Monthly Archives: October 2010

The Holy Gospel: October 31, 2010 (Year C)

Posted on October 29, 2010 by Steve Harper

Reading:  Luke 19:1-10 Meditation:  “A Transforming Presence” We devise elaborate evangelistic programs and execute complicated evangelistic campaigns.  But all Jesus had to do was to walk into a person’s home.  His presence was enough to transform lives. Luke does not … Continue reading →

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The Holy Gospel: October 24, 2010 (Year C)

Posted on October 29, 2010 by Steve Harper

Due to unavailability of internet where we were staying in Japan, there was no post for “The Holy Gospel” for this day.

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Site Updates: “Time Out!”

Posted on October 13, 2010 by Steve Harper

Oboedire will be offline (mostly) until Monday, November 1st. I’ve posted “Ponderings” a bit early, and also this week’s “Holy Gospel”—both below.  But that will be it for a while. Jeannie and I are traveling in Japan from October 14-27.  I’m … Continue reading →

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The Holy Gospel: October 17,2010 (Year C)

Posted on October 13, 2010 by Steve Harper

(This blog is posted early this week due to travel constraints) Reading:  Luke 18:1-8 Meditation:  “Satan’s Big Victory” Jesus does not directly refer to Satan in this week’s lesson, but the word “lose heart” has the devil lurking in the … Continue reading →

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Ponderings: No “New Testament Church”

Posted on October 13, 2010 by Steve Harper

A person was talking with me about the problems he was seeing in the church, and as he did so, he said, “Sometimes I wish we could just get back to the New Testament Church.”  It’s interesting how we think … Continue reading →

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Shepherd’s Care: Flow

Posted on October 13, 2010 by Steve Harper

The power for ministry flows from the interior to the exterior—from “self” to “flock.”  When we reverse that flow, we experience soul-drain.  We become depleted rather than energized, fatigued rather than motivated.  We can tolerate this for the short-run, but not … Continue reading →

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Gleanings: A Lived Faith

Posted on October 12, 2010 by Steve Harper

Pope Gregory the Great (who served from 590-604 a.d.) wrote, “Whosoever would understand what he hears must hasten to put into practice what he has heard.” This is an historic way to express what has come to be knows as “sapiential theology.”  If … Continue reading →

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Listenings: Space

Posted on October 11, 2010 by Steve Harper

The second thing we told our children when they were learning to drive is this:  you can avoid almost all accidents if you’ll leave enough space between yourself and the car ahead of you.  We watched (like some of you … Continue reading →

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Connections: Eugene Peterson

Posted on October 9, 2010 by Steve Harper

This week’s recommendation may not be needed, because so many of us know about Eugene Peterson, and we have been blessed over and over by him.  But I do not want to assume that everyone who reads this blog will … Continue reading →

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The Holy Gospel: October 10, 2010 (Year C)

Posted on October 8, 2010 by Steve Harper

Read: Luke 17:11-19 Meditation:  “Healed As You Go” When Jesus told the lepers to go and show themselves to the priests, they had nothing to show the priests that they had not already seen.  Nothing had changed; they were still … Continue reading →

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Ponderings: Redeeming “Devotional”

Posted on October 7, 2010 by Steve Harper

On one occasion I heard a speaker say, “If you cannot read the Bible any other way, you can always read it devotionally.”  The setting for the speaker’s message was an academic one, and the point he was trying to … Continue reading →

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Editorial: We Must Be Careful

Posted on October 6, 2010 by Steve Harper

If you read this as a “political” post, you’ll be reading it incorrectly.  If you read it from the vantage point of spiritual formation, hopefully, you’ll be able to receive the message I am trying to send. Recently, I have … Continue reading →

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Shepherd’s Care: Comprehensiveness

Posted on October 6, 2010 by Steve Harper

Through the words of Paul to the Ephesian elders, God reminds us that “ministerial health” is related to both self-care and flock-care.  We might say it this way: we can only be the leaders God calls us to be when we … Continue reading →

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Gleanings: Missing God

Posted on October 4, 2010 by Steve Harper

I’m reading Jill Briscoe’s spiritual autobiography There’s a Snake in My Garden.   The following statement struck me… It’s easy to become so absorbed by ‘the work of the Lord’ that you miss what the ‘Lord of the work’ is telling … Continue reading →

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Listenings: Speed

Posted on October 3, 2010 by Steve Harper

When our children were learning to drive, Jeannie and I did our best to instill two words into their driving habits: “speed” and “space.”  I went so far as to say, you will never be the cause of an accident … Continue reading →

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Connections: Evelyn Underhill

Posted on October 2, 2010 by Steve Harper

You should not go long in your spiritual formation without getting to know the life and work of Evelyn Underhill (1875-1941).  Her early life in England developed a keen interest in and skill with literature, especially short stories and poetry.  … Continue reading →

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The Holy Gospel: October 3, 2010 (Year C)

Posted on October 1, 2010 by Steve Harper

Read:  Luke 17:5-10 Meditation:  “How To Avoid Bitterness” Beneath the surface of Jesus’s story of the master and his servant is an important lesson in how to avoid bitterness.  It comes when the servant says something very strange, “I am … Continue reading →

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