Walking with Jesus

. How shall we sing the LORD’s song In a foreign land? ~ Psalm 137:4 Psalm 137 is a lament of Israel while in exile in Babylon. They are being taunted because Jerusalem, the central symbol of their Kingdom lies in ruins. "Hey, Jew, tell us about your great kingdom! Ha! Ha!" To which they reply, "God, show your mercy to us and bring down judgment on those who stand between you and the glory you deserve."   Do you ever feel that way? Do you ever feel like the hardships and persecutions in your life are keeping God from receiving His glory? Often we feel frustrated in life for selfish reasons, but there are times when our hearts are right, when we want God to bless and restore for His glory. In those times, we struggle with the question, "How can I sing praises to God when my life is in exile from his presence (blessings)?"   Israel's response was to pray for God's glory to be manifest in the destruction and punishment of God's enemi

. For some reason as I was showering off throw-up in the shower (after the Foster Daughter we have for the weekend got sick in my arms tonight) I had a revelation: We have a shallow image of Jesus. Now, perhaps this isn't a revelation to you, but it struck me. We tend to read the dialogues of Jesus in Scripture like they’re the script for the 35th annual Easter Pageant at your local community church… They’re stilted, simple, slow, and designed to be understood by an audience of 200 or 2000 people ranging in age from 7 to 70 who may or may not have a relationship with God. Actor One stands partially facing the audience and talks over his shoulder to Actor Two. He enunciates clearly and projects his voice. He speaks slowly and emphasizes all the important words. Actor Two allows Actor One to finish his line and then takes a step (toward the audience not toward Actor One) and delivers his line. And so it goes, on and on, ad nausea. No passion, unless it’s necessary to the charac

"Rise up, O God, judge the earth, for all the nations are your inheritance." ~Psalm 82:8 Among my friends, we talk a lot about the special place of Israel in God's plan. Indeed, one of the titles for Israel is God's inheritance . But there is also a greater sense where all nations belong to the Lord. This is based on his governance of all creation and on the work of Jesus . Indeed, every tribe, tongue, and nation will bow before the one true God and acknowledge him as King of Kings . We, all of us, were made by God and made for God. We are his. Whether we embrace it or try to deny it, we belong to God .

. Why would God love me? Why would He choose to bring me into His family? What do I have to offer? Well... nothing. I bring nothing to the table. I have nothing He needs. There is no earthly reason for God to treat me as anything other than what I was: His enemy. YET, He does! Not only has God chosen me, He's adopted me and made me His own. Why? Because He wanted to. Hey, that's really good news. . Mephibosheth - 2 Samuel 9 from Bryan Brigham on Vimeo . This is a sermon I preached several months ago. I pray it blesses you.

. So, I read this ' manifesto ' supossedly written by Joe Stark, the man who flew his private plane into an IRS building in Austin recently. In my personal opinion, the man was not crazy. I believe Joe Stark was angry, hurt, desperate, even at the end of his rope, but he was not just some vauguely 'insane' guy. I believe he made a bad choice, one that seems irrational, perhaps. But, I don't think that's the same thing. He was serious and he was committed. He was committed to standing up for what he believed in and he was serious about forcing others to hear what he had to say in a world that didn't care about his voice. Guess what? It worked. We're all talking about it, reading about it, and writing about it. Joseph Andrew Stark was a man of resolve, and whether you agree with his actions (would you dare?) or not, I don't believe you can just call him a nut and shake your head. He was serious about what he believed, deadly serious. . As a side note

. Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good! His  hesed endures forever. Give thanks to the God of gods! His  hesed endures forever. Give thanks to the Lord of lords! His hesed endures forever: Who remembered us in our lowly state, (His hesed endures forever;) And rescued us from our enemies, (His hesed endures forever;) Who gives food to all flesh, (His hesed endures forever.) Oh, give thanks to the God of heaven! For His hesed endures forever. Psalm 136:1-3,23-26 Today is my birthday, and as I go through the routine of getting ready for another yom of life I am remindeed of two things: 1) I am a survivor, and 2) I am loved. The first is simply a statistical observation, one that applies to others as well. I've had my fair share of close calls, from a risky birth to car wrecks to illness to making the wrong enemies in school. I've known people who haven't survived these things, and some who have survived worse than I've endured. Yet, the one thing my wh

Psalm 126 (NIV) A song of ascents. 1 When the LORD brought back the captives to [a] Zion, we were like men who dreamed. [b] 2 Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, "The LORD has done great things for them." 3 The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy. 4 Restore our fortunes, [c] O LORD, like streams in the Negev. 5 Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. 6 He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him. Verses 5 and 6 stood out to me this morning. I have known one who has sown many tears and yet never lost faith in God, never finally gave up hope. She has carried her trust in God close to her and has sown that trust into others, encouraging them even while her own life battled futility. I believe the day of reaping has come for her. She will return 'carrying sheaves' and all of us who

It seems there is always something else waiting in the wings, like a main character who has yet to be introduced to the audience. There he is, ready to go, yet his cue has not come. His lines are memorized, his staging is marked out. All he waits on is the right moment. Our life is ilke that sometimes. I have so many dreams and desires, but they always seem to be on hold, waiting their turn. I want a job that matters; it's on hold. I'd liek to get out of Abilene; nope. I'm waiting for our family; again, on hold. I need to see God's providence; it's right there waiting it's turn. So, I'm trying to pay better attention to what's happening on stage. It doesn't seem very interesting or important. Sometimes, it's downright boring. However, I must remind myself that it matters, every bit of it. I may not know why. I may not be able to see through its ordinariness to understand how it plays a part. But, it is the NOW of which all of life is composed