WCF Blog

Paul Zilmer Paul Zilmer

Mindful

In the address we know as the “Sermon on the Mount”, Jesus counsels us to have no worries about what we will eat or wear, because “your heavenly Father knows that you need them all”. He knows it, He will take care of it. (Matthew 6:25-34) Jesus says this just moments after teaching us to pray, “Give us today our bread for tomorrow” (verse 11). God already knows we need it, promises He’s got it taken care of. So why are we to ask for it?

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Paul Zilmer Paul Zilmer

Name Change

Why did Saul of Tarsus change his name? We can’t know for sure of course, but here’s a thought.

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Paul Zilmer Paul Zilmer

Stories

Good stories tend to work like this: The hero(ine) is described, building sympathy for her/him. Trouble in some form enters, almost always in the person of a villain. The villain has greater power, and inflicts hardship or worse on the hero(ine) and his/her allies. By a combination of character, resourcefulness and maybe some luck, the hero(ine) is able to prevail.

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Crucified

“I have been crucified with Christ,” Paul writes to the Galatians. He touches on the same idea in Romans 6, where he says of all who have been baptized into Christ, that “our old self was crucified with him.” Jesus himself originated the idea, telling us that anyone who would follow him must take up their own cross and follow him—clearly meaning to follow him to death, on that cross.

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Paul Zilmer Paul Zilmer

Cast Down

“Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?” The writer of Psalms 42-43 (from among the sons of Korah) expresses something all of us have felt. He asks the question repeatedly—it’s really bothering him. This is what today we would call self-talk, something we know to be very powerful, affecting our attitudes, our decision making, and our behavior. The psalmist’s words resonate with us. There are certainly times in every believer’s life when we are down like he is.

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