Author: Dave Dishman (Page 260 of 475)

One of the first rules for practicing medicine is first of all, do no harm. The same applies to those of us practicing a life of faith.

David agreed. While acknowledging his sins David prayed, Lord, the Lord Almighty, may those who hope in you not be disgraced because of me; God of Israel, may those who seek you not be put to shame because of me.

A lot of people look at the church and see only the sins of religious leaders. Those who abuse their position for money or sex or power block the path to living water. Shepherds who take advantage of their flocks drive inquirers, and the once-faithful away.

Spreading like an oil slick, these actions discredit all who follow the Lord in good faith. Worst of all, they place a screen between the goodness of the Lord and the needs of those who seek him. Jesus spoke directly to such irreligious leaders: It would be better for them to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck than to cause one of these little ones to stumble (Luke 17:2).

David’s prayer is spot-on for those of us who claim that following the Lord is vital to life on this earth and the key to a joyful eternity.

While we cannot avoid sin in our lives—we’re human after all—we can join David in praying that as much as possible our sinful actions do no harm.

Psalm 69 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Luis Melendez

Perhaps you’ve used this line when rushing around juggling projects and home life. You greet a friend, and with no time to chat you exclaim, “gotta run, no rest for the wicked!”

I heard this phrase all growing up and still use it myself. It actually flows from a biblical reference having nothing at all to do with busyness.

In a long-running screed against those who reject God, Isaiah the prophet brought these words:

“There is no peace,” says the Lord, “for the wicked.”

While I use the phrase to poke fun at myself, Isaiah penned the original as an ominous warning. Serious words to consider—like a BRIDGE OUT sign flashing over a highway.

Our world holds some wicked people and to be honest, it’s comforting to know there is no peace for them. The Lord is not incomplete in his judgement (even if I question His timing).

To be even more honest, I possess a heart a tic away from wickedness. This phrase opens my thoughts to where I slide without leaning on the Holy Spirit’s direction and guidance in my life.

Isaiah 48:22 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Tim Mossholder

My wife and I shopped for furniture recently. The most difficult part of the experience was wading through the myriad options available if we ordered a new piece. Multiple wood types, various stains, fabrics of every color and hue. Thousands of options, when all I really want is something to hold my socks.

The people of Israel and Judah devolved into shopping for their gods. They picked through fascinating options promoted by the priests and shamans of surrounding lands. They crafted images of these gods, burned incense to them and prayed for their blessings. Some even sacrificed their children to these gods by burning them in divine fire.

All in a meaningless display of religious delusion.

Isaiah carried a stark message from the Lord: This is what the Lord says—Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.

Everyone searches through the options of life to find peace or fulfillment or meaning, while some simply decide pleasure and attention are enough. Augustine famously prayed, Our hearts are restless until they can find rest in you, O God. The end we’re all looking for remains the Lord.

We can chase after fables or pretend gods or demons in disguise. As many promote, we might follow our own enlightened self. But all lead to the same dead end.

The Lord told the children of Israel—I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior.

It’s ok to stop shopping.

Isaiah 43 & 44 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by Yasamine June

The doors whooshed open as the ambulance crew wheeled in a patient. Sitting up in a gurney, a gentleman held his hands in his lap, one wrapped with a mass of bloody gauze while the other held something smaller. The emergency room staff assessed the situation. A half-hour before, the man cut his finger off in an accident at work. Now the rush was on to reattach and save the finger.

After stabilizing the patient and starting an IV, we wheeled him to a suite where a surgeon took over. The surgeon indeed sewed the finger back on, but I never found out if the finger stayed healthy, or if infection set in and he eventually lost it.

I thought of this incident from my summers working in an emergency room when reading Paul’s encouragement to the church at Corinth: Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. A line before he wrote: If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

The severed finger in the emergency room could not live on its own. From the moment the ambulance call went out, professionals rushed to reattach the finger—the only way to keep it alive. The patient desperately wanted his body made whole, because who wants to go through life missing a finger?

So it works with our Christian faith. I cannot cut myself off and live as a follower of Jesus. I cannot ignore the life that flows from time spent with fellow believers. Sometimes it’s a hassle, and sometimes these folks annoy me (as I’m sure I annoy them). But I need them and they need me.

A severed finger quickly turns rancid. A severed life, over time, tends to do the same.

I Corinthians 12 in reading the Bible cover to cover in 2022

Photo by camilo jimenez