Faith Journey Blog

Mark 11:15-17  On reaching Jerusalem, Jesus entered the temple courts and began driving out those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves, and would not allow anyone to carry merchandise through the temple courts. And as he taught them, he said, "Is it not written: ‘My house will be called a house of prayer for all nations?’ But you have made it ‘a den of robbers.’"   As I picture my journey of faith, I see the temple in the distance… a symbol of God's presence, a sacred place of communion and holiness. That's where I want to be. But the path to the temple is crowded with distractions. Along the way, the enemy has set up tables, each one carefully crafted to catch my eye and slow my steps. There's the table of pride, with its trinkets of admiration and accomplishment. The table of lust, covered in fleeting images and desires. The table of comfort, offering me an easier road than the o...

 Recently, I listened to a sermon on  Psalm 67 . He described it as a  “Harvest Psalm”  structured in a chiastic form, an intentional literary form that highlights the core message right in the middle: “Let the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you judge the peoples with equity and guide the nations upon earth.”  (Psalm 67:4) He started with a simple question: Where is the Gospel in this Psalm? His answer:  Right there—in the middle. Verse 4. This isn’t just a Psalm about worship. It’s about  worship that sends . Worship that overflows. Worship that fuels mission. Then he offered a simple, actionable rhythm: Pray. Welcome. Send. Go. But what  is  mission, really? As I sat with those words, I started to wonder if we’ve sometimes painted mission with too narrow a brush. Is mission only about going overseas? Does it have to involve preaching to unreached people groups? Is it only for full-time missionaries or those called to dangerous, despe...