Month: August 2026

Posted on

The Lamp of God

Reading Time: 2 minutes

“The Lord’s light penetrates the human spirit, exposing every hidden motive.” ‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭20‬:‭27‬ ‭NLT‬‬

When God breathed (naphach) His own breath upon us, and we became a living soul (nephesh). He also endued us with the gift of light. This light resides in every human soul. Some may see it as a conscience, but it’s much more than that. Proverbs describes this miracle in strange ways.

This light is found in the chambers of our “beten” belly, our bosom. “The breath of man is the lamp of Yahweh (God’s personal name), searching all the chambers of his being.”

Back when I was a little guy, Disney made an animated film in 1940 (I saw it in the 60’s), based on the 1883 children’s fantasy novel by Italian author Carlo Collodi. It is about the mischievous adventures of an animated marionette named Pinocchio. Carlo even had a “Talking Cricket,” which became the character for Disney’s Pinocchio conscience figure “Jiminy Cricket.” That’s all I knew about a conscience! It’s funny that we move uncomfortable topics into fantasy stories or children’s cartoons to handle processing such a heavy emotion.

How does science try to explain our conscience? Oh, it’s not easy, that’s for sure. Science says it’s a cognitive process that elicits emotion and rational associations based on an individual’s moral philosophy or value system. Did you catch that; “Based on individual’s…?” That’s just as ridiculously squishy as calling truth an individual’s choice! Humans will do anything to try to escape the fact that God created us and therefore we will ultimately answer to Him for our actions.

This simple, yet profound proverb not only makes sense, it makes it inescapably clear – God’s light is embedded in our physical existence! And that light searches and exposes ALL the motives of our heart.

Prayer

​Dad,
I wouldn’t say that I completely fried my conscience as a young man, but I know this. When I said “yes” to you at 15 1/2, and gave you complete control over my life, you immediately started working on rebuilding my conscience. I remember not being able to get away with anything. Not a lie, and definitely not swiping something! The infilling of Your Holy Spirit was quick to catch me, correct me and help me in do-overs. I have experienced your light that penetrates my heart and reveals my true motives. I have also watched my friends sear their conscience and risk compromising their sense of right and wrong. Your Word is absolutely a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path and I am forever grateful to You.

Posted on

Desires for justice.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

“O Lord, hear my plea for justice. Listen to my cry for help. Pay attention to my prayer, for it comes from honest lips. Declare me innocent, for you see those who do right.” ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭17‬:‭1‬-‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

This past July 2026, we did a sermon series called FREEDOM. It wasn’t a patriotic series, but rather the beautiful mystery of God granting us free will, desires and aspirations. God allows us to choose? Yeah, all the things people blame God for, yet never think about our own human choices. In the message about freedom of desire, we looked at three seasons out of David’s life. Season:
● Shepherd (pure desire in the pasture)
● Anointed but waiting (deferred desire in the caves)
● King (disordered desires on the rooftop)

Psalm 17 was written in season two of David’s life, where he and his mighty men were on the run, outlaws hiding from King Saul. More specifically, it was written because of what happened in 1 Samuel 22:19. David and his men had taken refuge in the city of Nob and asked the priest, Ahimelech, if he had any food and any weapons. Ahimelech fed them sacred bread, and told David, “the only weapon I have is Goliath’s sword.” Goliath’s sword? Yes! That sword has a story all its own.

Ahimelech was completely innocent by the way, because David had told the priest that he was on a “special assignment” for Saul. Saul found out that David had been to Nob and received help from Ahimelech. “Then Doeg the Edomite, who was standing there with Saul’s men, spoke up. “When I was at Nob,” he said, “I saw the son of Jesse talking to the priest, Ahimelech son of Ahitub. Ahimelech consulted the Lord for him. Then he gave him food and the sword of Goliath the Philistine”” ‭‭(1 Samuel‬ ‭22‬:‭9‬-‭10‬).

Saul was LIVID! He just snapped. He sent word that Ahimelech and his entire family had to come and meet with the king. Saul laid out the accusation and Ahimelech answered: “This was certainly not the first time I had consulted God for him! May the king not accuse me and my family in this matter, for I knew nothing at all of any plot against you.” But Saul was mad with suspicion and jealousy. He screamed out, “You will surely die, Ahimelech, along with your entire family!” Then Saul ordered his own personal bodyguards, “Kill these priests of the Lord, for they are allies and conspirators with David! They knew he was running away from me, but they didn’t tell me!” But Saul’s men refused to kill the Lord’s priests.” So Saul turned to Doeg, to do the deed. Doeg didn’t even hesitate. “So Doeg the Edomite turned on them and killed them that day, eighty-five priests in all, still wearing their priestly garments. Then he went to Nob, the town of the priests, and killed the priests’ families—men and women, children and babies—and all the cattle, donkeys, sheep, and goats.”

Now, when I read Psalm 17, I have context. What a deep, dark moment as David reflected on suffering and loss of those who were innocent. David gave them a voice, a prayer, a dedicated song of justice. A justice that only God could rightfully deliver. Also, David in that season of his own life, was very sensitive to justice issues. Being a fugitive and unknowingly triggering a cataclysmic injustice event, brought him to this sober song, where he internalized the reality and reach of Saul’s demented state. Saul wanted David dead and this was yet another reminder of what wickedness could do.

Prayer

​Dad,
Whoa, what a clear demonstration of Saul’s desires of revenge compared to David’s desires of protection and justice. To see the depths of where Saul’s desires blindly led him to massacre a family and Doeg’s desires to engage in genocide. We have capacity to be just or unjust. But you alone are righteous, true and just in all you are and do.

Posted on

Declared Truth.

Reading Time: 2 minutes

““So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!” Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”” Acts 2‬:‭36‬-‭37‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Peter, clearly under the influence of the Holy Spirit makes a declaration after this wide-reaching, powerful sermon. ““Then Peter stepped forward with the eleven other apostles and shouted to the crowd, “Listen carefully, all of you, fellow Jews and residents of Jerusalem! Make no mistake about this” (vs 14). He kicked it off with a quote from the Old Testament prophet Joel, and finished it with a passage out Psalm 110:2 where Nathan is prophesying over David. Then Peter ends with these words above.

Peter, pulling from historical and effectual words of God’s spokespersons, lays it before the listeners, “let everyone know for certain.” Would they still, after all these years, be hearing but never understand, as Isaiah said (Isa 6:9-10)? Jesus preached that (Mark 4:12), and now Peter is using the plumb-line of truth to gauge where his listener’s hearts are at. I wonder: Did the declaration seem to hang in the air penetrating into their souls, “piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart,” as Hebrews 4:12 says it does? This isn’t a bully-pulpit move, nor weaponizing the Word of God for revenge, for personal gain or profit, nor to rain down justice on their heads. This was skillfully applying the eternal Word of God as a healing scalpel.

And it worked!

Luke records that Peter’s sermon had the intended results of reaching their hearts. When Luke wrote, “Peter’s words pierced…” I just had to look that word up. It’s “katanussó” – it “pierce all the way down, i.e. deeply (thoroughly) pained; “emotionally pierced through”; psychologically pricked, emotionally stunned (Abbott-Smith). It is used only in Acts 2:37. Short-code, it worked. How do we know it worked? Because they said, “Brothers, what should we do?” They heard, they understood and asked about their next step.

This moment wasn’t about hearing or understanding more truth, it was doing something with it. Isn’t this what every Pastor/Preacher wants? Not to just increase knowledge or comprehension, but have the listeners asking what they should do – How Should We Then Live? Now, in the great reversal of hard-heartedness, they would see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed! Oh, may the truth of God’s Word pierce all those have seen and have heard to then understand and turn to God, coming home that they would be healed.

Prayer

​Dad,
I never want to live under the curse of seeing and hearing only to ignore Your words of life! I want to remain open, tender, humble and quickly responsive to the truth and the move of your Holy Spirit. And, it breaks my heart that so many I know saw, heard and even understood, but no longer turn towards you, instead they continue to walk away from you. I pray your Holy Spirit pursues and pierces, contending for their heart, arresting their attention for them to come home.

Posted on

God speaks?

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Yes! All the time.
I wouldn’t say it was common in the Old Testament, to read about men and women having conversations with God, but it was normal. How? People ask. Like audibly, hearing a voice with our ears?

Yeah. I am not a Hebrew language expert, but I can use great tools like Biblehub.com to help. “Called” in these verses is just a regular word, “qara” to call out to or address by name. God spoke! What does the audible voice of God sound like? I’ve heard God speak this way only a couple of times. It was the purest, most gentle, true sound I’ve ever experienced. It was so plain, so clear, that I turned to see who was speaking. Hearing the non-audible voice of God became normal in my life ever since I committed my entire life to Him. I learned it was not something I heard with my ears (although my brain could not tell the difference); His words went right to my spirit, my heart so to speak. It was undeniable. I later learned that this is the voice of the Holy Spirit. God spoke to Moses audibly, clearly, with words. But in Exodus 20:18 Moses uses an odd phrase in Hebrew to describe what it was like to hear the voice of God: the people “saw the voices” (or “saw the thunderings”), a kind of sensory overload where sound and sight blur together. And in Deuteronomy 4:12 it says: they heard “the sound of words but saw no form; there was only a voice.”

In this recorded moment with Moses, God was personal, and once again, He chose Moses as His ambassador, delivering His Words; His plans, promises, and will. Two months into the exit out of Egypt and into a multi-generational faith journey with God, we read these expansive words, reaching out over eons of time, “you will be my *kingdom of priests, my *holy nation.” ESV has two footnotes here. (* 1 Pet. 2:5, 9; Rev. 1:6; 5:10; 20:6 and * Lev. 20:26; Deut. 7:6; 14:21; 26:19; 28:9; Isa. 62:12; 1 Pet. 2:9). Hear the echo that stretches out over history and far into the future?

It’s not God spoke, or God will speak, it’s He speaks and His words are reality. God speaks creating all things, the heavens, the earth, and life itself. The magnanimous mystery is that God speaks to us and even more personable; He speaks with us. Can you hear Him now?

Prayer

​Dad,
It is extraordinarily surprising that You, the one and only God, above all other gods, would have such a delightful, intimate relationship with us! I will never cease to be amazed by this. And to not just be known by you, but also for us to know you – wow. Then even more, to do life WITH you, to hear and obey you; to speak and be heard by you. Thank you forever for who You are and who we get to be.