by FBC Laurens | Jan 18, 2021 | Devotional Thought
Luke 4:20-22 I was in downtown Seattle, walking towards the ferry that would take me home, when a woman full of anger accosted me, asking for money. I truthfully said that I had no cash on me, and apologized. “So what?” she responded. “There’s an ATM on the next...
by FBC Laurens | Jan 17, 2021 | Devotional Thought
Luke 4:14-19 As a hospital chaplain, I’ve learned that God doesn’t always answer prayers in the ways we expect. Sometimes we pray for physical healing, and it doesn’t happen. Sometimes we pray for test results to be negative, and they are positive. Sometimes we ask...
by FBC Laurens | Jan 16, 2021 | Devotional Thought
Psalm 51:13-17 A broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise (v. 17). Last spring, I walked downtown to join hundreds on the plaza in Asheville to listen to local young adults share their stories and experiences of being Black. They recounted the realities...
by FBC Laurens | Jan 15, 2021 | Devotional Thought
Psalm 51:6-12 Teach me wisdom in my secret heart (v. 6). Self-reflection is a skill we must develop. Too often I function in survival mode and consider self-reflection a luxury for which I have no time or energy. Quaker mystic Thomas Kelly might be describing me when...
by FBC Laurens | Jan 14, 2021 | Devotional Thought
Luke 3:21-22 Now when all the people were baptized . . . (v. 21). When someone asks us to identify ourselves, we often respond with the externals: where we work, what teams we root for, who our family is, where we worship. If we strip away our factual information,...
by FBC Laurens | Jan 13, 2021 | Devotional Thought
Luke 3:15-20 The people were filled with expectation (v. 15). David Steindl-Rast, Benedictine monk and author, says “Surprise” is his favorite name for God. Surprising moments shake us out of complacency and awaken us to life. Think of a child’s exuberant joy when...
