Relationships and Community on Pain

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Gracious God, I am reminded today of

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John 16:33, Revelation 21:4, Matthew 5:4, Lamentations 3:22-23, 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, Isaiah 53:4-5, Romans 8:18

Gracious God, I am reminded today of the horrible pain that sin causes. How many lives are destroyed by sin? How many families rent apart? How many parents overcome with grief? And this is just the be...

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Almighty God, we have failed to trust

Author

Laura B. Murray

Keywords

Scripture

Proverbs 3:5-6, Psalm 46:1, Isaiah 41:10, Lamentations 3:22-23, Philippians 4:6-7, Romans 8:28

Almighty God, we have failed to trust you. Overwhelmed by the pains of life, we have taken charge and pushed you aside. O God, be gracious to us. Remind us of your daily mercies and redemptive power t...

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Author

Ruth Haley Barton

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Scripture

1 Kings 19:4–13, Lamentations 3:19–26, Isaiah 40:28–31, Matthew 11:28–30, 2 Corinthians 12:7–10, Psalm 42:5–11

One of the dangers of living in a constant state of distraction is that we never go to the bottom of our pain, our sadness, our emptiness, which means we never find that rock-bottom place of the peace...

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What Created the Fears in Your Life?

Author

Susie Davis

Keywords

Scripture

Lamentations 3:22-23, 2 Corinthians 1:3-4, John 16:33, Habakkuk 3:17-18, Romans 8:28, Isaiah 43:2, Psalm 34:18

In her beautifully written memoir Unafraid, Susie Davis reflects on fear after experiencing a school-shooting as a high-school student. It was after this that Davis began to experience regular bouts o...

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Times of Crisis: Reappraising and Rebuilding Lives

Author

Jared Diamond

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 34:18, Romans 12:15, John 11:35, Isaiah 61:3, 2 Corinthians 1:4, Lamentations 3:32

On November 28, 1942, a fire broke out and spread rapidly through an overcrowded Boston nightclub called Cocoanut Grove (the owner’s spelling), whose sole exit became blocked. A total of 492 people di...

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Author

Mal McKissock and Dianne McKissock

Keywords

Scripture

Lamentations 3:22-23, John 14:27, Revelation 21:4, Isaiah 41:10, Psalm 147:3

One of the greatest needs of all bereaved people is to have access to someone who will take a risk and be involved—someone who is not afraid of intense feelings, but who will encourage their expressio...

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Author

Stanley Kunitz

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Scripture

Romans 5:3-4, Lamentations 3:31-32, Psalm 73:26, 2 Corinthians 4:16-18, Philippians 4:6-7, Matthew 11:28-30, Isaiah 61:3

How shall my heart be reconciled to its feast of losses?

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The Life-Sustaining Power of Hope

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Lamentations 3:21–23, Isaiah 40:31, Genesis 50:20, Romans 5:3–5, 2 Corinthians 4:8–9, Psalm 42:11

Survival requires more than the basic biological necessities we readily acknowledge—oxygen, food, and water. It also demands something less tangible but equally vital: hope. When hope vanishes, the hu...

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Author

Charles Wesley

Keywords

Mercy

Scripture

Psalm 86:5, Isaiah 55:7, Lamentations 3:22-23, Ephesians 2:4-5, 1 Timothy 1:15-16, Micah 7:18

Depth of mercy! Can there be Mercy still reserved for me?

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Standing Together: Pardon

Author

Lisa Ann Moss Degrenia

Keywords

Scripture

John 17:21-23, Exodus 14:13-22, Lamentations 3:22-23, Romans 15:13, 1 Corinthians 13:13, 2 Timothy 1:7, Ephesians 4:15-16

Nothing can stand against You Nothing No sin, no death No prejudice, no division Nothing can stand against our God You’re making us whole and holy in your mercy and grace Standing together in truth an...

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Adapted from Psalm 103:1-5

Author

Austin D. Hill

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 103:1-5, 2 Corinthians 4:16, Isaiah 40:31, Lamentations 3:22-23, Titus 3:5

Pastor: Bless the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! People: Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, Pastor: who forgives all your iniquity, who h...

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A Terrible Accident

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Job 1:2; 38–42 , Genesis 50:15–21, Lamentations 3:19–26, 2 Corinthians 12:7–10, Psalm 34:18, Romans 5:3–5

When John Stuart Mill—the influential philosopher and political economist—arrived at Thomas Carlyle's door that evening, his face drained of color, bearing the devastating news that the manuscript...

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Author

Augustine of Hippo

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 103:8, 1 John 4:16, Proverbs 3:5-6, Lamentations 3:22-23, Jeremiah 29:11, Romans 8:28

Trust the past to God’s mercy, the present to God’s love and the future to God’s providence.

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Heavenly Father, we come before you as

Author

Charles Teixeira

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 119:105, John 10:27, Hebrews 4:14-16, Romans 8:26-27, Lamentations 3:22-23, Ephesians 2:4-5, 1 Samuel 3:1-10

Heavenly Father, we come before you as beggars in need of your voice. As we lift up our thoughts, songs, and prayers, we lean in to hear how you would speak back to us. We yearn to hear the voice of J...

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Gracious God, you have given us great

Author

Laura B. Murray

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 5:7, Luke 5:36, Ephesians 4:32, James 2:13, Colossians 3:12-13, Micah 6:8, Lamentations 3:22-23

Gracious God, you have given us great mercy through Jesus, yet we have withheld mercy from others. Our hearts have been hardened by the world and our sin. Would you soften our hearts? And give us a de...

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Praising Slowness

Author

John Mark Comer

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 37:7, Proverbs 19:2, Lamentations 3:25-26, 2 Peter 3:9, James 5:7-8, Ecclesiastes 3:1

In our culture slow is a pejorative. When somebody has a low IQ, we dub him or her slow. When the service at a restaurant is lousy, we call it slow. When a movie is boring, again, we complain that it’...

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Wound With Mercy Round and Round

Author

James Bryan Smith

Keywords

Scripture

Romans 8:38, Psalm 139:7-10, Luke 15:11-32, Isaiah 54:10, Psalm 103:17-18, Lamentations 3:22-23, Jeremiah 31:3

Nothing, absolutely nothing, can separate us from God’s love. St. Paul reminded the Romans of this when he wrote, “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things p...

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Staying Alive

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 40:30–31, Lamentations 3:22–23, 1 Kings 19:11–13, James 5:10–11, 2 Corinthians 4:16, Psalm 92:12–14

An Irish Catholic priest, returning to his old parish in the warmth of spring, was delighted to spot an elderly man he had long known. “Pat!” he called out cheerfully. “You’re still with us—I’m glad t...

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Gracious God, you forgive us whenever

Author

Chip Hardwick

Keywords

Scripture

1 John 1:9, Romans 7:15-20, Galatians 5:16-17, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Ephesians 2:8-9, James 1:22-25, Lamentations 3:22-23

Gracious God, you forgive us whenever we ask, and so we ask you now to forgive all of our sins. We need your grace again, for we often return to the same sins, over and over again. Your Spirit longs t...

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Loving God, you show us grace and

Author

Chip Hardwick

Keywords

Scripture

Micah 6:8, Hebrews 12:28, Ephesians 2:4-5, Colossians 3:13, Lamentations 3:22-23, Luke 15:11-32, Jonah 3:1-10

Loving God, you show us grace and mercy, again and again and again. You shower gifts on us that we could never earn, and you are slow to punish us when we most deserve it. All too often, we forget to ...

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Author

Annie Johns Flint

Keywords

Scripture

Exodus 16:1-36, 2 Corinthians 11:23-30, Matthew 14:13-21, 1 Kings 17:7-16, Lamentations 3:22-23, Philippians 4:19, 2 Corinthians 12:9-10

When we have exhausted our store of endurance, When our strength has failed ere that day is half done, When we reach the end of our hoarded resources, Our Father’s full giving has only begun. His lo...

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O God, Giver of all good, and Fountain

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Scripture

Psalm 118:24, James 1:17, Psalm 136:1, Philippians 4:19, Lamentations 3:22-23, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

O God, Giver of all good, and Fountain of all mercies, in whom are all the springs of our life; all glory, thanks and praise be unto thee for thine unfailing goodness; for thy faithfulness which is fr...

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Waiting is More than In-Between Time

Author

Jason Farman

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 40:31, Lamentations 3:25-26, James 5:7-8, 2 Peter 3:8-9, Habakkuk 2:3

Waiting isn’t an in-between time. Instead, this often-hated and under-appreciated time has been a silent force that has shaped our social interactions. Waiting isn’t a hurdle keeping us from intimacy ...

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Rolling Stone Interview with Bono

Author

Rolling Stone Magazine

Keywords

Scripture

Isaiah 40:31, 2 Corinthians 12:8-9, Psalm 42:3-5, Lamentations 3:17-20, Habakkuk 1:2-3, Psalm 22:1, Job 30:20-21

The music that really turns me on is either running toward God or away form God. Both recognize the pivot, that God is at the center of the jaunt. So the blues on one hand — running away; gospel, the ...

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The mercy of the Lord is from

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 103:17, Lamentations 3:22-23, 1 John 1:9, Isaiah 43:25, Romans 5:8

The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting. May the God of mercy, who forgives us all our sins, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life...

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Joyful, joyful we adore Thee, God of glory

Author

Richard Herman

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 145:1-3, Psalm 51:10-12, Isaiah 1:18, Lamentations 3:22-23, 1 John 1:9, Romans 5:8

Prayer of Adoration Joyful, joyful we adore Thee, God of glory, Lord of love – Holy and wonderful are You: Your grace is without measure, and Your purpose sure and true; Your power is unequaled and Y...

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Author

David Dickson

Keywords

Scripture

Psalm 103:11-12, Lamentations 3:22-23, Ephesians 2:4-5, Psalm 36:5-6, Romans 5:20-21, Isaiah 55:7-9, Micah 7:18-19

Our mind cannot find a comparison too large for expressing the superabundant mercy of the Lord toward his people.

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Let us love the Lord God with all our

Author

Francis and Clare of Assisi

Keywords

Scripture

Matthew 28:19, 2 Corinthians 13:14, Psalm 34:1, 1 Corinthians 10:31, Lamentations 3:11-23, Romans 3:23-24

Let us love the Lord God with all our heart, all our soul, all our mind, and all our strength. Let us love Him with all our understanding, powers, and fortitude. Let us offer to Him our every effort, ...

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Is there any Hope?

Author

The Pastor's Workshop

Keywords

Scripture

Job 14:7-9, Isaiah 40:31, Lamentations 3:21-23 , Romans 5:3-5, 2 Corinthians 4:8-9, Psalm 130:5-6

In his book The Grand Essentials , Ben Patterson recounts the story of an S-4 submarine that sank off the coast of Massachusetts, leaving its entire crew trapped inside. Despite numerous rescue a...

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Adapted from Lamentations 3:22-23 (Strachan)

Author

Stuart R. Strachan, Jr.

Keywords

Scripture

Lamentations 3:22-23

Leader: The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; People: his mercies never come to an end; Leader: they are new every morning; People: great is your faithfulness. Great is Your love. Great i...

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