Month: June 2019

Lincoln: A Relevant Proclamation

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“Whereas it is the duty of nations as well as of men to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God, to confess their sins and transgressions in humble sorrow yet with a sure hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon, and to recognize the sublime truth announced in the holy scriptures and proven by all history that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord, and in so much as we know that by his divine law nations, like individuals, are subjected to punishments and chastisements in this world, may we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war, which now desolates the land, may be but a punishment inflicted upon us for our presumptuous sins to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole people? 

We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven. We have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth, and power as no other nation has ever grown; but we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace, and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us; and we have vainly imagined in the deceitfulness of our hearts that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us. It behooves us then to humble ourselves before the offended power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness.”

-A proclamation by the president, March 30, 1863, Our Presidents and Their Prayers

Abraham Lincoln proclaimed this 156 years ago. What might he proclaim today if he were president? What national sins would he call us to confess?

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Lincoln: How He Managed His Burden

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I picked up this audio book last weekend at the library. It hasn’t disappointed. Here’s one example why:

“I know there is a God, and that he hates the injustice of slavery. I see the storm coming, and I know that his hand is in it. If he has a place and a work for me, and I think he has, I believe I am ready. I am nothing, but truth is everything. I know I am right because I know that liberty is right; for Christ teaches it, and Christ is God.” -Abraham Lincoln, Springfield, Illinois, 1860

Anything you read or watch about Lincoln depicts the burden he carried. What man or woman can imagine it? But when I heard this note read, I heard how he managed the burden.

  • He managed it because he believed the burden came from God.
  • He managed it because he was discerning to see it coming before it arrived.
  • He managed it because he trusted the work, call, and preparation by God for anyone to carry any size burden.
  • He managed it because he knew his place, which he chose to humbly embrace.
  • He managed it because he viewed it as a burden for truth and right.
  • He managed it because he was aligned with God, the life-giver and sustainer of all burden carriers.

What can you learn from Lincoln’s example? How could you better manage your burden with these principles?

A Good Week

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If awe is a longing, then embedded in that longing is the cry for a destination. And if awe requires a destination, then every moment of awe in this life merely prepares us for the incalculable awe that is to come. You just can’t write a book about awe and not talk about eternity. Perhaps we can find no more real and present argument for heaven in the angst that we all carry in the face of the temporary and dissatisfying awes of the present. Whether we know it or not, the awe of every human being-that desire to be amazed, blown away, moved, and satisfied-is actually a universal craving to see God face-to-face. All the awesome things in creation point me to the awesome God who created and holds them together, and his presence is the destination where my hunger will finally be satisfied. God designed this present world to stimulate us so we would hunger for another world. On the other side, we won’t need the fingers of creation pointing us to God’s awesome glory because we will see that glory face-to-face and dwell in the light and heat of its sun forever and ever. We will finally stand in the actual presence of God, and we will bask in heart-satisfied awe, never to long again.


This paragraph comes from the epilogue of Awe, a book I first blogged about in 2016. I just finished my annual reading of it. I committed to read it annually to renew my awe. But I also read it this week in order to consider developing and offering a study of it for groups at my church. If you attend First Baptist Bradenton, stay tuned.

While reading the epilogue, I also couldn’t help but think about Frank (see post from May entitled Serving Frank). We celebrated his life yesterday. His longing is over. His heart is satisfied, never to long again. 

It’s been a good week.

“Which Way?”

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I have a new favorite verse. At least for today.

“This is what the Lord says: Stand by the roadways and look. Ask about the ancient paths, “Which is the way to what is good?” Then take it and find rest for yourselves. But they protested, “We won’t!””‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭6:16‬ ‭CSB‬‬

(Check out how these translations ask the question: ESV, NIV, NKJV “Where the good way is?” The Message paraphrases it as the “tried-and-true road.”)

The visual is so clear, yet we seem blind.

Rest doesn’t have to be that hard. Temptations draw us away convincing us rest is a myth. But according to God’s message through Jeremiah, rest has been found by all our preceding generations. In this day of great change and progress, God’s message is still the same:

“Stop hurrying about looking for a new way. Cease driving up and down the road chasing disguised lights of hope. Search out those who have heavenly peace. Humbly ask them the road to it. Join me on that road where rest awaits anyone who trusts rather than protests.”

Your “Broken” Lyrics

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There seems to be an awakening. Some see it. Others are trying.

The awakening is to who we are. And the recurring descriptor is “Broken.”

Those who see it aren’t loathing about it, much like the enemy would want.

Others are allowing him to tattoo “Damaged Goods” on their minds and souls.

Yes, it’s true. We’re all broken. God knew that the minute he breathed life into our lungs.

Yet, it may take experiencing brokenness to see our reflection.

In that moment when we see the imperfections, the scars, or the quirks, we have a choice. Whose voice will we believe?

The enemy cries, “You’re worthless. Done. Pitiful. Useless. Ugly. Undesirable. Lost Forever. Unlovable.” On and on he goes.

Our Creator whispers, “I created you. You have eternal purpose. I love you unconditionally. Your scars are beautiful to me.” On and on he counters.

In their song “Scars,” I Am They sing about this truth. They declare that their eyes have been opened by their deepest pain, the brokenness that brought them back to their Creator. Instead of hating their scars, they say they are thankful for them because they now stand in confidence, they are not who they were before, and they can tell a story of God’s faithfulness and deliverance.

When you sing about your brokenness, what are the lyrics? Whose cries or whispers do you share?