Ponder Anew Podcast

An midsummer update -- what Pastor Rob has been learning and studying that has kept him away from producing the Ponder Anew Podcast this summer.  A promise to finish the Bible with you but also an invitation into some pondering with him.

Nothing says "Merry Christmas" like "Vanity of Vanities" right?  It turns out this summer we had a website platform upgrade and so this episode never was uploaded.  So here is nice theological chestnut for you to roast in your fireplace... "To everything there is a season..."  The book of Ecclesiastes contains lots of familiar passages, known well outside of church. As we continue with #TheBibleIn...

How does one pass on wisdom to the next generation?  Can wisdom be passed on at all or must it be acquired by each person? As we work through #TheBibleInAYear, we look at the book of Proverbs.  While its primarily a collection of wisdom sayings, there is a deeper purpose, namely, seeking to raise up the next generation to be wise.  The last part of the podcast reflects a bit on the role of women i...

If you only could take one Bible book with you onto a desert island, I would recommend the book of Psalms.  It is an invitation to pray with other believers over the centuries, other believers around the world and finally, with Jesus Christ. As we work through #TheBibleInAYear, we look at the book of Psalms, this ancient book of prayers.  The focus of the podcast is encouraging and equipping you t...

If there ever was a book of the Bible not to cover in a single podcast, it would be Job. The story of unjust suffering deserves -- demands! -- reflection.   The podcast this week, which includes hearing God speak from the whirlwind (Job 41:1-11), hopefully serves as a guidebook rather than abridged version.   As we work through #TheBibleInAYear, we look at the book of Job. (For this year's Ponder...

Beauty pageants, palace intrigues, genocide and a courageous strong woman!  What a story!! As we work through #TheBibleInAYear, we look at the book of Esther.  This book tells the (likely known) story of Esther, a woman first known for her beauty, then her bravery and then finally her cunning. Beyond serving as a great story about a strong woman, the book brings up bigger questions, pressing for a...

As we continue reading #TheBibleInAYear, we turn to Nehemiah. This book is very accessible -- it is a memoir of Nehemiah, who took it upon himself to rebuild the walls (and city) of Jerusalem.  While the historical person of Nehemiah -- the cupbearer of emperor of Persia who chose to return to his people's native land of Judah to undertake a massive civic construction project -- does not easily ma...

Homecoming! The people begin to return to Jerusalem, thanks to Cyrus of Persia defeating the Babylonians and ending the exile of the Jewish leaders from Jerusalem.  As we work through #TheBibleInAYear, we look at the book of Ezra, which focuses on the efforts of the priest Ezra (and others) who lead the rebuilding of the temple after the exile.   The book itself is upbeat and celebrates the constr...

Who got the story right? As we continue reading through #TheBibleInAYear, we turn to 2 Chronicles and King Hezekiah.   Most of us don't know Hezekiah that well, but it turns out that his story is told in not one, not two, but three different books!  So which is right? Today's theme though isn't really simply Hezekiah -- but who tells -- who chronicles -- your life? (Note, the last 2 minutes is an...

As we continue reading through #TheBibleInAYear, we turn to 1 Chronicles and ... (wait for it) ... ancient Israelite genealogies! This particular one is from 1 Chronicles 4:1-10.  (If you do fast forward, pay attention to the last twenty or so seconds of it!) Yet in these genealogies, I suggest, we discover a surprising answer to the question:  What is the meaning of life? The answer is not only c...

Flaming chariots, blinded armies and a meal of mercy.  What is going on here! As we continue reading through #TheBibleInAYear, we turn to 2 Kings and the work of the prophet Elisha.  As a whole, 2 Kings is a "sad" part of Scripture in which things generally go from bad to worse.  However, there are good and even miraculous things along the way, including the stories of Elisha.  We will look at one...

This story is a bit like the red pill in the movie the Matrix.  Reading it challenges our conceptions of free will and how God works in our world. Get ready for some fun! As we continue reading through #TheBibleInAYear, we turn to 1 Kings and the less well known prophet Micaiah (1 Kings 22).  The guy, as it turns out, has the tough job of telling the king what the king doesn't want to hear.  Or ma...

This week, we look at another R rated part of scripture: King David's affair with Bathsheba and the murder of her husband.   As we continue reading through #TheBibleInAYear, we focus on David's moral collapse, as recorded in 2nd Samuel (chapter 11-12).  My sense is that most of us, even if we attended Sunday School, didn't study this passage.  Most preachers avoid it on Sunday mornings because the...

Did you have a sense of wonder about life and about God as a child? Many humans do...but this doesn't always endure. The book of 1 Samuel allows us to follow a number of people from their childhood until their death.  Like us, they go through life's ups and downs, both inspired and dejected at different points.  These stories -- character arcs -- offer us the chance to reflect on how faith changes...

Do conservatives care about the poor?  Do liberals care about family values at all?  The book of Ruth provides us a glimpse at how God calls us to love BOTH our family and the stranger in need.   As we continue reading through #TheBibleInAYear, we look at the moving story of Ruth.  Although it is a short book, it is rich with meaning and especially relevance for today.  It turns out that 3,000 yea...

Welcome to the book of Judges.  R-rated at best, this is an intense book of violence, societal breakdown and strong women.  The book, which slows the moral collapse of a people, ironically ends up also highlighting the importance of leadership.  As we continue reading through #TheBibleInAYear, we focus on Deborah and the book of the Judges.

The heroine of this story is Not a jew Willing to lie to authorities A prostitute All of the above Welcome to the book of Joshua, the book in which the ancient Israelites get their act together, and with a little help from their "friends", take over the promised land... As we continue reading through #TheBibleInAYear, we focus on the story of Rehab and its place in the book of Joshua.

"Hear O Israel, the LORD your God is one."   Boom! These are the most important words Moses says in the Bible, if not the most important words in the whole Old Testament. As we continue reading through #TheBibleInAYear, we look at the book of Deuteronomy.  We will focus specifically on the words of Moses in chapter 6, which will allow us to resolve:  what to do about Sunday school, whether Judaism...

We continue working through #TheBibleInAYear, looking at the book of Numbers.  This book isn't about numbers though, it is about the wilderness!  Crazy, big and wild -- both God and life! Some come aboard for some adventure.  We will look at Numbers 22, sometimes referred to as "Balaam's talking Ass." Note:  This podcast is closer to 25 minutes, not because of content, but because the story needs...

We continue working through the #BibleInAYear.   This week we focus on Leviticus, probably one of the harder books of the Bible to read.  Fear not, we will get through this book together -- and discover it still speaks to us!  To get us into Leviticus, we look at some of the laws laid out in chapter 19.  Some of these are inspiring still today.  Others seem to come from a far, far away galaxy.  Wh...

We continue with our reading of the Bible in one year by looking at Exodus.  The focus story is the call of Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3). The first part of the podcast is about "exodus" - the liberation of the ancient Israelites.  This is the theme, but we need to make sure we don't hear it with only 21st century Western ears!  The second part of the podcast is about "names", literally, as...

With this podcast, we launch our reading through of the Bible.  We will start in the garden of Eden, reminded of how God intends for the world to work. In 2025, we will look at a different book of the Bible each week, focusing on one story that embodies the whole of that book. Also, for those who struggle with the "historicity" of Adam and Eve, the second half of the podcast is for you.

We wrap up our Advent warm-up with a look at Matthew's Gospel.  The writer Matthew has lots of Old Testament connections.  A reminder that the stories in the Bible draw on each other.  They reinforce but also reinterpret each other.  Hopefully this stitching together gives us permission to see how the stories of Scripture stitch together with our lives. May this be your *final* 2024 encouragement...

Miracles of miracles! What do we do with the miracles in the Bible?  For many in modern (Western) culture miracles don't quite make sense given how we understand how the universe works. This is the third in our Advent 2024 season of the Ponder Anew Podcast.  We are looking at the Christmas story to tackle some of the questions and even struggles people have when it comes to reading Scripture.

We continue our Advent 2025 series.  We are looking at the Christmas story to prime the pump on reading through the Bible in 2025. This week we consider the fact that the Gospel stories have different accounts of the same story.  How do we handle the fact that the Bible itself presents different versions of the same story?  To answer this, we need to look at how the New Testament came to be.