disciples, “You give them something to eat.”

Of course, the disciples didn’t have the means to feed so many people. Philip indicated they didn’t have enough money to buy even a little food for everyone. Andrew found a boy with five barley loaves and two fish, but then asked, “what are they for so many?”

Jesus already knew what He was going to do to provide for the people. But He wanted the disciples to realize that they could not meet the need on their own.

Jesus had the people sit down, gave thanks, and then distributed the food to the disciples, who gave it to the people. Not only did they have “as much as they wanted,” but they gathered twelve baskets of leftovers.

We don’t have the wherewithal to feed people spiritually. But when we give ourselves to Him, He can work through us to help others. He will take our not-enoughness and work through us to display His more-than-enoughness.

(I often link up with some of these bloggers.)

Laudable Linkage

Posted on July 5, 2025 by Barbara Harper

I have a short but good list of reads to share today:

Why It’s Good (and Christian) to Love Your Country, HT to Challies. “American Christians have also been pretty angsty about patriotism. In the last few years, many academics, journalists, and even some pastors have equated any love for the country with idolatry or worse, fascism and theocracy. So many well-meaning American Christians have shied away from expressions of patriotism because they don’t want to engage in false worship.”

Keep Reading Your Bible, Even if You Don’t Understand It, HT to Knowable Word. There are times to stop and dig deep in a passage we’re reading. But sometimes a passage won’t make sense until we’ve read more of the rest of the Bible.

You Don’t Need Another Prayer Technique, HT to Challies. “While my new system does help me be more organized and varied in my petitions, it hasn’t turned me into an Olympic runner in prayer. My best training came instead from an unexpected source.”

Dumb Dads: 3 Ways The Stereotype Is Harming The Archetype, HT to Challies. “By watching movies, reading stories, and entertaining the distorted pictures of dumb dads as a stereotype, we have forgotten the archetype of fatherhood. God didn’t create men and fathers to be weak and foolish. He created them to be so much more than what modern culture is preaching to our children.”

The Sandwich Generation, HT to Challies. “We are still parenting young-adult children, while at the same time attempting to gracefully maneuver through the aging years of our parents with honor. The similarities are endless; how to love our family without becoming a dictator, how to aid them in making their own decisions, how to help them navigate the path which will provide the best outcome for their future.”