Magnificent

Lord, our Lord,
how magnificent is Your name
throughout the earth!

You have covered the heavens
with Your majesty...

When I observe Your heavens,
the work of Your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
which You set in place,
what is man that You remember him,
the son of man that You look after him?
You made him little less than God
and crowned him with glory and honor.
You mad e him lord over the words of Your hands;
You put everything under his feet:
all the sheep and oxen,
as well as animals in the wild,
birds of the sky,
and fish of the sea
passing through the currents of the seas.

Lord, our Lord,
how magnificent is Your name
throughout the earth!

Psalm 8

Greece: a graveyard?

I've heard Greece referred to as a missionary's graveyard. Reading this from Michael Lewis, I wonder how much this plays a part into it:

The Greek state was not just corrupt but also corrupting. Once you saw how it worked you could understand a phenomenon which otherwise made no sense at all: the difficulty Greek people have saying a kind word about one another. Individual Greeks are delightful: funny, warm, smart, and good company. I left two dozen interviews saying to myself, “What great people!” They do not share the sentiment about one another: the hardest thing to do in Greece is to get one Greek to compliment another behind his back. No success of any kind is regarded without suspicion. Everyone is pretty sure everyone is cheating on his taxes, or bribing politicians, or taking bribes, or lying about the value of his real estate. And this total absence of faith in one another is self-reinforcing. The epidemic of lying and cheating and stealing makes any sort of civic life impossible; the collapse of civic life only encourages more lying, cheating, and stealing. Lacking faith in one another, they fall back on themselves and their families.

Elvis Intro

Josh and Nikki

Josh and Nikki, two of my teammates from Tokyo came by Decatur (and Big Bob Gibsons) on their "way" from Montana to Philly for law school!

Wow

Listen, Lord, and answer me,
for I am poor and needy.
Protect my life, for I am faithful.
You are my God; save Your servant
who trusts in You.
be gracious to me, Lord,
for I call to You all day long.
Bring joy to Your servant's life,
since I set my hope on You, Lord.

For You, Lord,
are kind and ready to forgive,
abundant in faithful love
to all who call on You.
Lord, hear my prayer;
listen to my call for mercy.
I call on You in the day of my distress,
for You will answer me.

Psalm 86

Leaving because of the gospel

Jesus said:
I assure you there is no one
who has left house, brothers or sisters,
mother or father, children, or fields
because of Me and the gospel,
who will not receive 100 times more,
now at this time -
houses, brothers and sisters,
mothers and children, and fields,
with persecutions -
and eternal life in the age to come.
But many who are first will be last,
and the last first.

Mark 10:29-31

Following Jesus

Jesus said:
If anyone wants to be My follower,
he must deny himself,
take up his cross,
and follow Me.
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it,
but whoever loses his life
because of Me and the gospel will save it.
For what does it benefit a main
to gain the whole world
yet lose his life?
What can a man give
in exchange for his life?
For whoever is ashamed of Me
and My words in this adulterous
and sinful generation,
the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him
when He comes in the glory of His Father
with the holy angels.

Mark 8:34-38

How long?

Lord - how long?
Turn and have compassion on Your servants.
Satisfy us in the morning
with Your faithful love
so that we may shout with joy
and be glad all our days.
Make us rejoice for as many days
as You have humbled us,
for as many years as
we have been adversity.
Let Your work be seen
by Your servants,
and Your splendor
by their children.
Let the favor of the Lord our God
be on us;
establish for us the work
of our hands.

Psalm 90:13-17

Heal the brokenhearted.

The Spirit of the Lord God is on Me,
because the Lord has anointed Me
to bring good news to the poor.
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted,
to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and freedom to the prisoners;
to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor,
and the day of our God's vengeance;
to comfort all who mourn...

For as the earth brings forth its growth,
and as a garden enables
what is sown to spring up,
so the Lord God
will cause righteousness and praise
to spring up before all the nations.

Isaiah 61

The Lord's Covenant

"As for Me, this is My covenant with them,"
says the Lord:
"My Spirit who is on you,
and My words that I have put in your mouth,
will not depart from your mouth,
or from the mouth of your children,
or from the mouth of your children's children,
from now on and forever,"
says the Lord.

Isaiah 59