2 Kings 5:1-15a Elisha heals Naaman, a foreigner and leper We like the big names. The big names are easy to track, and it keeps our focus tight. We can track Moses, David, Solomon, Elijah, Elisha, Jesus, some of the 12 disciples, Mary, and a small handful of other names. And often, those are the stories we tell, remember, write books about,…
1 Kings 3:4-28 This is probably another familiar story. It has found its way into colloquial language, when we talk about the wisdom of Solomon. So, let’s dip back into this story. Solomon starts off in a dream, conversing with God. God give Solomon a wish, a single request, and Solomon recounts what God has done for David, and then asks for…
We’ll be hosting a Red Cross Blood drive on Friday, November 4, 2022, from 12:30 -5:30 pm in the Fellowship Hall. The summer months have a particularly high need for blood, and a number of blood drives have had to be cancelled over the length of the COVID-19 pandemic, so supplies are down. If you can give please sign up to do…
2 Samuel 11:1-5, 26-27; 12:1-9; Psalm 51:1-9 The encounter between Nathan and David is high drama. At the same time, it is very human. Nathan is telling a story, and David is getting all animated about the injustice portrayed in the story. We can see that David doesn’t understand that he is the bad guy in the story. David can’t imagine being…
Joshua 24:1-15 [16-26] At the end of the wilderness experience God again reminds the people of Go of their history, of their story, of the narrative of the people of God and God. Joshua then presents the people with an ultimatum. Choose this day whom you will serve – Gods of the land beyond the river, Gods of the people in the…
Exodus 19:3-7, 20:1-17 We don’t get a ton of chances to make an actual fresh start in life. As much as we like to think our past doesn’t follow us, our grades, our history, our behavior, it often stays with us, even if it isn’t visible to anyone else. Here, in the wilderness, the people of God get a chance to start…
Exodus 14:5-7, 10-14, 21-29 (30-31?) The sea parts, God’s deliverance We’ve moved forward generations again. We’ve moved from Joseph to Moses, to a Pharoah who did not know Joseph. And yet the people are imprisoned as Joseph was when we left him. Now they are running away, as Joseph ran from Potiphar’s wife, and the authority, the Pharoah and the people of…
Genesis 39:1-23 Joseph in Prison We’ve jumped forward several (4) generations by the time we get to this story. Joseph is down In Egypt, sold by his brothers to his cousins, and then sold to Potiphar. And things seem to be turning around for Joseph. He gains respect and responsibility in the household, becoming the overseer of the house. It seems like…
Genesis 12:1-9 Call of Abraham This seems like a one on one conversation. It seems like this is just God and Abram plotting together, striking a deal and going forth. We talk about the covenant of God with Abram (or Abraham). We talk about this God being the God of Abraham, and Judaism, Christianity, and Islam being Abrahamic religions. And then verse…
Genesis 6:5-22; 8:6-12; 9:8-17 Noah, flood, rainbow This story is in all the children’s Bibles. We can buy carved Noah’s arks at the wood market in Lilongwe, Malawi. It is easily portrayed in art, and everyone I know gleefully smiles and points when they see a rainbow. However, this is not really a children’s story. God sees wickedness on the earth, and…
