Spring of Hope

Buy  my books   " Joy in the Journey "  and  " Song in the Night" on Amazon now 20% goes to missions               Experiencing sound quality issues?  Please Click here   Journey after the manger Matthew 2:13-23 Many of us feel that Christmas is now behind us—and yes, in one sense, it is. The decorations are coming down, or perhaps they already have. The carols have faded, and life has settled back into its familiar rhythm. Many of us actually hope for that return to routine, especially when the rhythms of life are already well known to us. Matthew’s Gospel meets us at this moment—after the celebration of Epiphany, after the angels have departed, after the shepherds have gone home, and after the wise men have returned to their own lands. It shows us what faith looks like when life moves forward. As I mentioned earlier, the Christmas story does not end with the...

Buy  my books   " Joy in the Journey "  and  " Song in the Night" on Amazon now 20% goes to missions               Experiencing sound quality issues?  Please Click here   Have you been to Jesus? Matthew 12:1-1 The visit of the Magi—the three wise men from the East who came to see the baby Jesus—is a well-known story. I don’t think I need to retell or explain it in detail to any of you here. I hope not. It is a beautiful story, one we have learned and remembered at many different times in our lives. Yet interestingly, we do not often hear it preached in churches, perhaps because it appears in only one Gospel—Matthew’s Gospel. The opening hymn we sang today, “Westward Leading, Still Proceeding,” guides us poetically toward the baby Jesus and gives the impression that the star moved from east to west. But we all know that stars do not actually move; the earth mov...

Buy  my books   " Joy in the Journey "  and  " Song in the Night" on Amazon now 20% goes to missions               Experiencing sound quality issues?  Please Click here   Streams in the desert  Isaiah 43:16-21 Jimmy was a Sunday School leader, but he never wanted to be a leader. One day, the church pastor asked him to give a short speech in church. Jimmy became nervous and scared. He said, “No, I can’t do that.” But the pastor and church leaders insisted, so Jimmy finally went up and stood before the congregation. He asked them, “Do you know what I’m going to say?” They said no. Jimmy replied, “I don’t know either,” and he walked away. The next Sunday came, and they did not want to give up. They forced him again to come forward. Jimmy stood up nervously and asked once more, “Do you know what I’m going to say?” Remembering last time, they decided to say yes...