Author: Norm

SCRIPTURE: John 10:11-21 As a leader in a church, I often focus on different aspects of leadership. Casting vision, mobilizing believers, setting S.M.A.R.T. goals for success. Providing inspirational, helpful leadership through challenging situations. But Jesus reminds me of another important aspect of being a good leader (shepherd). “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays…

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 117 “Praise the Lord, all you nations; extol him, all you peoples.” (Psalm 117:1) There is a God, but this God does not belong to just a few people. God is God of ‘all nations’ and ‘all peoples’. Our religions attempt to describe God, but they do not confine God. All nations and all peoples…

SCRIPTURE: Hosea 1-7 “Go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness to the Lord.” (Hosea 1:2) God uses this dramatic object lesson – Hosea marrying a prostitute – to get the peoples’ attention. ‘This is what it is like for Me to be your…

SCRIPTURE: John 10:1-10 “Very truly I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep.” (John 10:7) Who or what can help you find a full and happy life? Be honest, not just the ‘right’ answer; what do you prioritize or desire in your heart? Whatever it is, you are viewing that as your gateway to happiness….

SCRIPTURE: John 9:35-41 “If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains.” (John 9:35-41) Jesus is talking about figurative blindness (‘you claim you can see’). Are there people who are blind in this figurative sense? That is, they genuinely cannot see, cannot understood, cannot…

SCRIPTURE: John 9:24-34 “You were steeped in sin at birth; how dare you lecture us!” (John 9:34) This uneducated blind man speaks truth from his heart, and is attacked for it. People are still looked down on for their simple or inadequate lives or beliefs. Theologians look down on simple believers with their hodge-podge theologies. Scientists look…

SCRIPTURE: John 9:13-23 “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath.” (John 9:16) Unless it was an emergency, healers were not supposed to work on the rest day. The original idea of the sabbath was to give workers a break from their work. It was a gift day, a bonus holiday, every…

SCRIPTURE: Psalm 116 “Return to your rest, my soul, for the Lord has been good to you.” (Psalm 116:7) In times of crisis or grief or stress or struggle, ‘return to your rest’. Go to that place where your soul is nurtured, encouraged, strengthened. Spend time resting your troubles in His hands, and resting yourself there too….

SCRIPTURE: Daniel 8-12 “Some of the wise will stumble, so that they may be refined, purified and made spotless until the time of the end, for it will still come at the appointed time.” (Daniel 11:35) In his vision Daniel learns that behind awful world events the angel armies are at work. These are tough times, and…

SCRIPTURE: John 9:1-12 “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” (John 9:2) It is true that all suffering is somehow connected to the curse of sin. And sometimes we do suffer because of specific sins. But not all suffering is because of specific sins. We usually think that all suffering is…