Emmaus at Pilot Mill: Recent Episodes
Emmaus at Pilot Mill
Emmaus exists to be an authentic community, building family around the Scriptures and empowering every believer in their God-authored mission. For more information about Emmaus, visit emmausrdu.com.
NOTE Due to an interruption to our streaming software, slides are not synced to begin this recording. This is restored prior to Pastor Micah's message. We apologize for the issue.
Corresponding Bible Project video: https://bibleproject.com/explore/video/heaven-and-earth/
Reflection Questions: 1. What is waiting like for you- what do you feel as you wait? 2. Hans Urs Balthasar writes that sin is rooted in impatience, “Patience is the basic constituent of Christianity.” Do you agree with this view of the central role of patience in the Christian life? Why or why not? 3. How does the liturgical year act as a counterformation to the culture? 4. What are some ways you’ve been intentional about making space and time for beauty, enjoyment, or delight? 5. How does worshipping through your senses influence your relationship with pleasure and beauty? 6. How do you think beauty is part of the mission of the church?
Suggested Practice: Choose a practice or two for this week. 1. Notice your reaction to times where you are forced to wait this week. Reflect on what your response reveals about your view of time. 2. Next time you’re waiting (whether in line, waiting for an appointment, in traffic, etc.), try to limit distractions. Put away your smartphone and any work while waiting. Just simply wait. Notice your thoughts, emotions, and surroundings. 3. Set aside intentional time this week to do something you find lovely, pleasurable, or delightful. 4. Taste, smell, or look at something pleasing and beautiful. Journal about or discuss that experience of beauty and how it orients and shapes you.
Reflection Questions: 1. What parts of your job do you most enjoy? Least enjoy? 2. There is no division between the sacred and secular work for believers. How do you see your work life and your worship/spiritual life entwined? How do they influence and shape each other? 3. How would approaching work as a craft and as a place of formation change the way you think about your work? 4. Do you feel like you’ve found a third way/middle (between constant production and escaping all work) in your work life? Why or why not?
Suggested Practice: Choose a practice or two for this week. As a CG, share what you do for a living and begin a weekly practice of participating in the joys and struggles of each persons day-to-day work. 1. Pray each morning that God would send you out to do the work He has given you to do. 2. Reflect on how a task in your daily work forms you. Journal or share with a friend about ways your work has grown you in repentance and dependence on God. 3. Prayerfully invite God to teach you to approach your work tasks as prayers. What would it mean to be in your work, yet on your knees? 4. Try to do a task you don’t like without complaining. 5. If you sometimes work more than is healthy, avoid email or work tasks after hours this week and spend that time in rest.
Reflection Questions: 1. In what ways do you struggle to seek peace with those nearest you? 2. What is one way to seek shalom in your home, work, or small sphere of daily experience? 3. How do you see your small sphere and ordinary days as part of the broader mission and work of God’s redemption? 4. In what ways have you experienced speaking good news to each other and becoming good news to each other in your relationships with those at EMMAUS or other churches? 5. How do you feel that Christian friendship and community differ from other kinds of community?
Suggested Practice: 1. Pray about how to be part of God’s broader redemption of the world in your own life. 2. Spend time praying for peace in your home, neighborhood, city, state, country, and world. 3. Read and reflect on Jeremiah 29:4-14. Actively participating in your city. Support a local business this week. Vote on Tuesday. 4. Practice gratitude for the neighborhood/place/city you live in.
Reflection Questions: 1. How do you think God’s taking on a human body (incarnation) impacts our worship and life in Christ? 2. “If the church does not teach us what our bodies are for, our culture certainly will.” - Tish Warren. - What does our culture tell us about what our bodies are and what they are for? 3. What does your response to inconveniences or “small” suffering reveal about what you love and fear? About your heart? 4. What is your response to moments of sin or failure in your day? How might you meet God in those moments? 5. What significance do you find in the fact that both Word and sacrament are related to food and eating? 6. Was there ever a time in your when the Scriptures seemed dry or unappealing? How did you handle that?
Suggested Practice:
Choose the practice that you most identify with. 1. Decide on one concrete way to care for your body. Reflect on or journal about the ways caring for your body impacts your life in Christ. 2. When you encounter sin in your day, specifically confess it to God. Remind yourself aloud of God’s mercy and forgiveness or have a time of confession with a friend and ask them to remind you of Christ’s forgiveness and mercy. 3. As you read the scripture this week, notice where you experience nourishment and the places where you struggles and feel like the scriptures are stale or unappetizing.
Reflection Questions: 1. Tish Warren speaks of making the bed as a way to make “The first activity of our day not as a consumer but that of a collaborator with God,” have you ever thought of bed making this way? Other mundane tasks? 2. Looking at your daily habits what is your vision of the good life? - Are there small, repetitive habits in your day that point you to a particular view of the “good life”? What are they? 3. Can you think of a daily practice or ritual that has formed or shaped you in a big or small way? Is there a practice or liturgy that has malformed you and you may need to change?
Practices: 1. As you make your bed, notice what you feel. What is tangible about the experience? Is there anything beautiful or peaceful about it? 2. Write down a repetitive, daily task in your life. As you perform this task, prayerfully ask God to show you the way it shapes you. Journal about it or discuss with a friend or CG. 3. Try to notice this week how you resist stillness and boredom. Carve out a few minutes of silence each day and invite God into that time. 4. Notice small moments of stillness in a day- waiting at a traffic light or for your coffee to brew. Embrace those moments by letting them remain empty and quiet. 5. If you have a smartphone, put it away for a morning, afternoon or day and reflect on that experience.
Reflective questions: 1. How do you normally wake up? Slowly or quickly? Chipper or groggy?
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In a typical day, what are your first conscious thoughts as you wake? How do those thoughts shape your day? And those days your life?
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What practical steps might help you recall in your first waking moments that you are beloved and a part of God’s people?
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If it is hard for you to believe that you are beloved of God, spend some this week asking “what are some of the obstacles to embracing your identity as beloved?”
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Micah mentioned the quote from record mogul Rick Rubin about “training ourselves to see the awe behind the obvious”. Is this something that comes easily to you or is it something you struggle to do?
Practices: 1. What is one thing you can do do differently this week as you wake? Or something you can replace when you first wake? Examples: - Rather than running through the list of to-dos, anxieties, or work items, Say aloud “I am clothed in Christ and beloved by God.” - Rather than reaching for your phone, read the story of Jesus’ baptism. - Rather than hitting snooze, praise God for who He is.
- Notice how these changes impact your day and journal about it or discuss it with a friend.
I have no resume to hold before you, no track record of accomplishments, no letters of commendation, no rights of birth or ethnicity. I have nothing that would place you in my debt, nothing that could curry your favor, nothing that would obligate you. I wish unbridled zeal would commend me to you. I wish unbroken obedience would draw your attention. I wish model wisdom and model love would convince you that I’m worthy. But I have none of these things to offer you. I stand before you with shoulders bent and hands that are empty. I approach you with no argument in my mind or words to offer in my defense. I stand before you naked and undeserving, broken and weak. I am quite aware of the duplicity of my heart, the evil of my choices, and the failure of my behavior, but I am not afraid because I stand before you with one argument, with one plea. This argument is enough. This probably is sufficient. This argument is the only thing that could ever give me courage, rest, and sturdy hope. So I come before you with this plea – your mercy. Your mercy is my rest. Your mercy is my hope. Your mercy makes me bold. Your mercy is all I need. Your mercy tells me you will hear. Your mercy tells me you will act. Your mercy tells me you will forgive. Your mercy tells me you will Restore. Your mercy tells me you will strengthen. Your mercy is my welcome, plea, and rescue. I rest in this one thing: you are mercy and you will answer. _________
The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made. ( Ps. 145:9)
Recall the ways God has been merciful to you in the past.
Spend some time in prayer, thanking God for his past mercies and asking for his grace and in current situations.
For further study and encouragement, read Titus 3:3-7.
There is no question that sin is dangerous. There is no question that it produces no good. There is no question that it seduces everyone. There is no question of its power to deceive. There’s no question that I am a victim. There is no question that I was born in its fold. There is no question that I have no power to escape it. There is no question that I can’t free myself from its hold. There is no question that I’ve chosen what is foolish. There is no question that I have loved what is wrong. There is no question that I’ve transgressed your boundaries. There is no question that my trespass has been bold. There is no question that I deserve your judgment. There is no question that I have no righteousness to hold.
So there is no question that there is any hope outside your mercy. There’s no question that I have any place but your grace. There is no question that your sacrifice is needed. There is no question that you hung in my place. There is no question that I have nothing to be proud of. There is no question that I should boast in your cross. There is no question that you were the lamb that was promised. There is no question that I am covered by your blood. There is no question that I will rest in your promise. There is no question that you’re blessed me with peace. There is no question that you will defeat what is in me. There is no question that I will finish my journey. There’s no question that someday I will be free. __________
All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—everyone – to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. (Isa. 53:6)
How certain are you that the gospel is true?
Turn this poem into a personal prayer of thanksgiving, praising God for the certainty of your salvation.
For further study and encouragement, read Romans 5:12—24.
I want to trust you, but not always. I want to believe that your way is the best way, but not always. I want to believe that you are wisdom, that I have a little, but not always. I want to believe that every boundary you set is good for me, but not always. I have come to love your law, but not always. I have given my heart to worship the Creator, but not always. I’ve come to understand that the weaknesses in my faith and the inconsistencies of my following daily preach to me that I am far from being free of need for the insight, rescue, forgiveness, transformation, empowerment, deliverance, and freedom that only your grace can give. Tomorrow I will long to be faithful, but will prove to be inconsistent once again. Tomorrow will not always still be in my life, but I have hope, so I know you will greet me with convicting love, forgiving grace, and renewing power once again because with you there is no “not always.” __________
Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit. (Ps. 51:12)
Even though we humans are “not always“ as consistent in our convictions as we wish to be, how does knowing that God is always the same provide us peace?
Take some time in prayer to confess how you fall short in to praise God for his perfection.
For further study and encouragement, read Mark 14:32-42.
God doesn’t want you to come to him empty-handed. No, you can’t come to him full of yourself, and you can’t come to him based on your track record, and you can’t use your performance as a recommendation. No, you can’t come to him based on your family, your personality, your education, your position in life, the successes you’ve had, the possessions you’ve accumulated, or the human acceptance you’ve gained. But God requires you to come with your hands full. He requires you to bring to him the sweetest of sacrifices, the sacrifice of words. He calls you to bring Hosea’s offering: “Return, Israel, to the Lord your God. Your sins have been your downfall! Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to him: ‘forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips.‘“ God doesn’t want you to come home empty-handed. He asked of you a sacrifice, not a green offering, not a lamb or a bull. Know that requirement has been satisfied by the blood of the Lamb. Yet God asks of you a sacrifice. It is the offering of words, words of humility, words of honesty, words of moral courage, words of moral candor, words that can only be spoken by one who rests in grace. Words of confession are what you must bring. Place words, free of negotiation or excuse, on his altar of grace and receive forgiveness and cleansing. Uncover your heart, exposed by words, and say: “We will never again say, ‘our gods’ to what our own hands have made, for in you the fatherless find compassion.” What David willingly did, he requires of you. Come with words. It is the way of grace. It is the way of freedom. It is the way to God. _________
You will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it; you will not be pleased with a burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise. (Ps. 51:16-17)
Contemplate how an “offering of words” is the way of grace and freedom.
Consider and gather up the “words“ you can offer as a humble sacrifice to God today.
For further study and encouragement, read Hosea 14.
It will be the most exuberant celebration ever. It will never grow boring. It will always be fresh. It will consume us all. We will want to do nothing else. The celebration will go on and on, with songs that will never grow old. We will be so amazed that we have been invited into the choir. And our amazement will never abate. This celebration that will never end is the celebration of grace. If you listen carefully, you will hear the songs have already begun!
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You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Ps. 16:11)
Allow yourself to ponder the joys of heaven as you go about your daily tasks today.
Celebrate and rejoice in the grace that God is extended to you. Try to describe it in as much detail as possible.
For further study and encouragement read Revelation 21.
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A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, but envy makes the bones rot. ( Prov. 14:30)
Do you find yourself envious of others' prosperity or blessings?
Consider how Christ can rescue you from the trap of envy.
For further study and encouragement, read 1 Timothy 6:3-10.
I envy too much. Calculating that math of success and possessions to see if my resources add up to more than others. I noticed too much when others enjoy companies. I think too much of how others seem blessed by you. I analyze too much the balance sheet of your goodness. My envy exposes the danger of my selfish heart. My envy reveals that I often worship me more than I worship you. My envy shows I still look for life where it will never be found. I still envy too much so I still need you. I need what only you can do. I need the grace only you can give. I envy too much so I still need what all the things I envy will never give me. I still need to be rescued by you.
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A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, but envy makes the bones rot. ( Prov. 14:30)
Do you find yourself envious of others' prosperity or blessings?
Consider how Christ can rescue you from the trap of envy.
For further study and encouragement, read 1 Timothy 6:3-10.
Identity amnesia produces identity replacement. It has been humanity’s problem since a man and a woman in a garden (given as a gift) attempted to reach up for the place of Another.
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When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? (Ps. 8:4)
Take some time to contemplate your identity before God.
What can you do to avoid “identity amnesia” that often produces “identity replacement”?
For further study and encouragement, read Genesis 3.
I was anxious this morning – too many details, loose ends, “what if‘s“ and “if only‘s.” Demanding schedule, depending on people, deadlines lurking. Feeling out of control, in adequate, and overscheduled. Worry Rob‘s peace. Doubt plunders face. Anxiety decimates rest. Impatient, irritable, demanding, and loving, and thankful, convicted, remorseful, confessing. Worry is forgetful. Anxiety is a form of amnesia. Forgetting your presence, your plan, your wisdom, and your grace. What is not under my control is never out of control because you are with me, and you control everything for your glory and for my good. May I learn to remember and, in remembering, learn to rest in the one constant on which I can always depend – you.
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The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your request be made known to God. (Phil. 4:5-6)
Do you find it difficult to rest in God during times of busyness and chaos?
Prayerfully offer your worries for today to God.
For further study and encouragement, read Matthew 6:25–34.
You are the sun that shines in the darkness. You are the water that quenches thirst. You are the balm that heals the wounded. You’re the Master that calms the storm. You are the rose of brightest beauty. You are the chosen, perfect Lamb. You are the King of a greater kingdom. You are the captain of battles won. You are the lion of chosen Judah. You are the dove of peace that’s come. You are the shelter for the homeless. You are the father to the helpless orphans. You were the chosen, suffering son. You are my God, my savior, my hope, my life, my forgiveness, my wisdom, my strength, my righteousness, my peace, my father, my brother, my friend. Because you are, I am what I am. ___________
For who is God, but the Lord? And who is a rock, except our God? This God is my strong refuge and has made my way blameless. ( 2 Samuel 22: 32–33)
Form your own list of God’s glorious attributes as an act of praise.
Consider how your life is different because you are God’s.
For further study and encouragement, read Psalm 103.
I really wish I could blame somebody else. I wish I could place the responsibility on someone else. I would love to point the finger at someone else. I wish I could convince myself that it was somebody else. I tried to feed myself the logic that it was somebody else. For a moment about my argument that it was somebody else. There is always another sinner who can bear my fault. There’s always some circumstance that can carry my blame. There’s always some factor that made me do what I did. There’s always somewhere else to point rather than looking at me. But in the darkness of bedtime, the logic melts out of my heart. In the moments before sleep, the pain begins to squeeze away my breath. As my mind replace the days moments, the conclusion is like a slap. There’s no monster to hide from. There’s no excuse that holds. My war is not external; the enemy is not outside. The struggle rages within me – no where to point or run. No independent righteousness, no reason for smugness or rest, I am my greatest enemy and rescue is my only hope. In the quiet, I face it. I cannot blame somebody else. One more time I close my eyes, admitting that my only hope is found in Somebody Else.
_____________ And there is salvation and no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved. (Acts 4:12)
Are you also tempted to point out others or circumstances when you are to blame?
Do you truly believe your only hope is found in Jesus alone?
For further study and encouragement, read Romans 3.
I need to see your beauty. I need to remember that you are beautiful in sovereignty, beautiful and wisdom, beautiful in power, beautiful and mercy, beautiful and faithfulness, beautiful in love, beautiful and patience, beautiful in holiness, beautiful injustice, and beautiful and grace. It is only when I look at the trials of my life, the things unwanted, the things unplanned, the things unexpected, the things that are hard, through the lens of your stunning beauty that I see them with accuracy and clarity. But I also need to remember that Grace has connected me to the beauty that is you. By grace all that you are, you are for me set a fight my divine beauty amnesia, tomorrow once again in the quiet of early morning, I will stop and gaze upon your beauty, and I will rest, remember, where ship, and celebrate, knowing that glorious grace has connected me to the stunning beauty that is and forever will be you.
_________ Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. (Phil. 4:8)
Consider your personal trials for the lens of God's stunning beauty.
What are some habits you can develop to help you remember that you were connected to God‘s beauty through his grace?
For further study and encouragement, read Colossians 3:1-17.
I think about it all the time. It doesn’t seem fair. It doesn’t seem right. I try to make the equation work, but it doesn’t. They don’t give you the time of day. They couldn’t care less about your law. They are proud of their pride. they are so arrogant their tongues strut. They mock your existence. They scoff at your boundaries. They not only make threats, they resort to violence. Their boasting is their bling. I usually swallow my questions, but I’m roaring inside. It makes me tired to think about it, and it does make my obedience seem like a waste. They seem to have little trouble. They seem to seldom suffer. But I do! And while I suffer, they are fat and happy. Then in my confusion It hit me. This is but a moment, a dream, a mist, a vapor, a quick passage through a temporary place. This is not my home. This is a journey toward home. They think this is home, but this is not home. Please guide me on my way. Please hold me with your hand. And when I am weary and my heart is about to fail and my reserves of strength are gone, please help me to remember that they have ease and riches but I have you, And you will be my strength and portion forever.
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Truly God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet had almost stumble, my steps had nearly slipped. For I was envious of the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. Psalm 73:1-3
Do you ever feel as if obeying God isn’t worth it because those who don't follow him seem to be succeeding? But what is the error in this sort of thinking?
How regularly do you remind yourself that you have not yet reached your final home?
For further study and encouragement, read Luke 16:19-31
Unthinkable, irrational, impossible to conceive! The Trinity torn asunder. The son wrenched from his Father. Salvation realized. I am the liar. I am the thief. I am the gossip. I am the rebel. I have wanted my own way in my own time at my appointed place. I have rebelled against your law and I have set up my own. I deny your kingship while building a kingdom of my own. I think my wisdom is wiser than yours. I think my plan is better than yours. I crave the sovereignty that only you should have. But you did the inconceivable; you accomplished the undoable. Your stood in my place and you satisfied God’s wrath. But in the process, the three in one was torn in two. In the process, the three in one was torn in two. In the process, the Father did the most painful thing that has ever been done. He turned his back on you. You withstood this pain so that I would never have to. You took my rejection so that I would only ever have acceptance. So that I can rest assured, I can live in hope, I can enjoy true peace, because I know that you are always with me. For long ago on the cross your rejection was, for me, the final rejection of rejection.
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And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Matthew 27:46
Contemplate the amazing love of Christ that compelled him go to the cross on your behalf.
Christ was rejected for your sins--prayerfully thank him for covering them.
For further study and encouragement, read Isaiah 53.
One thing, One thing, One thing! It’s hard to imagine one thing When I seem to be attracted to so many things. It is a continuing struggle. It is a daily battle. It is my constant war. The world of the physical attracts me, excites me, magnetizes me, and addicts me. I confuse consumption with satisfaction. I confuse satisfied senses with true joy. I confuse a stomach that is full with a heart at rest. Sometimes I would rather have my appetites satisfied than a grace-filled heart. Sometimes I would rather hold the physical Than have the eyes of my heart filled with the beauty of the spiritual. I am tired of only seeing what my physical eyes can see. I want eyes to see what cannot be seen. I am tired of craving people, possessions, locations, circumstances, positions, experiences, appearances…
Somewhere in my heart, I know that only you satisfy. Deep in my heart, I want you to be enough. I must quit moving, running, driving, pursuing, consuming, I need to stop. I need to be quiet. I need to sit in the seat of grace and wait, and wait, until these blind eyes see, until this cold heart craves the one beauty that satisfies-- the one beauty that is you.
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The fear of the LORD leads to life, and whoever has it rests satisfied. Proverbs 19:23
What tends to distract you from the “one thing”?
What are the differences between consumption and satisfaction? Satisfied senses and true joy? Which word better describes your heart most days?
For further study and encouragement, read Psalm 42.
Today I am very weak-- weak body, weak heart, lacking ability, devoid of resolve, little anticipation, waves of discouragement, whispers of fear, dreading a sleepless night, expecting the pain of the morning, wishing to run, nowhere to hide, feeling sentenced to what I cannot survive. Wondering, “How long?” Questions-- no answers. But I have come to understand that my weakness is a grace, that hopelessness is not a prison. Hopelessness is a doorway. There is no shame in weakness. I was created weak, designed to be dependent. To confess weakness is to own my humanity. To own my humanity is to embrace my need of help. To embrace my need of help means to open the door to God’s warehouse of protecting, providing, comforting, confronting, strengthening, hope-giving, and motivating grace. Today I am weak, but I will boast in my weakness for when I am weak, for me, you are strong.
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The parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable… I Corinthians 12:22
Recall ways that God has supported you during times of physical or emotional weakness.
Are you able to rejoice in your own weakness? Pray for God’s help to develop such an attitude.
For further study and encouragement, read 2 Corinthians 12:1-10
Aren’t you glad you're not like David, such blazoned sin; how could he? Aren’t you glad you’re not like Saul, making up his own rules;what was he thinking? Aren’t you glad you’re not like Cain, Violence against his own brother? Aren’t you glad you’re not like Rebekah, such planned deceit? Aren’t you glad you're not like the Israelites, so easily seduced by idols? Aren’t you glad you’re no like Absalom; how could he be so jealous? Aren’t you glad you’re not like Elijah; how could he forget God and be so depressed? Aren’t you glad you’re not like Nebuchadnezzar; how could he be so obsessed with power? Aren’t you glad you're not like Samson; how could he be so easily deceived? Aren’t you glad you’re o like Jonah; how could he run from the Father’s call? Aren’t you glad you’re no like the Pharisees, so religiously right, yet spiritually wrong? Aren’t you glad you're not like Judas, selling the Messiah for a little bit of silver? Aren’t you glad you’re not like the Corinthians, So much better at division than at serving the Lord?
But wait.
You are like them, and so am I. There is simply no denying it. Their stories are a mirror into which we see ourselves. We too are Jealous and easily deceived. We too are proud and obsessed with power. We too are better at division while we run from God. We too get angry and get seduced by idols. In sorrow we must say, we stand with David, and Saul, and Rebekah, and Jonah, and Elijah, and the rest. These stories are for us to look into and see us, so that we are not able to buy into the lie of our own righteousness, but instead, run to God’s mercy, hold onto his unfailing love, and finally rest in his great compassion. Aren’t you glad you can step out of the darkness of self-deceit and admit who you are?
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Pride goes before destruction, And a haughty spirit before a fall. Proverbs 16:18
Are you familiar with the shortcomings of the individuals mentioned in this poem? If not, find and read their stories in the Bible.
How might you be comparing yourself with others in a way that incorrectly boosts your self-righteousness?
For further study and encouragement, read 1 Corinthians 10:1-13
There is no one like you. There are no words to adequately capture thewonder of your redeeming power. There is no one like you. No one who knows what you know. No one who is able to do what you do. You reign over all that is. You do with your creation whatever you want to do. No one can question you. No one has the power to stop your hand. You turn hardship into rescue. You turn suffering into redemption. Our of trials you bring transformation. Out of weakness you grow strength. Out of death you birth life. Out of darkness you bring light. You turn foolishness into wisdom. You cause idolaters to bow in worship. Every day you create something out of nothing. Every day you make alive what was once dead. Every day you redeem what seems beyond redemption. There is no one like you. There are no words to adequately capture the wonder of your redeeming power. There is no one like you. No one who knows what you know. No one who is able to do what you do.
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There is none holy like the Lord; there is none besides you; there is no rock like our God. (1Samuel 2:2)
Nearly every line of this poem demonstrates how there is none like God. Work through each statement in the poem and connect it to a real-life example, either from your life or from the Bible, that illustrates the statement. (For example, “You cause idolaters to bow in worship” could refer to a friend turning to Christ for salvation or might describe how Egypt was forced to set the Israelites free.)
Pray your own prayer of praise for all the glorious ways God is like no other.
For further study and encouragement, read I Corinthians 1:18 and Ezekiel 37:1-14
I wish I would live with you in view-- eyes to your glory, ears for your wisdom, heart for your grace. But I live with me in view-- eyes to my kingdom, ears for my opinion, heart captured by my will. I know that I was made for you. I know that hope, meaning, purpose, identity, and my agenda for every day is to be found in you. But I want my own kingdom. I love my own glory. I define my own meaning. I delight in my control. There’s a war that never ends; the battleground is my heart. It's a moral skirmish between what you have ordained and what I want. So I don't delight in your law. But my heart doesn’t rest. I know there's a better way. I know that you are God, and I am not. My sin is more than bad behavior, bad choices, or wrong words. My sin is an act where i replace you with something I love more. Every wrong thing i do reflects a lack of love for you, and reflects a love of self. Help me to see, to acknowledge, to weep, and say, “Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.” And then, help me to rest in your mercy, in your great compassion, and in your unfailing love even as the war goes on. ________________________________________
You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. (Matthew 22:37)
Contemplate how “sin is an act where I replace you.” How does this defintion expand you understanding of sin?
How have you recently been living with yourself “in view” instead of living with God “in view”? Spend some time in prayer, confessing to God and resting in his unfailing love.
For further study and encouragement, read Psalm 51.
Every one of us is a preacher. We are always preaching some kind of gospel to ourselves. Every one of us is a theologian. we are always repeating some kind of belief system to ourselves. Every one of us is a philosopher. We are alway discussing mean and purpose with ourselves. Every one of us is an archaeologist. We are always digging through the mound of experiences that is our life, making sense of where we have been, what we have done, what you have done, and who we’ve been with. We are always doing this because we are all image bearers. We are created to think, interpret, feel, know, desire, understand, and worship. In our seeking to know we are searching for You. Everyone of us is a worshiper because everyone of us is made for you. Every one of us is searching for what can only be found in you. So, every one of us needs your grace. for there is no life, there is no hope, there is no knowing, that does not begin with knowing you.
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But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you. (Matthew 6:33)
What are you searching for?
Have you ever thought of yourself as a preach, theologian, philosopher, or archaeologist? How might these labels point you to your most important role as a worshiper of God?
For further study and encouragement, read Matthew 7:7-11
Hard moments Between the already and the not yet. Hard moments in a world gone bad. Hard moments when temptation seduces. Hard moments with a body weak and mind tired. Hard moments when friends promise, but betray. Hard moments when unexpected difficulty surprises. Hard moments when discouragement blinds vision. Hard moments when once again centrals the heart. Hard moments with so many things broken. Hard moments- but I am not alone. Hard moments- Yet I am never left to my limited resources hard moments in your hands become hard moments of transformation. Hard moments in your hands become hard moments of amazing Grace.
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And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. (Romans 8:28)
Try to recall a past “hard moment” in your life and consider how God’s amazing grace help you through that time.
Take some time to pray that God will transform today’s hard moments in ways that leave you singing his praises.
For further study and Encouragement, read first Samuel 1-2:10
(For a full account of the events of this day, see Matthew 28:1–20, Mark 16:1–8, Luke 24:1–53, John 20:1–21:25.)
Early Sunday morning, some of Jesus’s friends set out for his grave to anoint the body of their friend and teacher. When they arrive, however, they are greeted by what one Gospel writer calls “a man dressed in lightning.” He tells them Jesus is not there, as he said. He is risen. In the week leading up to his death, the Good Shepherd went out to meet the wolves of judgment, sin, and death—and he did so with all authority. One might wonder, what good has it ever done anyone to die for some cause? This is the glorious beauty of the gospel. Jesus didn’t die as a martyr for a cause. He was never in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was never at the mercy of anyone. He lived, died, and was buried because he meant to be. No one took his life from him. He laid it down. For whom? For his flock, his people. And he laid it down only to take it up again (John 10:18). The point of the cross was not just to die, but to die and rise again, defeating the prowling wolves of sin and death themselves. Easter says of Jesus, “He meant it! He meant to lay down his life for you. And as surely as he has taken it up again, he knows you and loves you.”
(For a full account of the events of this day as found in the Gospels, see Matthew 27:62–66.)
Less is written about the Saturday following Jesus’s crucifixion than any other in the scope of this week. Yet what makes it unique is that this is the only full day in history where the body of Christ lies buried in a cave. Yesterday, he was crucified. Tomorrow, he rises from the grave. But what about today? Though we may not make much of this day, when we look at the few verses the Gospels give us about it, we find it was by no means forgotten by the chief priests who had handed Jesus over to death. During his earthly ministry, Jesus repeatedly said he would die in Jerusalem at the hands of the chief priests, yet on the third day rise again (e.g., Matt. 12:40; Mark 8:31; 9:31; 10:34). Of course, the chief priests scoffed. But they didn’t forget it. On the day between Good Friday and Easter Sunday, Jesus’s prediction preoccupies their thoughts such that they simply can’t leave it alone. Matthew 27:62–66 tells the strange story of how they can’t dismiss out of hand the possibility that Jesus might know something they don’t.
(For a full account of the events of this day, see Matthew 27:1–61, Mark 15:1–47, Luke 23:1–56, John 18:28–19:42.)
On Thursday night in Gethsemane, Jesus was arrested—betrayed by one of his disciples and abandoned by the others. The chief priests and the Sanhedrin called for secret trials in the dead of night, and the verdict handed down was that Jesus would be crucified. This is something the Roman prefect, Pontius Pilate, has to execute. And reluctantly, he does. After a severe beating, Jesus is nailed to a cross where he remains for six hours until dead. Never before or since has more been lost and gained at the same time. The world gained the atoning sacrifice of Christ. But for those present, either the significance of the moment is lost on them or their hearts break as the One they thought to be the Savior of the world dies at the hands of Rome. They can’t stop it, and they don’t realize it’s for them. They hoped in him, and though he’d told them he would suffer many things and rise three days later (Mark 8:31), how could they have possibly known this was what he meant?
(For a full account of the events of this day, see Matthew 26:17–75, Mark 14:12–72, Luke 22:7–71, John 13:1–18:27.)
The Thursday prior to Jesus’s crucifixion fills many pages in Scripture. It begins with John and Peter securing the upper room. There, Jesus washes his disciples’ feet, explaining he is there to make them clean. As they begin to eat, Jesus announces one of them is about to betray him. Each wonders if he means them. Then he dispatches Judas to do what he intends. During this last supper, Jesus sets apart the Passover bread and cup and reassigns—or better, perfects—their meaning. The bread is his body. The cup, his blood. This meal will no longer remind them of God’s deliverance primarily from the external tyranny of Pharaoh, but from the internal tyranny of their own guilt and sin against God. Jesus prays for his friends and those who will come to know him through them—that his Father would make them one (John 17). Then Jesus and his friends leave for the Mount of Olives to pray (Mark 14:33). But he isn’t there only to pray. He is also there to wait. Soon a line of torches snake their way toward him in the darkness. This is what he has been waiting for.
(For a full account of the events of this day, see Matthew 26:6–16, Mark 14:3–11, Luke 22:3–6.)
Read: The past several days have been a rush of tension and anger for Jesus’s opponents—and of unflinching resolve for Jesus. Words have been his currency, and he’s spent piles of them. But on the Wednesday before his death, Jesus is still. He is in the home of Simon the Leper, a man known by what’s wrong with him. During their meal together, Mary of Bethany—Lazarus’s sister (John 12:3)—comes to Jesus with an alabaster flask of perfume. She’s been saving this perfume, worth a year’s wages, for this exact occasion (John 12:7). She begins pouring it on Jesus’s head and feet, which requires breaking open its container (Mark 14:3). Like popping the cork on a $20,000 bottle of champagne, this was a deliberate act. She is offering Jesus everything she has. By giving her most valuable possession to him, she is expressing her knowledge that what he’s about to give of himself is for her. What Mary does is beautiful, and Jesus wants everyone to know it. She is preparing him for burial. There is honor and kindness in her gesture. Jesus returns the honor by saying history will never forget her act of beauty. And we haven’t.
(For a full account of the events of this day, see Matthew 21:23–26:5, Mark 11:27–14:2, Luke 20:1–22:2, John 12:37–50.)
If Monday’s arrival in the temple was an all-inclusive, living parable of cleansing God’s house, Tuesday’s entrance is a direct, verbal confrontation with the appointed leadership. After Jesus clarifies he doesn’t regard these leaders as having any authority over him, he spends the rest of the day right there in the temple to teach the people God’s Word. But Tuesday afternoon is the last time Jesus publicly teaches in the temple as a free man. His words on this day are his closing argument, his manifesto. When Jesus leaves the temple on Tuesday, the chief priests and scribes are “seeking how to arrest him by stealth and kill him” (Mark 14:1). But they can’t take his life from him solely on the strength of the charges they plan to bring—not if he defends himself. But he won’t. Instead, by his silence, he’ll offer up his life for a world of blasphemers and traitors and liars. This was what he has come to do, and as he exits the temple that Tuesday afternoon, he knows he will do it soon.
(For a full account of the events of this day, see Matthew 21:12–22, Mark 11:12–19, Luke 19:45–48.)
If Jerusalem was a beehive, with his triumphal entry Jesus had hit it with a stick. You could hear the buzz grow as the anger within got organized. His kingly arrival was a strong declaration about his authority over all the conventions of man. On Monday, Jesus returns for more—this time to declare the failure of God’s people to live up to their covenant mandate to be a blessing to the world. Much of what the Gospels tell us about Monday centers on the theme of Jesus’s authority—both over the created world and his right to judge it. Everything Jesus did, he did with authority. So when he awoke his disciples Monday saying he wanted to go back into Jerusalem to teach, as risky as it sounded it wasn’t surprising. Everyone sensed something stirring, as if Jesus had rounded a corner and his end was coming fast. He was a marked man.]
(For a full account of the events of this day, see Matthew 21:1–11, Mark 11:1–11, Luke 19:28–44, John 12:9–19.)
When Jesus rode into Jerusalem perched on a colt, it was the first time since raising Lazarus from the dead that he’d shown his face in the city. The story of Lazarus’s resurrection had circulated so that many regarded Jesus as a celebrity. Everyone wanted to catch a glimpse. They went out to meet him and received him like a King, because they heard he had done this (John 12:18). Jesus said Lazarus’s death would end in the faith of many, and in the “glory of God—that the Son of God may be glorified through it” (John 11:4). But the glory he had in mind was even more glorious than his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. In fact, he wasn’t referring to the glory these people gave him at all. Lazarus’s resurrection would steel the resolve of the religious leaders to hand Jesus over to a death he would embrace—a death he would conquer. That was the glory he meant. As he rode into Jerusalem, the people cried, “Your King is coming!” They praised his victory over Lazarus’s death. But the irony was that he wasn’t coming to claim his crown on account of Lazarus’s death and resurrection, but on account of his own.
Introduction to Holy Week. We will be posting scripture and a meditation each day this week leading up to Easter.
You humble me, But never humiliate me. You confront me, But never mock me. You warn me, but never abandon me. You call me, But never leave me alone. You discipline me, but never beat me up. You command me, But never fail to enable me. You see into my heart, But never reject me for what you see. You teach me your mysteries, But never make fun of how much i don't know. You stay near to me, But you never tire of me. You place your love on me, But never withdraw it when I fail. So I love you, But i have to understand that My hope and security, My present and my future, My acceptance and my identity, My ability and potential, Are not in my love for you, But in your shocking, Unfailing, Faithful, Wise, And powerful Love for me.
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Who shall separate us from the love of christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or sword? As it is written,
“For your sake we are being killed all the day Long; We are regarded as sheep to be Slaughtered.”
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ( Rom. 8:35-37)
Recall as many times as you can where God promises to “never” do something in scripture.
Do you fully base all of your life in God's love for you?
For further study and encouragement, read Ephesians 2.
I wish I could commend My righteousness to you, But I can't. I wish I could brag of My strength to you, But i can't. I wish I could boast about my wisdom To you, But I can't. I wish I could point you to my track Record, But I can't. You know me better than I know myself. I never escape your eye. You search the deepest regions of my heart. You know my thoughts before they are conscious of me. You know my words before I hear myself speak them. You examine my desires before They move me to action. So without pretense or inadequate Excuse, Stripped of pride and self defence, I bow before you, Devoid of demand or argument, And I make one plea. It is for your mercy. I have come to accept What you know of me, And I cry for one thing- Grace.
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For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, Who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, And also with him who is a contrite and lowly spirit, To revive the spirit of the lowly, And to receive the heart of the contrite.” (Isa. 57:15)
Pray and search through you heart-are there sins you excuse or defend, Is there pride pretense, or do you demand something from God because Of your self righteousness? Humbly offer your discoveries to God.
Review your knowledge of various biblical heroes, particularly considering the moments When God revealed sin in their hearts. How did they react? ( to help get started, see Job 38-42:6 or 2 Samuel 12)
For further study and encouragement, read psalm 139.
It’s not first about my religious acts, my spiritual duty, or the degree of my obedience. It’s not first about what I believe, the precision of my theology, or the truthfulness of the creed I embrace. It’s not first about what I give, the regularity of my charity, or the amount of my benevolence. It’s not first about my teaching, my preaching, or the truths that I have shared with others. It’s not first about my humility, my faithfulness, or the extent of my obedience. It’s first about you— your righteousness, your wisdom, your power, your authority, your grace— and how you have unleashed all of them for my forgiveness, my rescue, my redemption. My life is no longer about me, it is first and foremost about you.
For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. (Eph. 2:8–9)
What elements of your spiritual and religious life are you most likely to pride yourself in?
How can you go about today making sure Jesus is first in your life?
For further study and encouragement, read John 13:1–20
The only hope, the only help, the only rescue, the only healing, the only solace, the only balm, the only redemption, the only restoration for a broken, dysfunctional, sin-scared, evil-infected, morally fallen, dark, and dangerous world isn’t found in information, socialization, education, political solution, psychological insight, or personal reformation, but in the willing birth, righteousness, humiliation, suffering, sacrifice, and resurrection of a God-man Redeemer. No idea can liberate, no power can save, no institution can redeem, restore, resuscitate, or recreate what sin has destroyed. So a son had to come. Son of God. Son of Man. The Creator came to recreate. The Savior came to be the sacrifice. The blessed one came to suffer and in suffering to bless the world with hope, help, rescue, healing, solace, balm, redemption, and restoration. The cost of it all was his life. It was his birth mission, his resurrection victory. History marched toward his coming; there was no other way.
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. (Rom. 15:13)
What are common things you turn to as a source of hope, that ultimately fall short when compared to the hope Christ offers you?
Think through or journal about the ways Christ has brought you hope. For further study and encouragement, read 1 Corinthians 15.
My heart cries out, but I am not afraid, discouraged, panicked, forgotten, alone, dismayed, or doubtful because in the din of a million voices from every place in every situation young and old crying day and night in weakness, in alienation, in fear, and in distress, you are not overwhelmed, you are not distracted, you are not disgusted, you are not discouraged, you are not exhausted. But you listen, you hear, you attend to my cry in tenderness of mercy, in patience of spirit, and with generosity of love you listen to my plea and you never turn away. But with power and wisdom and the tender heart of a Savior, you do this amazing thing— you answer.
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. (1 Pet. 3:12)
When do you cry out to the Lord?
Do you ever slip into thinking that the Lord might be “overwhelmed,” “distracted,” “discouraged,” or “exhausted” by your situation?
For further study and encouragement, read Genesis 16.
Beginning tomorrow, we will start posting a daily reading (Monday - Friday) from the book Gospel Meditations by Paul David Tripp. Join us each morning for a quick, but powerful reminder to rest in God's presence!
I am not a poet; I am a pilgrim.
I am not attracted to formal, overly romantic Christian verse, but I think that we do not train our eyes to see enough, our hearts to consider enough, and our emotions to celebrate enough the glories of the grace that is showered down on us in a thousand ways every day. What you are about to read are notes from my journey through the struggle of God’s amazing grace. These are my meditations on the intersection between God’s ever-present grace and my ever-present battle to live out of the resources of that grace while I walk my way through this sadly broken and dysfunctional world. You may be wondering why I used both the words “glories” and “struggle” to describe a life of grace. Well, God’s grace is glorious. It is the single stellar glory of the life of God’s children. There is no glory in this created world, no matter how beautiful, that can compete with the beauty of God’s rescuing, forgiving, transforming, empowering, and delivering grace. There is no human achievement, no personal accomplishment, and no community victory that can do for us what God’s grace can do. There is nothing that we can be given that can accomplish in us and for us what God’s grace can. The love of no one in our lives has the power to do what the amazing grace of God’s boundless love can do for us. This grace really is so counterintuitive and mind-blowing that we will spend all of eternity performing exegesis on it, celebrating it, and worshiping the Giver for it.
Yet, between the “already” of our conversion and the “not yet” of our home-going, God’s grace doesn’t always look like grace. Instinctively we think that God’s grace will be a warm hug, a cool drink, an encouraging word, or a motivating insight. We look for grace to relieve and release us, and sometimes it does, but God’s grace regularly comes to us in uncomfortable forms. God’s grace causes us to face things in ourselves that are hard to see, consider, accept, and confess. Often God’s grace takes us into things we would like to avoid, things that are hard, discouraging, and sad. God’s grace will not only give us wonderful gifts, but it will also take precious things away from us. It will not only tell us the best news ever, it will also force us to accept the worst news we could ever be told. It will not only tell us that God is strong, but it will remind us of how weak we are without him. It will not only gift us with incredible wisdom, it will require us to face the fact that sin reduces all of us to fools. God’s grace will not only introduce us to the only one in the entire universe that is truly worthy of our worship, but will also expose the catalog of God’s replacements that regularly capture the affections of our hearts.
One of the primary struggles of the Christian life is this; grace doesn’t always seem attractive to us. You see, there is often a difference between what we think we need and what our God of grace knows that we need. And even if we are right in knowing what we need, we fail to understand what is necessary to produce that needed thing in us. So, often we’d rather have a season when life is easy, predictable, and the people around us are drama-free, then we would like to have a season where transforming grace takes us to new depths of humility, understanding, maturity, and worship. So in each of our lives grace is both a glory and a struggle. What you are about to read are my honest meditations on that struggle. They are my spontaneous responses to my journey through glory and struggle. They are:
celebratory hymns disappointing cries pleas for help groans of confusion shouts of joy theological mediations desperate requests heartfelt confessions hope for help in temptation quiet contemplations honest notes along the journey
They were not written as I sat looking out the window of my country cottage (I don’t have one of those) over a pastoral scene on a poet’s retreat. They were written: early in the morning late at night in physical suffering waiting for tea at Starbucks on the plane in the car in the middle of a meal when my heart was broken when my heart was filled with joy when I was at the end of my rope when what was around me was hard when what I saw in me caused grief when God seemed distant when I saw my sin clearly when I basked in God’s forgiveness when weakness seemed in me and all around me when I knew God was near when resting in grace was a struggle when I knew I’d have strength for the battle when grace seemed glorious after all
These meditations have been generating and marinating for years. They are the transparent interactions of one man with the Savior of grace. My hope is that this volume will help you to see the Savior more clearly, to understand his grace more deeply, to confess your struggle more honestly, to worship him more fully, and to find in these meditations the motivation to continue to follow the Savior even when he’s leading you into unexpected and hard places. My prayer is that these mediations will stimu- late a worship, rest, and celebration in you that the difficulties of life, this side of eternity, will not have the power to end.
Join us as Micah explores further how Jesus is building a new community through new means!
In God's perfect timing He has answered our years of prayers for a building & location. To hear about this incredible story, watch our film which highlights both Emmaus and Pilot Baptist's stories and shows how God has been knitting together this plan before we were even around!