A Prayer for Hope When You're Discouraged and Drained By Keri Eichberger &;quot;Taste‚ and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.&;quot; – Psalm 34:8 The weight felt heavier than usual. I sat numb during my morning prayer time that Sunday morning‚ not even sure I could muster the strength to shower for church. God gets it. He still loves me if I miss just this once. But I couldn't. I have five people counting on me to be a role model of faith‚ counting on me for absolutely everything. At least that's the recent weight I had been carrying. And the heaviness was compounding to near paralyzation.  I dragged myself to the bathroom‚ where my seemingly much lighter husband was tending to his own pre-church preparations. He casually remarked on an email he'd just opened concerning a missing assignment from one of our kid's teachers‚ but it hit me more like a bomb to the soul. Have you ever received something so small that managed to push you over the edge&;#63; A single drop of water that made the swelling balloon inside finally burst&;#63; That was it for me. A mere missing assignment. And the floodgates opened. A cry of &;quot;enough&;quot; escaped my soul and over my eyelids. Life had compounded‚ along with loads of discouraging feelings of falling short. And at last‚ I was left empty. By the help and grace of God‚ I made the choice to pick up my resistant feet and go to church anyway. And when I showed up‚ so did he. The music began‚ and I stood in song while tears returned and rolled down my cheeks. But this time‚ they were surprisingly streaked with encouragement. Tiny drops of hope released as melodies of surrender and praise poured out as I opened and turned my heart toward the Lord. What do you do when you sense the heavy weight of the world&;#63; When you become overwhelmed with discouragement or find yourself drained of all strength and left with little hope. Do you turn toward the Lord to refill your spirit and strength&;#63; I wish I could tell you that my soul did a complete 180 as the worship music and truths of God flooded my heart that Sunday morning. But that's not exactly how it happened. In fact‚ sometimes God only gives subtle nudges of hope to simply point us back to him. Small tastes of his goodness remind us where to return for our true source of hope and help. But in the same way the one bit of news about a child falling behind in school was my breaking point‚ one spec of hope and encouragement from God can initiate a swelling impact in a positive direction. Rebounding your heart with hope and offering delightful tastes of the goodness of God. Sweet blessings that lighten your load as you take refuge in him. Whether you're currently weighed down by responsibility or expectations or you're drained due to disappointment and discouragement‚ I'd like to encourage you to take one step with God. Go to church when you feel you can't offer a song of surrender and praise‚ make a list of what you're thankful for‚ memorize an encouraging Bible verse‚ or consider pausing for five minutes of prayer in the mid-afternoon. Take just one step with God. Gather small moments from him and with him when you're feeling weighed down with heavy loads. And little by little‚ day by day‚ you will taste and see that the Lord is good as his presence and promises to lift the weight and uplift you. Keep turning to him and walking hand-in-hand with him‚ and he will fuel your joy and restore your hope.  Let's pray:  Precious Lord‚ You are so full of goodness‚ mercy‚ and unfailing love. But even still‚ there is hurt and heaviness in the world. I feel it in my world. And too often‚ I allow responsibilities‚ expectations‚ and disappointments to weigh me down. I let discouragement and defeat slip in. And I become drained. Forgive me for not always turning to you. Forgive me for not always taking hold of your hand and stepping side by side with you. Lord‚ will you help me to remember to do just that&;#63; To take one step at a time‚ one day at a time‚ looking to you‚ leaning more on you‚ taking more and more delight in you and in all the beautiful things that you have to offer. Blessings that continually‚ abundantly surround me. Remind me that it is you who always lightens my load. That there is always hope in you. And remind me to taste and see that you are good. Thank you for giving me the gift of hope as I take steps with you and take refuge in you. Thank you for your goodness and faithfulness. In your gracious Son’s name‚ Jesus‚ Amen. Photo Credit: ©iStock/Getty Images Plus/FG Trade Keri Eichberger is a Jesus-loving Kentucky girl. She is married to her best friend‚ Mike‚ and has a full house of five kids. After years of writing for an online audience‚ Keri became ordained through Southeast Christian Church‚ giving her life to full-time ministry. She is the author of Win Over Worry: Conquer What Shakes You and Soar With the One Who Overcomes‚ and has a passion for sharing faith-filled encouragement through devotional writing. Connect with Keri at KeriEichberger.com or Instagram. Teach Us to Pray is a FREE prayer podcast hosted by iBelieve writer Christina Patterson. Each week‚ she gives you practical‚ real-life tips on how to grow your faith and relationship with God through the power of prayer. To listen to her episode on What to Pray in the Morning for a Worry-Free Day‚ click below&;#33; Now that you’ve prayed‚ are you in need of someone to pray for YOU&;#63; Click the button below&;#33; Visit iBelieve.com for more inspiring prayer content. The post A Prayer for Hope When You’re Discouraged and Drained – Your Daily Prayer – April 23 appeared first on GodUpdates.

April 23‚ 2024

T-Bone Walker was the man with the eye-popping live show who influenced everyone from BB King to Jimi Hendrix. And these are his best albums

A good-versus-evil concept story featuring keyboards and a nine-minute title track set the scene for records that would arrive in future decades

If you’ve been a Christian for long‚ chances are you’ve been asked to support a missionary. A letter comes in the mail. A text to your phone. Or maybe a message over Facebook. Your friends—or people who used to be your friends—let you know they plan to serve for the summer or move overseas. They need financial help. So they ask for your support. Many Christians respond positively. Over the years‚ I’ve been overwhelmed by the generosity of God’s people toward missionaries‚ including myself. If able‚ believers are willing to give‚ especially to the global cause of Christ. But what happens when individuals give directly to missionaries more than to churches&;#63; Is it possible an otherwise loving and generous act can slowly undermine the work of the Great Commission&;#63; Recent Shift These days‚ when missionary candidates prepare for service‚ they’ll often attend a training‚ whether online or in person‚ on “partner development”—the latest lingo for support raising. There’s an entire cottage industry for “PD” in missions. Books‚ webinars‚ and boot camps are available to help missionaries raise funds and get to the field as fast as possible. And the assumed way to do that is through individuals. Why&;#63; Because churches take a long time to identify qualified candidates. To get a church’s financial backing‚ missionaries must apply‚ interview‚ and cut through the bureaucratic red tape of committees and councils. On the other hand‚ a friend from high school can decide to drop $50 per month over a chai latte. In the time it takes missionaries to receive a single church’s approval‚ they can easily speak with hundreds of willing individuals. In the time it takes missionaries to receive a single church’s approval‚ they can easily speak with hundreds of willing individuals. Meanwhile‚ many American evangelicals are more than happy to take control of their giving. Church members may be concerned a missionary chosen by a church committee might not align with their personal priorities or convictions. Many would rather support someone they know than someone they’ve only ever seen on a postcard pinned to a map at the back of the church. In my experience‚ Christians give to people more than projects—and missionaries you don’t know feel like projects. Not only that‚ but Americans less and less like giving to institutions. They may not trust how the church spends its money. So they’d rather give directly to an international missionary than wonder how their offering is spent in the church’s budget. Redirected Gift These sentiments resonate with me. I’m not opposed to Christians giving directly to missions. In the interest of full disclosure‚ our family is supported by many generous individuals. And there’s solid biblical precedent for such a practice (Rom. 16:2; cf. Luke 8:1–3). Which is why‚ in addition to our family’s church giving‚ we also give directly to missionaries. But over the years‚ I’ve been concerned by the growing trend of missionaries being supported primarily—if not exclusively—by individuals rather than churches. So in recent days‚ our family has redirected more of our giving back to the church. Here are a few reasons why. 1. Churches send missionaries. Missionaries aren’t self-senders‚ nor do individual Christians send missionaries. Instead‚ churches send missionaries. To be an ambassador for Christ is to be an appointed representative of a church (or churches). This is the example we see in Scripture. When the Spirit set apart Paul and Barnabas for service‚ he did so through the church (Acts 13:1–3). Similarly‚ the first Christian congregations identified‚ vetted‚ and approved the workers they sent on mission (11:22; 2 Cor. 8:19–23; Phil. 2:25). Churches are God’s appointed means for carrying out all Christ’s commands. Disconnected individuals aren’t vested with that authority. And most Christians aren’t in a place to assess the character and competency of missionaries‚ much less hold them responsible for their work. If we believe churches are the senders of missionaries‚ it stands to reason that the lion’s share of any Christian’s missionary giving should typically be done through the local church. While individual believers are free to be patrons of the work of missions‚ they should only do so for missionaries affirmed by‚ ambassadors of‚ and accountable to a local church. 2. Institutions outlast individuals. Another reason to give more of your missions dollars through the church is that local churches‚ as institutions‚ are more durable than individuals. Missionaries come and go‚ as do missions givers. Most churches and other parachurch institutions will outlast us all. So if we want our giving to contribute to long-term kingdom influence‚ we should consider the value of investing in more than just individuals. When you give to missions through your local congregation‚ you’re both supporting missionaries and strengthening the church. When you give to missions through your local congregation‚ you’re both supporting missionaries and strengthening the church. If you want your giving to outlast yourself‚ give to the church. On any given month‚ if you forget to put your check in the offering‚ another member will likely make up the difference. And when she loses her job‚ you’ll be there to contribute her share. But if and when there’s any disruption in your ability to give‚ it will directly affect the missionaries you personally support. So‚ giving to the church allows your contribution to be more reliable than a personal donation could ever be. 3. Humility defers responsibility. The last reason to give to missions through the local church is one I’ve found personally challenging: to do so is an expression of humility. The anti-institutionalism and rampant individualism of Western culture are ultimately expressions of pride. Many of us—myself included—naturally think we can spend our money better than the church. If we don’t like how our church supports missions or whom they sponsor‚ we can redirect our giving. We can prioritize what we value. But this is another way Christians buy into our culture’s expressive individualism. Instead‚ we should recognize the value of the God-given systems and structures over us. We should reject the arrogance that assumes we always know better. Humility defers responsibility to authority. Of course‚ that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t seek to influence the way our churches fund missions. But we’ll never have such influence if all our giving is by the individual and for the individual. By giving to the church‚ we humbly relinquish autonomy and control and ultimately entrust all things to our good Father—including the work of missions.

“It’s amazing how often a higher calling is buried by problems‚ smallness‚ and self-interest. It is the leader’s job to lift the sights of an organization to a higher place. People want to be part of something great‚ and they will rise to the occasion if given the chance. And it’s the leader’s job to help lift them to that place.”  That’s from a recent talk delivered by Steve Preston‚ president and CEO of Goodwill Industries International‚ the largest nonprofit workforce developer in North America. I met him and his wife‚ Molly‚ while working on my book about Tim Keller. The Prestons were early members at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York. Steve’s comments for that book stood out to me before I knew anything about his background. Then I got to know Steve better last year as The Gospel Coalition was launching The Keller Center for Cultural Apologetics. He served as the 14th secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) from 2008 to 2009 and the 22nd administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration from 2006 until his appointment as HUD secretary. Before entering public service‚ Steve spent nearly 25 years in the private sector. Steve’s work experience shows how strong leaders break the chain of problems from advancing beyond them. I like this line from one of his talks: “So many times‚ larger crises are averted‚ because good leaders have taken a stand‚ done the right thing‚ and been willing to stand tall when others were not—because they held fast to what they believed was right.” We learn more about that history in this interview. And we talked about Goodwill‚ which I’m sure almost all of you will know from its 3‚300 stores where we donate and shop. For nearly 120 years‚ Goodwill has recruited‚ trained‚ and placed employees who otherwise may have been trapped in poverty without meaningful work that blesses their neighbors. Steve joined me on Gospelbound to share about his journey and how his faith in God carries him through various decisions and leadership challenges as he fights to provide opportunities for others.

The new April 2024 issue of Themelios has 262 pages of editorials‚ articles‚ and book reviews. It is freely available in three formats: (1) PDF‚ (2) web version‚ and (3) Logos Bible Software. 1. Brian J. Tabb and Benjamin L. Gladd | Editorial: Announcing the Carson Center for Theological Renewal This column introduces the Carson Center for Theological Renewal‚ named for TGC’s founding president and longtime Themelios editor Don Carson. The Carson Center broadly exists to explain the richness of the Bible in an accessible yet responsible manner and to equip church leaders with the tools to generate their own content for preaching and teaching. 2. Daniel Strange | Strange Times: Baggy Trousers: Approaching Theological Study Strange offers six timely observations for those pursuing training for church ministry‚ developing Helmut Thielicke’s classic insight: “There is a hiatus between the arena of the young theologian’s actual spiritual growth and what he already knows intellectually about this arena. So to speak‚ he has been fitted‚ like a country boy‚ with breeches that are too big‚ into which he must still grow up.” 3. David Brunn | Gender in Bible Translation: A Crucial Issue Still Mired in Misunderstanding This article argues that much of the controversy surrounding gender in Bible translation is unnecessary. One reason is that many of the discussions about this issue have focused almost exclusively on the way nonliteral versions translate gender‚ giving insufficient attention to the way gender is handled in versions that identify as literal. A careful‚ objective examination of both kinds of versions together will show the two sides of this discussion aren’t as far apart as some have supposed. While there are differences between the various versions‚ Brunn demonstrates that the most significant distinction between the way literal and nonliteral versions handle gender in translation lies in the frequency rather than the nature of the adjustments. 4. Melvin L. Otey | The Ancient Pedigree of Homosexuality as the Sin of Sodom Scholars disagree about the precise nature of the sin that provokes God’s wrath in Genesis 19. In fact‚ multiple transgressions are involved‚ including fornication‚ rape‚ and inhospitality. Christian exegetes traditionally emphasize the apparently homoerotic aspects of the Sodomites’ demand to “know” the angels inside Lot’s home. However‚ some modern scholars isolate the aggressors’ inhospitality to the exclusion of any potential sexual deviance and allege the emphasis on fornication‚ especially homosexual intercourse‚ is a historically recent phenomenon. Otey critiques this assertion by demonstrating that a tradition within Second Temple Judaism and the primitive church attributes sexual sins‚ including homosexuality‚ to Sodom and its neighbors. 5. Dan Martin | Pedagogy and Biblical Theology: Tracing the Intertextuality of the Book of Proverbs This article articulates a provisional thesis‚ namely‚ that we need a pedagogical category within our biblical theological frameworks‚ on the basis that such a category was in the New Testament authors’ minds. Martin begins by outlining the challenges of integrating the book of Proverbs into biblical theology to date‚ then highlights the value of intertextuality as the primary inductive method for constructing biblical theology. Martin then demonstrates through a “worked example” the mutually interpretive canonical relationship of a Proverbs text with the New Testament‚ providing a tentative basis for a pedagogical biblical theological category. 6. Adam Friend | Filial Revelation and Filial Responsibility: (Dis)obedient Sonship and The Religious Leaders in Matthew 11–16 Sonship appears in every section‚ at every turning point‚ and on the lips of every character in Matthew’s Gospel. In determining the motif’s function‚ the religious leaders have largely been neglected. Friend analyzes Matthew’s development of the motif of sonship in Matthew 11:1–16:11‚ arguing that the religious leaders clarify the positive concept of sonship from their provision of its negative example. For Matthew‚ sonship must be actualized in obedience. 7. Garrett S. Craig | The Divine Identity in 1 Peter: The Father‚ Christ‚ and the Spirit in Relation Traditionally the discipline of New Testament studies hasn’t been welcoming to a Trinitarian understanding of God. In recent years‚ however‚ some scholars working in the discipline have argued for the positive exegetical benefits for what they’ve called a “Trinitarian hermeneutic.” While working within the historical-grammatical paradigm‚ a Trinitarian hermeneutic seeks to understand the text’s God-talk by attending to the relations between the Father‚ Christ‚ and the Spirit. By using this method‚ Craig argues the divine identity found in the letter of 1 Peter puts pressure on its readers to articulate an understanding of God that agrees with later Trinitarian confessions. 8. Christopher Osterbrock | The Spiritual Utility of Calvin’s Correspondence During the Strasbourg Years Calvin’s letters are no mere collection of personal correspondence but served him in his lifelong spiritual formation. Of note are those letters collected during his time in Strasbourg (1538–41). Osterbrock argues for and assesses the unique spiritual utility of Calvin’s correspondence during the Strasbourg years. The reformer is observed in these letters examining himself‚ seeking counsel and companionship‚ and recording the evolution of his philosophy of ministry‚ all this while shepherding his French refugee church under Martin Bucer’s mentorship. Calvin’s letters evidence a desire for theological implication through reciprocated dialogue‚ which pastors and laypersons alike ought to consider. 9. Nathan Sherman | A Change in Kind‚ Not Degree: Labels‚ Identity‚ and an Evaluation of “Baptistic Congregationalists” How do we decide what to label people of centuries past when they had no clear labels for themselves&;#63; Should we describe 17th-century Baptists as “Baptists” if that wasn’t what they called themselves&;#63; Matthew Bingham has recently argued that instead of using the label “Particular Baptists” for the English Calvinistic Baptists of the 1640s and ’50s‚ historians would more clearly describe their subjects as “baptistic congregationalists.” Is Bingham justified in his use of this neologism&;#63; Sherman reviews Bingham’s work and also contributes to the debates about wider religious labels of Early Modern England. 10. Obbie Tyler Todd | What Republicanism Is This&;#63; An Introduction to Christian Republicanism (1776–1865) While the term “Christian republicanism” is known to most historians of the early republic‚ few have attempted to explicate its unique theology or to identify its various religious‚ moral‚ and even racial permutations in the church. Christian republicanism was much more than just a set of political or social commitments. It was also a loose theological system. Todd provides an introduction to Christian republicanism‚ tracing its beliefs‚ defining its boundaries‚ and chronicling its lifespan in the early United States when it flourished in the American mind. 11. Roger W. Fay | John Wesley and Faith at Aldersgate The importance of justification by faith to the thinking of John Wesley (1703–91) both during and after his Aldersgate Street experience in May 1738 has long been doubted by some Wesley scholars. Fay demonstrates that the historical data surrounding Aldersgate is compelling and points to the validity of Wesley’s own interpretation of that occasion. A reprise of the historical data‚ coupled with an examination of some alternative interpretations by distinguished modern Wesley scholars‚ demonstrates the weak historical basis for interpretations that downplay justification by faith. John Wesley remains an important and instructive figure in the history of evangelical revivals. 12. Ryan Reed | The House Divided: An Assessment of the American Neo-Evangelicals’ Doctrine of Scripture Carl F. H. Henry‚ Harold Lindsell‚ and Bernard Ramm represent three of the most formative voices within the neo-evangelical movement in America. Nevertheless‚ these three figures held to three different tones and methodologies on the doctrine of Scripture. Lindsell represents the evangelicals that saw inerrancy as a test for evangelical authenticity‚ as seen in his works‚ The Battle for the Bible and The Bible in the Balance. Though closer to the Lindsellian view‚ Henry saw inerrancy as a test for evangelical consistency rather than authenticity. Ramm represents evangelicals that affirmed a broad concept of inerrancy but didn’t see it as either the test of authenticity or consistency. This particular issue would cause early cracks in the unity of the new evangelical movement. By examining these three figures’ understanding of the doctrine of Scripture‚ Reed shows how the early neo-evangelical leaders struggled to decide how clearly they would identify with their fundamentalist roots. 13. Robert Golding | Swimming in a Sanctimonious Sea of Subjectivity: A Proposal for Christian Authenticity in a Made-Up World There’s a curious tendency in modern culture to simultaneously reject objective truth (e.g.‚ “Live your truth”) and to live as if it were real (e.g.‚ “You must fight for the truth”). Objectivity has worked its way back into the subjectivity of postmodernism. This isn’t pure postmodernism‚ nor a return to the modernism that preceded it. This is a new phase‚ which Golding calls “metamodernism” (a term coined elsewhere). Golding first explains metamodernism‚ offers some suggestions for Christians to rebut metamodernism‚ and concludes with an anecdote to better explain the recommendation of the third section. 14. Luke Johnson | “Salvation Without Spin”: How the Gospel of Christ Subversively Fulfills the Prayer Wheels of Tibetan Buddhism With present calls for interreligious dialogue‚ Christianity must relate to major world religions in specific ways to distinguish its uniqueness in belief and practice. Johnson uses one of the five “magnetic points” of J. H. Bavinck‚ “I and salvation‚” to demonstrate how Christianity carries out Hendrik Kraemer’s notion of “subversive fulfillment‚” specifically with the prayer wheels of Tibetan Buddhism. He first shows how Christianity confronts a trust in religious objects for salvation. Second‚ Christianity challenges a belief in mere mantras for spiritual help. Third‚ Christianity teaches that humans cannot gain merit through religious works. Instead‚ Christianity offers true deliverance through faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Featured Book Reviews: Andrew G. Shead‚ Walk His Way: Following Christ Through the Book of Psalms. Reviewed by David R. Jackson. Takamitsu Muraoka‚ Why Read the Bible in the Original Languages&;#63;. Reviewed by Steve Walton. Andrew F. Walls‚ The Missionary Movement from the West: A Biography from Birth to Old Age. Reviewed by Kenneth J. Stewart. Abigail Favale‚ The Genesis of Gender: A Christian Theory. Reviewed by Emily J. Maurits. Oliver O’Donovan‚ Begotten or Made&;#63;. Reviewed by Robert S. Smith and Andrew J. Spencer. Gavin Ortlund‚ Humility: The Joy of Self-Forgetfulness. Reviewed by Annabel Nixey. Christopher J. H. Wright‚ The Great Story and the Great Commission: Participating in the Biblical Drama of Mission. Reviewed by Preston Pearce.

In a world teeming with innovation and knowledge‚ there exists a shadowy realm of ideas so potent they send shivers down the spine of humanity. These are not just mere thoughts or hypotheses; they are profound contemplations that challenge our deepest fears‚ ethics‚ and the very fabric of our existence. From the technological terrors of […] The post 10 Ideas That Scare People to Death appeared first on Listverse.

It’s always interesting to see how American states led the way in various categories. Michigan can lay claim to being the first in automobile development and the car culture that is everywhere today. In that same vein‚ give California credit for being the first state to really go all-in on the freeway system that dominates […] The post Ten More Extremely Unexpected U.S. State “Firsts” appeared first on Listverse.