We were on a once-in-a-lifetime family trip to Greece. Our youngest daughter was there as part of her university’s international study program. Everyone had been counting their nickels for quite some time (even having a home-made gift exchange the previous Christmas). Janice and I flew to Raleigh where our oldest daughter and her husband live. From there we flewContinue reading “Come and See”
Category Archives: Opening the Bible
Be Bold and Behold!
I have a portable DVD player that’s seen some heavy usage so I was doing a little maintenance on it. I opened the disc area and blew some compressed air into it. As I did, I noticed a warning label: DO NOT TOUCH THE LENS. That made sense— any kind of smudge on the lens would keep the discContinue reading “Be Bold and Behold!”
An Exalted View
David Blaine is an illusionist and stunt performer who has been in the public eye for a couple of decades. His most recent feat was to float upward to almost 25,000 feet while attached to over 50 large balloons in the Great Basin Desert in northern Arizona. As he was ascending, he spoke of havingContinue reading “An Exalted View”
At Our Posts
“Bless” is a big word in Psalms. It occurs in some form over 50 times in the book. Therefore, when we encounter it in the first and last verses of the final psalm of ascent we’re not surprised, and it serves as a fitting conclusion. What began on the road to Jerusalem with a callContinue reading “At Our Posts”
“We Treat You Like Family”
This seems to be the slogan of every other business. I did a search of the phrase and the first page showed it was used by a car dealership, a medical center, a bank, and a real estate company. Sports teams also speak of their fanbases as family. (Although I have yet to find aContinue reading ““We Treat You Like Family””
Coming Attractions
“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell together in unity!” (Psalm 133:1 ESV). To say that brothers don’t always dwell together in unity is an understatement. The biblical witness provides us with too many examples of this sad truth. There was Cain and Abel, Jacob and Esau and Joseph and his brothers.Continue reading “Coming Attractions”
A Better Idea
Psalm 132 does more than look back—it also points forward. And just as David is the subject of the backward look, he is also the subject their future hopes. Sort of. No sooner had David successfully relocated the ark of the covenant in Jerusalem, then he embarked on another project—to build a house (temple) forContinue reading “A Better Idea”
Life at the Tomb
If you want to have some fun, ask a husband and wife to tell you about something memorable—their wedding, the birth of a child, a vacation story, etc. Then just back away and enjoy the moment. It doesn’t matter who starts telling the story, they won’t get too far before the other breaks in toContinue reading “Life at the Tomb”
A Passion for God
The first half of Psalm 132 recounts David’s desire to “find a place for the Lord, a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob” (v. 5). Although this sounds like a reference to building the temple (something he would express a longing to do later), it isn’t. It has to do with relocating theContinue reading “A Passion for God”
Something to Sing About
When you look at a series or a group of anything, there are usually one or two that don’t quite fit into the category as neatly as the others do. They’re not outliers, but they stand out a bit. That’s Psalm 132. It is different from the other psalms of ascent in at least aContinue reading “Something to Sing About”
A Taste of Grace with Bruce Green 