Bible and Theology on Being Heard

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God Speaks, God Listens Too

Author

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Scripture

Genesis 18:22-33, Exodus 3:1-12 , 1 Kings 19:9-13, John 5:19-30, John 16:12-15, Psalm 116:1-2

The God who shares power is a listener. Listening is not something that becomes necessary for God only after the world is created. Listening is who God is. In God’s very being, communication does not ...

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Rescue from the Dark

Author

Max Lucado

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Scripture

Acts 2:1-4, Acts 1:8, John 16:13, John 14:16-17, Romans 8:26-27

Max Lucado likens the coming of the Spirit to a dramatic rescue. Recall the twelve boys trapped in the Tham Luang cave in Thailand in 2018 for eighteen days? Imagine how they felt when the first rescu...

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Psalm 107 | Gratitude for God's Steadfast Love

Author

C. Hassell Bullock

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Scripture

Psalm 107:, Psalm 106:, Philippians 4:6-7

Ancient lens What’s the historical context? Historical Background We need to understand several things about Psalm 107 before we can put it all together. First, it is the beginning psalm of Book...

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Heavenly Father, we confess that we fill

Author

Allen Thompson

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Heavenly Father, we confess that we often fill our lives with noise that obscures our ability to hear your voice. We do not even realize how many opportunities you give us to see your glory and to glo...

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Author

Timothy Keller

Keywords

Have you heard God's blessing in your inmost being? Are the words, 'You are my beloved child, in whom I delight' an endless source of joy and strength? Have you sensed, through the Holy Sp...

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A Lost Sheep

Author

Kenneth E. Bailey

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 23:null

In his excellent study of the famous Biblical passage on shepherds, ( The Good Shepherd: A Thousand Year Journey from Psalm 23 to the New Testament ) , scholar Ken Bailey provides a bit of context ...

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Inspired by 1 Samuel 3:10-11

Author

Austin D. Hill

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Scripture

1 Samuel 3:10-11

Then the Lord came and stood there, calling. Like the prophet Samuel, we reply to God, “Speak. Your servants are listening.” And the Lord replied, “I am about to do something that will make the ea...

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Five Types of Illustrations & Why They Matter

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Preaching

For most of us “seasoned preachers,” when we come to the conclusion that we need a sermon illustration, our minds instantly think “story.” Many preachers use the words interchangeably, but as we will ...

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The Lost Sheep

Author

Kenneth E. Bailey

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Shepherds in Lebanon, and in the Holy Land (in addition to some of my students), have told me that once a sheep knows that it is lost, it tries to hide under a bush or rock and begins quivering and bl...

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Struggling to Feel Chosen

Author

M. Robert Mulholland Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Ephesians 1:3-6

Commenting on Ephesians 1:3-6, M. Robert Mulholland describes just how powerful it can be personally, when we recognize that we were chosen by God, especially for children who are the result of an unp...

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An Unexpected Friendship

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Galatians 6:2, Psalm 34:18, Proverbs 19:11, Colossians 3:13, Ephesians 4:32, Luke 6:37

Sometimes moments of forgiveness and friendship come from unexpected places. In 2018, the comedian Pete Davidson appeared on the “Weekend Update” segment of Saturday Night Live (SNL). Davidson made a ...

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The Gospel and the Other: Preaching in an Age of "Us vs. Them"

Author

Andrew DeCort

Keywords

Scripture

Luke 10:25-37

When conflict and division are driving both politics and media (including social media), the contrast between the way of the world and the way of Jesus stands out more than ever. How can pastors, task...

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Pruning Strengthens: A Botanist's View on Pain

Author

Ryan Bundrick

Keywords

Scripture

John 15:1-8, Jeremiah 17:7-8, Hebrews 12:11, 1 Peter 1:6-7, 2 Corinthians 4:17, Psalm 119:67-71, Isaiah 48:10

Any experienced gardener has heard of a botanical term called Apical (ah-pick-ul) dominance. In most plants that grow from a central stem, from maple trees to bush peas, whatever branch is at the top ...

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Elemental Claims of the Gospel by Walter Brueggemann

A Theological Giant's Final Word Walter Brueggemann’s passing on June 5, 2025 leaves a void in biblical scholarship that will last a very long time. He was still writing books and essays at age 9...

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The Gift of Scripture

Author

Alan Fadling

Keywords

"Rub Some Bible" on It? My wife Gem and I were discussing a podcast she’d heard in which the host talked about quoting the Bible “for those who feel the need for that sort of authority.” ...

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A Surprise Pregnancy

Author

Vaughan Roberts

Keywords

Scripture

Genesis 21:1-7

The years continue to pass and Sarah still does not conceive, but one day God speaks to Abraham and reassures him that, despite her great age, she will bear a son. And, sure enough, it happens. I once...

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Psalm 30 | Gratitude for Rescue and Healing

Author

C. Hassell Bullock

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 30:, 1 Samuel 13:14, Hebrews 12:2

Ancient lens What’s the historical context? Autobiographies Have you ever thought about writing your autobiography? It would be a little like reliving your life, at least in miniscule. As a write...

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Psalm 19 | Creation Reflects God

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 5:17, Psalm 19:

Introduction During my time in seminary (and the year after I graduated) I spent a lot of time at a church in southern New Jersey. It’s actually how I met Scott Bullock, TPW board member and creator...

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God of grace and truth, all-loving and

God of grace and truth, all-loving and all-holy: Give us the mind of Christ, the heart of Christ, and the will of Christ so that we may show the glory and goodness of Christ to the world: to neighbors...

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Why Humility is Essential to Christian Leadership

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Ephesians 4:null

A Rude Awakening Just as I began my seminary education, filled with a love of learning and a hunger to serve God, I attended a lecture. It was given at a nearby think tank, and the presenter was an a...

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Truth in the Pulpit: Why Intellectual Integrity Matters for Pastors

Author

William Rowley

Keywords

While sexual sin, financial scandals, and toxic work environments hurt pastoral credibility, a more subtle, and probably more common danger is carelessness with the truth. Intellectual integrity matte...

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Author

A. W. Tozer

Keywords

The true Church has never sounded out public expectations before launching her mission. Her leaders heard from God, they knew their Lord's will and did it. Their people followed them - sometimes t...

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Blowing Through Stop Signs: Why Keeping the Sabbath Is So Important

Author

Dan Baumgartner

Keywords

Scripture

Exodus 20:null, Deuteronomy 5:null

Ignoring God's Stop Sign Have you ever been driving and inadvertently blown right through a stop sign? It happened to me recently. Anne and I were down in San Francisco meeting some friends, I w...

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Planning a Sermon Series

Author

Scott B. Bullock

Keywords

How do you choose what to preach on any given Sunday? Are you a… Lectionary Preacher ? Occasional use of the lectionary, select seasonal use of the lectionary, or full-throttle every Sunday and any...

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Preaching on Parables: A Simple Framework to Teach Them Effectively

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 22:null, Matthew 22:1

A Special Kind of Story Most Christians have some idea of what a parable is. Ask an adult Sunday school class and you might hear: “It’s a story!” Another might chime in, “with a moral message!” Mer...

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The Thrill of Truth in a Time of Fads and Fashions by Trevin Wax

Author

Trevin Wax

Keywords

Theology

"Just Believe..." “It doesn’t matter what you believe, just as long as you believe something.” That’s the sentiment once expressed by President Dwight Eisenhower. America would be stro...

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Make a List

Author

Max Lucado

Keywords

Years ago, a friend gave me this counsel: “Make a list of all the lives you would affect by your sexual immorality.” I did. Every so often I reread it. “Denalyn. My three daughters. My son-in-law. My ...

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Race Issues Over Coffee

Author

Melinda Joy Mingo

Keywords

One day while drinking coffee, laughing, and sharing stories with one of my best friends, who is white, an unexpected question about race came up. It just popped up out of nowhere as we were talking a...

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The Relief of Getting Caught

Author

Anthony of Sourozh

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Years ago, visiting one of the London prisons, I heard a statement made by one of the prisoners that impressed me very much. He said to me, ‘You do not know what a relief it is to be found out.’ We di...

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The Mayor in the Projects

Author

Melinda Joy Mingo

Keywords

Scripture

Revelation 21:3, 2 Corinthians 5:21, Romans 8:3, Isaiah 53:5, Hebrews 2:14-15, Matthew 1:23

During spring 1981, one of my favorite persons at the time, Chicago mayor Jane Byrne, made the announcement that she and her husband were going to move into my old neighborhood: the Cabrini-Green hous...

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