MARCH 14, 2026

   “‎All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on.” 

― H. Havelock Ellis

DEUTERONOMY 23-25

16Parents are not to be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their parents; each will die for their own sin.(24:16)

MARK 14:51-72

60Then the high priest stood up before them and asked Jesus, “Are you not going to answer? What is this testimony that these men are bringing against you?” 61But Jesus remained silent and gave no answer.

Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?”

62“I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

63The high priest tore his clothes. “Why do we need any more witnesses?” he asked. 64“You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?”

They all condemned him as worthy of death. 65Then some began to spit at him; they blindfolded him, struck him with their fists, and said, “Prophesy!” And the guards took him and beat him.

JOURNAL 

Last night I stayed up too late watching clip after clip from the war with Iran. Missiles, headlines, commentators speculating about what might happen next. Before long I realized I had been pulled into projection and worry. My mind was running scenarios and imagining outcomes about things that are completely outside my control.

This morning I was reminded of something simple. That is not my focus today. Letting events that I cannot control shape my heart, my mood, and my actions today would be foolish. “All the art of living lies in a fine mingling of letting go and holding on.” There are things I must release to God and there are things I must hold tightly. Faith. Presence. The responsibilities right in front of me.

Reading the account of Jesus before the high priest in Mark is almost unbearable. The Messiah, perfect and blameless, is accused of blasphemy, mocked, spit upon, and struck. As a parent I cannot imagine watching something like that happen to my own child. If I were in God’s place I know what I would want to do. Lightning bolts would have ended the scene immediately.

But God did not intervene.

That silence reveals something powerful about love and trust. Sometimes love does not look like stepping in and stopping the pain. Sometimes love means allowing a path to unfold that is larger than our instinct to protect.

As a parent there are times when I must intervene and shield my children. But there are also times when my protection can become a problem. There are moments when stepping in too quickly prevents them from experiencing the place where God wants to meet them.

I hate that part of parenting. Everything in me wants to fix things, to rescue them, to smooth the road ahead. Yet I know that if I become the constant protector and solver, I risk creating dependence on me instead of dependence on God. And that is not the goal.

What I want most for my adult children is not an easy life and not even constant success. What I want most is for them to know God deeply. I want them to trust Him when things do not make sense. I want them to recognize and trust the Spirit God has already placed within them. If they learn that, if they learn to trust God with all their heart and listen to His Spirit within them, they will have something far stronger than anything I could manufacture for them.

So today I hold on to what matters. Faith. Trust. Presence with my family. The work God has placed in front of me. And I let go of the rest.

5Trust in the Lord with all your heart

and lean not on your own understanding;

6in all your ways submit to him,

and he will make your paths straight.^a

- Proverbs 3:5-6

MARCH 13, 2026

  “The best way out is always through.” 

― Robert Frost

DEUTERONOMY 20-22

1When you go to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, do not be afraid of them, because the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will be with you. 2When you are about to go into battle, the priest shall come forward and address the army. 3He shall say: “Hear, Israel: Today you are going into battle against your enemies. Do not be fainthearted or afraid; do not panic or be terrified by them. 4For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory.”(20:1-4)

MARK 14:26-50

27“You will all fall away,” Jesus told them, “for it is written:

“ ‘I will strike the shepherd,

and the sheep will be scattered.’^d

28But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”

29Peter declared, “Even if all fall away, I will not.”

30“Truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “today—yes, tonight—before the rooster crows twice^e you yourself will disown me three times.”

31But Peter insisted emphatically, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” And all the others said the same.

JOURNAL 

Peter refused to believe that there could ever be a situation where he would deny Christ...yet in a few short verses later...he runs away and then denies him 3 times.  Peter completely blows it. Yet Christ knew that this was coming, he knew the daunting circumstances that all of them would encounter over the next few days. I think this was part of Jesus' angst. Yet instead of running, instead of finding a way out...Jesus faced it head on. Peter on the other hand idealized the end result of following Jesus...yet when it came down to it...his declarations were futile...he didn't have the courage to follow through with his promises.

Adversity is waiting...every morning that we are gifted with another day we are also gifted with inevitable adversity. In one way or another we are going to face struggle...whether that be with a situation, another human, an illness, and if nothing else...ourselves. Struggle and adversity are as much a part of life as the sun rising and setting. 

Yet I will confess, there is always this hope that maybe today I won't encounter it...maybe today it won't exist, maybe today I'll just cruise through unscathed. Yet what I learn from scripture and have unwillingly learned in my life is that wishing for the absence of adversity is futile. For adversity is a key component in defining life itself. That defining is also what creates the playing field of everything that makes life purposeful and meaningful. 

When I really think about it...gravity is adversity, hunger is adversity, thirst is adversity, the weather, the elements, bills, job, school, relationships, family...all of it contains an element of problems and adversity. 

So I guess really there are two choices...face it or run from it. To face it and embrace it is to ultimately solve it. To run from it and avoid it is to be defeated by it.  Jesus faced the adversity all the way through death and in doing so defeated it. In doing so he provided redemption to Peter and the keys to life for all of us. 

 9Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.

GALATIANS 6:9

MARCH 12, 2026

 “The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him.” 

― G.K. Chesterton

DEUTERONOMY 17-19

16The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the Lord has told you, “You are not to go back that way again.” 17He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold.

18When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the Levitical priests. 19It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees 20and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites and turn from the law to the right or to the left. Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel.(17:16-20)

MARK 14:1-25

1Now the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread were only two days away, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were scheming to arrest Jesus secretly and kill him. 2“But not during the festival,” they said, “or the people may riot.”

3While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.

4Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, “Why this waste of perfume? 5It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages^a and the money given to the poor.” And they rebuked her harshly.

6“Leave her alone,” said Jesus. “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. 7The poor you will always have with you,^b and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. 8She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. 9Truly I tell you, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.”

10Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them. 11They were delighted to hear this and promised to give him money. So he watched for an opportunity to hand him over.

JOURNAL 

So Kings were not to think of themselves above their subjects.  "...revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees 20and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites..." Specifically this language in the old testament lays out the heart that God wants us to have in roles of leadership. Leadership is not a gift to indulge but rather a position to serve. 

This story from Mark has always moved me. I think it's because it shows how Jesus looks to the heart and overlooks the practical in favor of it. Jesus doesn't see the waste, he sees the devotion, he doesn't see buildings and titles he sees spiritual eternity. I think that it is easy to really get caught up in religiosity. I think it's easy to get into a certain mindset that's all about looking the part rather than actually living it. But when I really read the Bible and dissect the characters and the heart of Jesus, I see that following him is not a conservative mindset. 

It is actually filled with people going against the grain, doing the unconventional and rocking the boat. I think this is exactly why Jesus commends the prostitute for her action. It is a passionate display of devotion from her heart. This is the mindset of the kingdom...bold, unconventional, passionate and all heart. 

34Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

37Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’^c 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^d 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

MATTHEW 22:34-40

MARCH 11, 2026

 “I don't think of all the misery, but of the beauty that still remains.” 

― Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl

DEUTERONOMY 14-16

1At the end of every seven years you must cancel debts. 2This is how it is to be done: Every creditor shall cancel any loan they have made to a fellow Israelite. They shall not require payment from anyone among their own people, because the Lord’s time for canceling debts has been proclaimed. 3You may require payment from a foreigner, but you must cancel any debt your fellow Israelite owes you. 4However, there need be no poor people among you, for in the land the Lord your God is giving you to possess as your inheritance, he will richly bless you, 5if only you fully obey the Lord your God and are careful to follow all these commands I am giving you today. 6For the Lord your God will bless you as he has promised, and you will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. You will rule over many nations but none will rule over you.(15:1-6)

MARK 13:14-37

32“But about that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33Be on guard! Be alert^e ! You do not know when that time will come. 34It’s like a man going away: He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge, each with their assigned task, and tells the one at the door to keep watch.

35“Therefore keep watch because you do not know when the owner of the house will come back—whether in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or at dawn. 36If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping. 37What I say to you, I say to everyone: ‘Watch!’ ”

JOURNAL 

To truly live aware and present is much harder than it seems. As humans we naturally try to give context to everything. Our memories anchor us. They tell us where we have been, how we arrived here, and in many ways who we are. Without them, waking up each morning would feel like appearing in a story with no beginning.

The brain is a remarkable gift. It allows us to hold the past, while also imagining a future that does not yet exist. We can plan, build, create, and dream of things that have never been before. That alone is extraordinary. Yet another gift works alongside it: emotion. Those chemical reactions in our bodies give color and meaning to our memories and to our visions of the future. They help us care, love, hope, and sometimes even mourn what is broken.

When memory, imagination, and emotion are working well together, human beings can do extraordinary things. We build communities. We care for one another. We create beauty, order, and goodness. But when those systems drift out of alignment, we can also move quickly toward fear, selfishness, and chaos.

This is why the present moment matters so much. The real danger is not simply that things go wrong. The deeper danger is that we fail to see the sacred opportunity of today. Today is the only place where life is actually lived. It is the only place where the future is shaped. Everything that will ever become good, meaningful, or lasting begins in this moment.

When I slow down and truly notice what is around me, I begin to see the deeper design. The needs of people. The quiet joys. The blessings that often go unnoticed. Even the struggles that shape us. God has authored a world that is alive with possibility, and He continues to work through ordinary people in ordinary moments.

The laws in Deuteronomy about canceling debts reveal something profound about God's intention for humanity. At its best, the system He designed is not one that traps people in despair but one that restores them. It is a world where generosity interrupts cycles of poverty, where mercy resets what has become broken. The design is not meant to grind people down. It is meant to lift them up.

And Jesus reminds us to stay watchful and awake, not because we are meant to live in fear, but because the moment in front of us matters. Each person has an assigned task. Each life carries responsibility and opportunity.

When that awareness takes root, something beautiful begins to emerge. Humanity becomes capable of incredible goodness. A widow giving two small coins becomes more powerful than wealthy men giving out of abundance. The act itself is small, but the heart behind it transforms the world.

When the system works as God intended, it produces generosity, restoration, joy, and beauty. It produces the things that make life worth living.

Anne Frank, in the midst of unimaginable darkness, wrote that she chose not to think of all the misery but of the beauty that still remains. That perspective is not naïve. It is deeply perceptive. Beneath the brokenness of the world is a design that still points toward goodness.

And every day we are invited to participate in it.

When we live awake to the present, aware of others, and responsive to what God is doing, we become part of building something remarkable. A world where mercy interrupts hardship. A world where generosity reshapes systems. A world where simple acts of faith and love multiply into something far greater than we can see.

In the end, we are not just surviving life.
We are helping create something beautiful.

41As Jesus was sitting opposite the treasury, He watched the crowd putting money into it. And many rich people put in large amounts. 42Then one poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which amounted to a small fraction of a denarius.l

43Jesus called His disciples to Him and said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more than all the others into the treasury. 44For they all contributed out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.”

MARK 12:41-44

MARCH 10, 2026

 “To be loved but not known is comforting but superficial. To be known and not loved is our greatest fear. But to be fully known and truly loved is, well, a lot like being loved by God. It is what we need more than anything. It liberates us from pretense, humbles us out of our self-righteousness, and fortifies us for any difficulty life can throw at us.” 

― Timothy J. Keller, The Meaning of Marriage

DEUTERONOMY 11-13

1Love the Lord your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always.(11:1)

MARK 13:1-13

1As Jesus was leaving the temple, one of his disciples said to him, “Look, Teacher! What massive stones! What magnificent buildings!”

2“Do you see all these great buildings?” replied Jesus. “Not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”

JOURNAL 

It is not buildings that matter...it is the hearts and souls of people. To really embrace the words of God and the Bible means that "things" no longer take precedence...things include money, possessions, power, positions, titles, jobs, etc. The minds, hearts and souls of people, their commitment to God and their fellow man is all that matters. 

Yet so many things and circumstances too often take precedence over my love of God and others. I get caught up in the superficial. I get caught up in how I think things should play out and work out, instead of trusting God and focusing on today and only today. Forgive me father for trying to get ahead of you. Help me to see the good in every moment and seek to give you my best in that moment. That's the only way to have true peace and joy. 

34Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question: 36“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”

37Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’^c 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’^d 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

MATTHEW 22:34-40