Bible and Theology on Confusion

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At the end of the day, honoring God leads to good things. Anything else leads to confusion, emotional exhaustion and a lack of good things.

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Luis Palau

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When you face the perils of weariness, carelessness, and confusion, don't pray for an easier life. Pray instead to be a stronger man or woman of God.

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Bruce Waltke

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God created [mankind] and therefore only God can reveal to us our identity and function. Without this biblical revelation, we are lost in a maze of confusion.

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Henri J. M. Nouwen

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2 Timothy 1:7, Ephesians 4:1-3, Philippians 2:3-4, Proverbs 3:5-6, Hebrews 13:7, Isaiah 42:16, 1 Timothy 4:12

So the first and most basic task of the Christian leader in the future will be to lead his people out of the land of confusion into the land of hope. Therefore, he must first have the courage to be an...

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O God, we pray for the church, which is

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John E. Skoglund

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Isaiah 42:3, Matthew 11:28-30, Matthew 16:25-26, Proverbs 31:8-9, Micah 6:8, James 1:27, Acts 3:19

O God, we pray for the church, which is set amid the confusion of contemporary life and is face-to-face with a great new task. Be with your church, O God. Grant the church a new birth through the...

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Anthony Bloom

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Learn to master time, and you will be able—whatever you do, whatever the stress, in the storm, in tragedy, or simply in the confusion in which we continuously live—to be still, immobile in the present...

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Void for Vagueness

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Gary A. Haugen

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James 1:27, Romans 12:17-19, Zechariah 7:9-10, Psalm 82:3-4, Proverbs 21:3

In his 2008 book, Just Courage, Gary Haugen, a lawyer by training, describes an interesting legal precedent known as “void for vaugeness.” Haugen used the precedent to illustrate how vague ideas of Bi...

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Mirror, Mirror

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Richard Rohr

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Good people will mirror goodness in us, which is why we love them so much, Not so mature people will mirror their own unlived and confused life unto us, which is why they confuse and confound us so mu...

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The New Hunting Dog

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The Pastor's Workshop

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Luke 10:38-42, Matthew 14:28-31, Philippians 3:13-14, Proverbs 4:25-27, James 1:6-8, Hebrews 12:1-2, Matthew 24:13

As we travel through the New Testament, it becomes clear that Jesus’ disciples often get distracted, almost like they have a case of spiritual attention deficit disorder. They quickly lose focus and w...

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The Frustrating Unpredictability of Faith

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Don Everts and Doug Schaupp

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Galatians 6:9, John 3:8, Ecclesiastes 11:5, Isaiah 55:10-11, John 6:44

Writing about ministering to postmodern skeptics, Don Everts and Doug Schaupp share a helpful insight into the mystery of God's movement: The first lesson they have taught us about the path to f...

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The Origins of Hocus Pocus

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Mike Cosper

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Why worship in our native language? Well, for one thing, it can keep people from distorting the Christian faith into a superstition: In one stream of church history, this can help explain worshipi...

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God–Father, Son and Holy Spirit; Lord

God–Father, Son and Holy Spirit; Lord of all our yesterdays, todays and tomorrows: thank you that we don’t need to be afraid of what’s coming because you’re already there ahead of us. Nothing takes yo...

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God ~ Father, Son and Holy Spirit: Your

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Richard Herman

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God ~ Father, Son and Holy Spirit: Your grace welcomes us. Your faithfulness gives us hope. Your love invites us to come as we are—not as we think we ought to be, nor, even, as we want to be. While s...

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Prayer For God’s Help

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Augustine of Hippo

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O God, from whom to be turned is to fall, to whom to be turned is to rise, and with whom to stand is to abide for ever; grant us in all our duties your help, in all our perplexities your guidance,...

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Prayer of Adoration Father God … our

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Richard Herman

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Romans 8:15, Galatians 4:6, 1 John 1:9, Micah 7:18-19, Ephesians 1:7, Psalm 32:5, Romans 5:8

Prayer of Adoration Father God … our Abba: You seek us with relentless love – coming after us in Your Son, Jesus. When we are in the pits – You draws us up and out; When we are broken – You fix u...

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Prayer of Adoration Loving God—Father

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Richard Herman

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John 20:28

Prayer of Adoration Loving God—Father Son and Holy Spirit— we come today as thirsty people to You who are the Spring of Living Water. We come as hungry people to You who are the Bread of Heaven. We ...

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Inspired by John 14:6

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Richard Herman

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John 14:6

Jesus – Savior, Friend, and Lord: When we’re lost, confused and anxious – You are our Way. When we misunderstand – and are misunderstood, when we are lied to and lied about, and when we lie or b...

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An Interesting Depiction

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Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

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At one point in his life, the famous modern artist Pablo Picasso was robbed in his French home. He told the police he would be happy to paint them a picture of the robbers. “And on the strength of tha...

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The Stalker

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Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

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Scripture

Hebrews 13:6, Matthew 7:15-16, Matthew 10:28, Ephesians 6:12, 1 Peter 5:8, 2 Corinthians 11:14, Proverbs 14:12

Editor’s Note: This story is often told as a true story, when in fact it is probably fictitious. Nevertheless, there is a significant illustrative point: sometimes the things we fear most may in fact ...

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Sleepwalking in a Dark Wood

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Dante Alighieri

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Psalm 119:105, 2 Corinthians 4:6, John 1:5, Isaiah 50:10, Psalm 23:4

For many of us, life can easily become disorienting and discouraging. Existential questions often emerge that never have before. As stressful as modern life can be, it is somewhat comforting to know t...

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A World Of Chaotic Confusion

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Christopher West

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In the early 1900s, a “respectable” woman wore an average of twenty-five pounds of clothing when she appeared in public. The sight of an ankle could cause scandal. Over the next hundred years the pend...

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Discernment: Distinguishing the Real from the Phony

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Ruth Haley Barton

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1 John 4:1, 1 Corinthians 12:10, 1 Kings 19:11-13 , Genesis 41:15-40 , Isaiah 30:20-21, Matthew 4:1-11, 1 John 4:1-3, Psalm 42:5-11

Scripture also speaks of “discernment of spirits” and encourages us to “test the spirits to see whether they are from God.” This aspect of discernment helps us to distinguish the real from the phony, ...

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Jonathan K. Dodson

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If we’re unable or unwilling to discern a norm to judge what is good and evil, the whole moral order will tumble into confusion. If we don’t get the moral facts straight, a variety of “crises” will co...

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Works Versus Gratitude

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Casey Clark

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Exodus 19:4-6 , Micah 6:6-8, Romans 4:1-5, Ephesians 2:8-10, Psalm 116:12-14

Since our savior is also our Lord, we are called to follow his ways. And whenever discussions arise about what those ways look like in a church, confusion is bound to follow regarding grace and works....

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The Origin of the word "Gospel"

Author

Patrick Schreiner

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Mark 1:14-15, Romans 1:16, 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, Luke 2:10-11, Colossians 1:23

It would be an understatement to say the term gospel is an important term in the Scriptures. Not only is it central in Scripture, but churches have adopted the term as their most beloved adjective. Yo...

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God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: You

Author

Richard Herman

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Scripture

Psalm 139:7-10, Romans 8:38-39, Matthew 11:28-30, 2 Corinthians 12:9, Isaiah 40:31, Luke 10:25-37, John 11:32-35

God—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit: You are always and forever for us: We can’t run away from Your presence; nor out-sin Your amazing grace and forgiveness. We can’t exhaust Your unconditional love nor ...

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Pastoral Prayer based on Jesus Calming the Storm

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Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia

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Mark 4:35-41, Matthew 8:23-27, Luke 8:22-25

When the waves rise high above our ability to see your face… Still my soul, Lord Jesus, Calm the storm in me When the howling wind and the pouring rain drown out the sound of your voice… Still my sou...

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God of our hearts, Lord of nations and

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Richard Herman

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God of our hearts, Lord of nations and Creator of worlds; Father, Son and Holy Spirit: When You redeemed us and called us each by name, You made us a family—united by your love and grace. Across towns...

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Lord, like the women at the tomb on the

Author

Jacob Traeger

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Luke 24:1-12, Mark 16:1-8, Matthew 28:1-10, John 20:1-18

Lord, like the women at the tomb on the first Easter, we come out of our darkness and into your light We come out of emptiness to enter your fullness We come out of our hopelessness to find your joy...

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Lord – You are good …and Your goodness

Author

Richard Herman

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Isaiah 40:31, Philippians 4:4-7, Ruth 1:16, Luke 10:25-37, Mark 4:35-41, Philippians 4:6-7, Isaiah 41:10

Lord – You are good …and Your goodness knows no bounds. When we were lost, You sought us out, found us and brought us home. When we were alone, You came near to us, and You gave us a new circle of fri...

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