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An UpWord Glance

Day One of the Advent Fast

“What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one which is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls […]

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An UpWord Glance

Which kind of soil will my heart be today, Lord?

And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He spoke by a parable: “A sower went out to sow his seed. And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it. Some fell on rock; and as […]

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An UpWord Glance

Ignore Evil

“God has placed a power in man’s soul. But it is up to him how he channels it —- for good or for evil. If we imagine the good as a garden full of flowers, trees and plants and the evil as weeds and thorns and the power as water, then what can happen is […]

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An UpWord Glance

Praying in Difficult Times

It can be easy to trust in the Lord when everything seems to be going well, but difficult times can and do come to every life. We may be praying for ourselves or for someone we love dearly, but when those prayers are not answered in our timing, it can be easy to become upset […]

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An UpWord Glance

Happy Church New Year

Happy New Church Year, which began on September 1st. A couple of challenges for us in this new year came from a most unlikely source. On a recent airplane trip, I listened to that classic book, Alice in Wonderland. I was reminded again of some spiritual concepts within it. Please join me in this journey […]

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An UpWord Glance

A Most Important Choice Before Us

“Lord how many times must we forgive someone when they sin against us, seven times?” Jesus answers that question in Matthew 18 with “Not seven, but seven times seventy!” So, we should forgive someone 490 times? The “literalist” will start keeping an accurate record, so that when 490 times of forgiving someone is reached, we […]

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An UpWord Glance

“Logical Sense”

“Doesn’t it make logical sense!” So said a couple of young men who were trying to convince me of a doctrine that is far removed from the Christian Truth that has been handed down through the centuries. Logic, in fact, has played a huge role in the presentation of many heresies through the centuries. These […]

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An UpWord Glance

Hearing vs Listening

Have you ever laid down in your bed at night, hearing the sounds your house normally makes every night? Then comes a sound that is not normal; it is out of place. Immediately, you begin to listen intently. You are no longer hearing the sounds, but you are completely focused. One instance of this that […]

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An UpWord Glance

“Time and tide wait for no man!”

I remember reading the Hobbit for the first time back in 1971 (yep, a long time ago). I remember it because I didn’t want the book to end. I was on an adventure with Bilbo Baggins and I didn’t want that adventure to stop. I had thought about not reading the last chapter just to […]

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Merely to hear the Word of God saves no one.

When I first read that quote, it gave me pause. I read (hear) a portion of the Bible most every morning. It is a part of how I start my day. In Church we hear the reading of the Holy Scriptures and it seems very important to hear each Sunday. This quote began to make […]