Here, then, is the clue to our erratic life patterns, our inconstancy, our unfaithfulness, our stupid inability to distinguish between fashion and faith: we don't rise up early and listen to God. We don't daily find a time apart from the crowd, a time of silence and solitude, for preparing for the day's journey. "A very original man," says Garry Wills, "must shape his life, make a schedule that allows him to reflect, and study, and create." Jeremiah had a defined priority: persistently rising early, he listened to … [Read more...] about The One Thing Needful (Lent 2019)
Devotional
Living Mid-Story (Lent 2019)
"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations." - Jeremiah 1:5 Before Jeremiah knew God, God knew Jeremiah. . . . We are known before we know. This realization has a practical result: no longer do we run here and there, panicked and anxious, searching for the answers to life. Our lives are not puzzles to be figured out. Rather, we come to God, who knows us and reveals to us the truth of our lives. The fundamental mistake is to begin … [Read more...] about Living Mid-Story (Lent 2019)
A Prayer for Those Finishing a Semester
The staff and volunteers of ESN seek to be attuned to the rhythms of the academic year and the spiritual rhythms of our lives with God. One of the main goals in how we set up our blog content is to provide spiritually invigorating content that understands the rhythms of the academic year. Today, as many people are nearing the end of their semesters, we offer a brief prayer by ESN Writer/Editor Hannah Eagleson. If you're looking for more spiritual exercises suited to this time of year, Hannah also wrote a brief … [Read more...] about A Prayer for Those Finishing a Semester
The Day of Resurrection
The Day of Resurrection The day of resurrection! Earth, tell it out abroad; the passover of gladness, the passover of God. From death to life eternal, from earth unto the sky, our Christ hath brought us over, with hymns of victory. Our hearts be pure from evil, that we may see aright the Lord in rays eternal of resurrection light; and listening to his accents, may hear, so calm and plain, his own "All hail!" and, hearing, may raise the victor strain. Now let the heavens be joyful! Let earth the … [Read more...] about The Day of Resurrection
Palm Sunday’s Short-Lived Praise (Scholar’s Compass)
Thank-you to Amy Davis Abdallah for joining the Emerging Scholars Network's blogging team by sharing a pair of 2018 Lenten devotionals, beginning with last Sunday's challenging Do I Really Need a Sabbath? (Scholar's Compass). Follow this link to explore ESN's Lenten devotionals. To God be the glory! ~ Tom Grosh IV, Assoc. Dir., ESN … [Read more...] about Palm Sunday’s Short-Lived Praise (Scholar’s Compass)