Tag: Morning Musings

Morning Musing: 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Leave a comment

“…give thanks in everything; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

When we think about things for which we can be thankful, our minds and hearts often go to the obvious and easy first. I’m thankful for my family, for my job (on most days), for my kids (right?!?), for my spouse, and so on and so forth. But when the apostle Paul was giving some final instructions to the believers in ancient Thessalonica, he called them to give thanks in everything. More than that, he told them that this was God’s will for them. If you’re at all like me, I suspect you can quickly think of some circumstances in which you were not particularly thankful. And yet this command remains. So, today’s prompt is simple: I want you to think of a circumstance you have faced recently in which you were decidedly not thankful. Got it? Now, take a few minutes and write out some things that you experienced in that situation for which you could have been thankful. The idea here is not that we should learn to see everything as something good and to be grateful for, but rather that we do ourselves a great favor when we learn to see the world around us through a lens of gratitude first. Use today’s exercise as a chance to practice developing your gratitude lens. If you’re willing, share about your situation and why you are grateful in the comments. Enjoy your day and remember to give thanks as you prepare for tomorrow.

Morning Musing: Psalm 100:4

4 Comments

“Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him and bless his name.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

This is the week we as a nation have set aside for giving thanks. Well, for not a few folks it is more truly a week for worshiping at the altars of gluttony, football, and commercial excess, but the original intent was just what the holiday’s name implies: thanksgiving. It is also a week that gives a couple of days off to rest up before the sprint that the Advent season so often becomes. With this in mind, I’m not going to be writing much this week. Instead, I want to give you the chance to do the writing. Each day this week, I am going to give you a writing prompt with a challenge. Whether you do it or not is entirely up to you, but allow me to offer this one encouragement: Taking me up on these will bring the potential of making a truly positive impact on your life and the lives of the people around you. Since this is a week set aside for thanksgiving, let’s give our attention to some ways we can be giving thanks.

This morning, I want you to think of one person for whom you are particularly grateful. Once you have this person in mind, I want you to take a few minutes sometime today to write them a note (by hand!) to tell them that you are grateful for them and why you are grateful for them. The last part of the challenge is this: make sure that note gets delivered. You can do it with a gift of some kind if that happens to be your love language, but at the very least, make sure the note gets delivered. Finally, if you are willing, in the comments section, share who your person is and why you are so thankful for them. Let’s give thanks together!

P.S. I didn’t notice this until after this published, but today was my 1500th post. I’m thankful for you and your sticking with me this long. Here’s to many more.

Morning Musing: Hebrews 13:18-19

Leave a comment

“Pray for us, for we are convinced that we have a clear conscience, wanting to conduct ourselves honorably in everything. And I urge you all the more to pray that I may be restored to you very soon.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Why do we pray? What should we pray for? There is wisdom on this throughout the Scriptures. Here, we see a couple of things as specific examples. With only one more stop on our journey through Hebrews, this morning, let’s take a look at the author’s final prayer request and talk about prayer in our own lives.

REad the rest…

Morning Musing: Hebrews 13:14-16

Leave a comment

“For we do not have an enduring city here; instead, we seek the one to come. Therefore, through him let us continually offer upt o God a sacrifice of praise, that is, the fruit of lips that confess his name. Don’t neglect to do what is good and to share, for God is pleased with such sacrifices.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

What is the end of the things we are doing? Are they for some end in this world, or do they extend beyond that? When we worship, are we doing it for something in this world, or something more? The object of our aim has a great impact on the nature of what we do. As we get near to the end of the letter, let’s talk about our worship and how we should do it if our goal is a world beyond this one.

Read the rest…

Morning Musing: 1 John 3:11

Leave a comment

“For this is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another,”
(CSB – Read the chapter)

Today, I want to do something a little different. I am not going to analyze or invest very much time in unpacking this verse. I’m not going to review anything. Hopefully I’ll get to see the new Black Panther soon and will review that. Instead, I want to tell you about something I saw this past week that struck me as profound and worth sharing. I was treated to an example of love in action in a way I didn’t expect and haven’t seen very often. This is something a lot of people don’t even think really exists nowadays. I want to tell you that it does and that I saw it.

Continue reading “Morning Musing: 1 John 3:11” →