In one of our all-time favorite films, Fiddler on the Roof, the Jewish citizens of the fictional Russian shtetl of Anatevka ask the rabbi if there is a prayer for the Czar. With a twinkle in his eye, he assures them there certainly is, and then goes on to cite the prayer for his listeners. “May God bless the Czar and keep him – far from us!” Living in Illinois, we sometimes think that might … Continue reading
Category Archives: Prayer
I think David Platt did just fine when President Trump showed up at McClean Bible Church and sat through the service. Platt brought him on stage and prayed for him. He showed us to the proper way to engage in prayer with our political leaders. I’ll get to how not to do it in a minute. On MBC website Platt explained what happened: At the end of my sermon at the 1:00 worship gathering, I … Continue reading
When I was younger one of the main targets of comedians was their mothers-in-law. Down through the years I have poked fun at my own mother-in-law from time to time. Like most of us – OK, ALL of us – she could sometimes be a walking contradiction as she walked by faith in a physical and troubled world. She seemed to be able to find a dark cloud behind any silver lining – but then … Continue reading
My late mother had a tradition on Thanksgiving Day of greeting us with a hearty “Happy Bird Day!” Unlike Joy, I didn’t grow up in a Christian home. My father was an atheist and my mother was a religious eclectic who bought into a variety of New Age beliefs before they were recognized as such. For us, Thanksgiving was a day off school, and except for my mother, it was a day off work. Even … Continue reading
From time to time, I think about the prayer warriors that God put in our lives in the past. Some of them have gone home to be with the Lord, and we have to admit we really miss the intercession they provided on a regular basis. In many cases, the intercession was happening without our immediate knowledge. For example, when we met at age 15, I was not a believer. “As it turns out,” Joy’s … Continue reading