Christianity
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Building Bethel: Noticing
From February 2015 Bethel Bell Tower newsletter 29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “You of…
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Seven Days of Prayer – Day 2
Prayer Focus: Open my heart and mind that what is important to You is important to me. Scripture: Ephesians 1:17-19 Reflection: The tough thing here is to listen to God and not just reinforce our own priorities. This is why the whole first day was dedicated to a “spiritual cleansing.” From God’s perspective, what are…
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Seven Days of Prayer – Day 1
Prayer Focus: Cleanse my heart and mind that I might hear You Scripture: Psalm 51 Reflection: Periodically, we need to clean up. Our bathtubs accumulate soap scum. Our teeth get a build-up of plaque. When we speak of “health,” we know that maintaining physical, mental and spiritual health is part of our overall health. Today,…
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Seven Days of Prayer – Introduction
Original post: October 12, 2014 Revised: August 6, 2018 Beginning this Monday, August 6, Pastor Jeff will begin a week of prayer and discernment following the pattern outlined in a guide he developed for this purpose (available for download from our website – dates are from 2014). People who subscribe to the blog or have signed up to…
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Reflecting on morning devotions – 8/6/2014
Sometimes when I do my morning devotions, I read through them hurriedly and barely pay attention because I want to get on to other things. This morning, I really read them (see Scriptures below). Two words stuck out for me in relation to the “new creation” from 2 Corinthians 5:17. Those words are “realities” and…
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Biblical Reflection on Immigration and Our Response
I’ve been listening a lot to the debate over immigration. Whether we’re talking about the laws of the United States, border enforcement, supporting other countries to make immigration less attractive, what to do with people (adults and children) who are already in the United States, the effects on the economy, politics, safety/security or any other…
Epicurious Lutheran 