By Daniel Zamora Psalm 107:1-16 “Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress.” Everyday there is at least one news portraying people who live in darkness, depression, prison, chains, bitter labor, helpless, trouble and distress. Although these terrible conditions sound like far away, many may experience some…
By Diana Bridges Psalm 107:1-16 This psalm is an ideal reading for St. Patrick’s Day. It speaks of wanderers and prisoners in need of deliverance. Patrick certainly falls into those categories. Born in Britain, he was kidnapped as a young man and forced into slavery in Ireland. By the time he’d been a slave for…
By Ed Twedt Psalm 107:1-16 Reading recently about the history of Lent, it appears that there is no agreement among scholars about the exact origin and development of Lent, but there is agreement about what it means to us today. It is a time of fasting, reflection on who and what we are and getting…
By Barbara Higdon Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22 As I was preparing for this devotional thought, I looked up the term “thank offering.” Most references say simply it’s an offering of thanks, especially for the gifts received. In Psalm 107, the term is used following the passages about sick people who are sick because of their sins.…
By Garrett Vickrey Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22 In divinity school my urban ministry class took a pilgrimage to New York City. No, not to Broadway or the Empire State Building. We were in the streets, in the soup kitchens, and in the churches who open their doors to the poor each day. One bedroom apartment rentals…
By Lori Tyler Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22 One summer my family and I lived in Northern Ireland. We stayed at a retreat center on the cliffs of the Irish Sea. You could see the hills of Scotland from the bluff. One day we were invited to go coast steering. Basically, coast steering is navigating the coastline…
By David Goree Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22 I have always loved the hymn “Redeemed,” both the original Fanny Crosby/William J.Kirkpatrick collaboration and the very Seventies re-mix we sang in youth group when I was a kid. The cadence of the song’s lyrics is a work of art: Redeemed, how I love to proclaim it. Say the…
By Ellen Di Giosia Psalm 84 High above the front door to my house perches a nest made by barn swallows. Every year the birds return for some DIY, rolling pellets of mud in their beaks and shoring up the cup-shaped home. After they line it with feathers and grass, Mama Barn Swallow lays her…
By Lance Mayes Psalm 84 One of the first things that pops in my mind when I read Psalm 84 is a book I read in college, The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence. Brother Lawrence was a seventeenth century French monk who served at a monastery in the kitchen. “… we should establish ourselves…
By Bridgette Langford Psalm 84 Can you remember the last time you just sat in silence and had a conversation with the Lord? I am talking about quiet time away from the world – no phone, no email, only uninterrupted time with God? Just being in his presence. Thinking about this situation reminds of the…