Tag: bible
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Isabel Crawford and the Jesus Road
Sometimes when I read about one of the saints, I discover somebody whose story crosses several paths I have been walking myself. Isabel Alice Hartley Crawford is one of those people. Crawford was born in 1865, the daughter of a Baptist pastor who had served in the Canadian Northwest and the Dakotas. She inherited something…
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Growing into the person God is forming you to be.
I have been walking with the Pilgrim again in The Pilgrim Continues His Way, and this time I found myself feeling sorry for him. After leaving the young shepherd he met in the woods, the Pilgrim finally made his way to Kyiv. He wanted to confess his sins and receive the Holy Mysteries of Christ—the…
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Listen for the Shepherd’s Voice
The Daily Office Readings for Monday, September 7, 2026: Psalm 41, 52, 44; Job 32:1-10, 19, 33:1, 19-28; Acts 13:44-52; and John 10:19-30. The world is filled with voices. Some voices encourage us. Some accuse us. Some tell us they know exactly what God is doing. Some are so convinced they are right that they…
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How Good and Pleasant It Is When We Dwell Together in Unity
The saint for September 7 in A Year with American Saints is Timothy Lull. He was a theologian, pastor, professor, seminary president, gifted writer, and speaker. He was also instrumental in the establishment of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Something about his story caught this Curious Pilgrim’s attention. The ELCA sought greater unity among…
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When Our Roads Cross
I continued reading The Pilgrim Continues His Way today. After saying goodbye to the military officer, the Merchant, and his hosts, the Pilgrim continued toward Kyiv. He walked for five days. Then something happened that I understand. He became tired. Not merely physically tired. He became weak and gloomy and found it difficult to pray.…
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From Worms to Light: What Grace Does
The Daily Office Readings for Sunday, September 6, 2026: Psalm 63:1-11, 98, 103; Job 25:1-6, 27:1-6; Revelation 14:1-7, 13; and Matthew 5:13-20. I grew up hearing a lot about sin. Some of the preaching I heard as a child—not from my dad, but from others—left me with the impression that human beings were dirty, rotten…
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Are You Sure About That?
Tradition, Judgment, and a Curious Pilgrim For the past couple of days, I have been reading The Pilgrim Continues His Way, and one conversation in “The Pilgrim’s Account of the Fifth Meeting” has stayed with me. It has also troubled me. Maybe that isn’t a bad thing. Sometimes a sacred or spiritual book teaches us…
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A Religion to Defend or a Jesus to Follow?
Today I read about Francis Makemie in A Year with American Saints. Makemie was a Presbyterian minister who came to America from Northern Ireland in the seventeenth century. He became an important leader among early American Presbyterians and is often called the Father of American Presbyterianism. But something about his story caught my attention. Makemie…
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The Shepherd Knows the Way to the Water
Daily Office Readings for Today, Saturday, September 5, 2026: Psalm 30, 32, 42, 43; Job 22:1-4, 21-23:7; Acts 13:26-43, John 10:1-8. “As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God.” — Psalm 42:1–2 Some days we dance. Some days we mourn. Some…
