Wilderness Wanderings

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:14). Here is an earthier translation from The Message The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, generous inside and out,...

The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God—children born not of natural descent, nor of human de...

It's the 2nd Sunday of Advent!  This then is the 2nd Sermon in the series on Romans 8, "A Pregnant Creation - Suffering and Glory" The text is Romans 8:12-17 from the New International Version of the Bible.  Dive In discussion questions are below for further reflection! To see this sermon in the context of the worship service it comes from, find it  here on YouTube .  Or, head to our website to co...

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the tent of meeting because the cloud had settled on it, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle (Exodus 40:34-35). This week, we have been hopscotching around the Old Testament, looking at various events in which God came to his people. These passages introduced our Advent th...

The Lord said, "I have indeed seen the misery of my people in Egypt. I have heard them crying out because of their slave drivers, and I am concerned about their suffering. So I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians… (Exodus 3:7-8a).   When Elijah traveled to Mount Horeb, he discovered that "the Lord was not in the fire."  Years earlier when Moses traveled to Mount Horeb thou...

Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" (1 Kings 19:13). This Advent, Wilderness Wonderings is offering you 'riffs' on the theme Immanuel. Yesterday, Pastor Anthony invited us to ponder God's question, "Where are you?" Today, I'd like you to consider with me another question God asked, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" Full disclosure. I love this chapter. Many of us who are...

Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves. Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden. But the Lord God called to the man, "Where are you?" (Genesis 3:7-9)   Christ...

All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: "The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel" [which means "God with us"] (Matthew 1:22-23). Did you notice the new music? It's Advent! We thought it was time to change up Wilderness Wanderings. Advent seemed like as good a time as any. So, a couple of things that we are changing. One,...

A special, extended Sunday Sermon edition of Wilderness Wanderings!  The text is Matthew 25:14-30 from the New International Version of the Bible.  Dive In discussion questions are below for further reflection! To see this sermon in the context of the worship service it comes from, find it  here on YouTube .  Or, head to our website to connect with the worshiping community of Immanuel CRC:  immanu...

But to the wicked person, God says: "What right have you to recite my laws or take my covenant on your lips? You hate my instruction and cast my words behind you. When you see a thief, you join with him; you throw in your lot with adulterers. You use your mouth for evil and harness your tongue to deceit. You sit and testify against your brother and slander your own mother's son. When you did these...

"It is good to praise the Lord, and to make music to your name, O Most High…The righteous will flourish like a palm tree…" (Psalm 92:1,12). Have you ever wondered when and where the Psalms were written? Each one had its own beginning; a setting in which it was composed. We don't know the beginning or setting of Psalm 92; nor its first pray-er; nor what circumstances caused it to be sung. We do kno...

The Mighty One, God, the LORD, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to where it sets. From Zion, perfect in beauty, God shines forth. Our God comes and will not be silent; a fire devours before him, and around him a tempest rages. He summons the heavens above, and the earth, that he may judge his people: "Gather to me this consecrated people, who made a covenant with me by sacri...

"Praise the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples. For great is his love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord" (Psalm 117) I have a memory of Psalm 117 being our weekly memory work. This was grade one. We were so excited. So short. Then one day the preacher read it as the scripture reading. The sermon was very long for so short a psalm. This psal...

Today's Wilderness Wandering Devotional is a follow-up to Sunday's Sermon, answering a question about it.  It only comes in podcast form today though--no written version (written devotions will begin faithfully again tomorrow and for all the days to follow though!) So: if you've never clicked the icon above to "listen in" - Today's the day to try it out!  Click the icon above, then click the play...

A special, extended Sunday Sermon edition of Wilderness Wanderings!  The text is Matthew 25:14-30 from the New International Version of the Bible.  Dive In discussion questions are below for further reflection! To see this sermon in the context of the worship service it comes from, find it  here on YouTube .  Or, head to our website to connect with the worshiping community of Immanuel CRC:  immanu...

To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul in you I trust, O my God (Psalm 25:1-2a) As I have said before, the psalms of the Old Testament are the church's prayer book. At least, they should be. I don't mean that we should only use these prayers but that we should allow these psalms to teach us how to pray. They will help us learn how to pray the Lord's Prayer which begins, "Our Father who is in heaven..."...

Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness. (Psalm 115:1)   One of the problems with idolatry is that it pulls our attention, desires, and ambitions away from the One they are supposed to be pointed at: God, and points them at the idol, or ourselves instead. If our devices, these creations of our own hands—along with the images and words they br...

One thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple (Psalm 27:4) "Ham, henek met." Nothing is wrong with your hearing or eyesight. The words are spelt correctly, but my pronunciation is likely wrong.  But those three words capture for me the essence of Psalm 27. "Ham,...

Why do the nations say, "Where is their God?" Our God is in heaven; he does whatever pleases him. But their idols are silver and gold, made by human hands. They have mouths, but cannot speak, eyes, but cannot see. They have ears, but cannot hear, noses, but cannot smell. They have hands, but cannot feel, feet, but cannot walk, nor can they utter a sound with their throats. Those who make them will...

"You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance. I will come to your temple with burnt offerings and fulfill my vows to you… (Psalm 66:12, 13). As promised last Thursday, I want to spend another day with these verses. Last time, I reflected on the creative tension between of our personal and corporate faith. Some of us swing more to one...

A special, extended Sunday Sermon edition of Wilderness Wanderings!  The text is Matthew 25:1-13 from the New International Version of the Bible.  Dive In  discussion questions are below for further reflection! To see this sermon in the context of the worship service it comes from, find it  here on YouTube .  Or, head to our website to connect with the worshiping community of Immanuel CRC:  immanu...

As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. (Ephesians 4:1-3)   Pastor Michael mentioned Ephesians 4-5 yesterday in his devotion on private and corporate faith, and so let's go there.  Th...

"You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance. I will come to your temple with burnt offerings and fulfill my vows to you… (Psalm 66:12, 13). Authentic biblical faith exists in a creative tension that, I think, 2020 has highlighted. On the one hand, there is the corporate life of the church. On the other hand, there is the personal lif...

Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ?  And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all share the one loaf. (1 Corinthians 10:16-17)   This Sunday we'll be participating in the Lord's Supper, and so today is an opportunity to prepare for it. Sacra...

"God blesses those people who..." (Ps 1:1 CEV). So, starts the book of Psalms, according to the Contemporary English Version. I like that because it reminds us where blessings come from. They don't just show up. Being blessed is a gift from God. This is the introduction to Israel's song book. So, its worth paying extra attention to. Psalm 1 observes that wise people ensure they are influenced by t...