faith – indycrowe

Singing Praise when Pain Stings

I think we can know God has good plans and purposes for us in our personal trials, and yet the pain of those trials lingers. There’s a sting of the trial but then there can even be a bit of a sting in God walking us through it. I say that believing God is always wise, good, loving, and faithful in everything we go through, and that He is with us in whatever dark valley He leads us through. You can know God’s heart is good and loving, you can trust His character and plan, and yet it still hurts. You might even be able to give thanks to God or be thankful for the trial in retrospect (or at least grateful for what God has done in and through it) and yet still carry wounds and scars from it all.

Purposefully Placed in the Wilderness

“But, like Israel, we struggle to understand why God would allow us to wander in a wilderness of lack. While we demand that He answer our prayers with what we want, His reply is to remind us who He is. Every page of Scripture tells us who He is and what He’s done. Wandering is a gift that helps us to remember this” Glenna Marshall, The Promise is His Presence

The wilderness can be a place where we feel lost, out of sorts, confused, or stuck between destinations. Like someone stumbling through a sandstorm and they can’t see beyond their hand, or like someone standing in the middle of a forest where you can’t see a way out , the wilderness can feel disorienting. It can feel like there’s no clear path to move forward. But one of the things that’s clear in every biblical wilderness story is that God has led or placed His people in the wilderness with good purposes in mind.

How to be Led by God

In Psalm 25, David repeatedly asks God to teach and lead him. He uses very similar language in Psalm 27 when he speaks of someone having no parents to guide them in life with wisdom and love (Ps. 27:10), and yet God steps into that role as our loving, heavenly Father and He teaches and leads us on the right path (27:11).

Notice the repetition of David’s requests or comments on God leading him in Psalm 25:

Endorsements for Your Wilderness Is Not A Waste

With the release of Your Wilderness Is Not a Waste: God’s Purpose in Suffering and Struggles, I wanted to share two of the endorsements. My hope is the book is an encouragement to those in a trial, in a season of waiting, disappointed by life’s circumstances, or confused by where God is leading them.

Remembering My Mom, Debbie Crowe

My mom recently passed away after battling cancer for about 14 months. I’m thankful for her faith in Christ that gives us the peace of knowing her pain has been exchanged with joy. When my dad died three years ago, my mom said at the time that she wished that people would share eulogies or say “all the nice things” to people before they die rather than wait until afterwards. So a few weeks ago I wrote out an extended letter that included this eulogy, as well as more personal memories and encouragements, and gave it to my mom. I’m thankful I did, and would encourage others to find ways in person and on paper to share your love for people before their death.

Here’s a condensed version of that eulogy I shared at her funeral yesterday.

The Joy of God in Psalm 104

Psalm 104 focuses on God and His creation. In fact, most commentators think the psalmist (likely David) includes references to each of the seven days of creation week in it. Charles Spurgeon called Psalm 104 the poet’s version of Genesis.

What the Bible Is

“The Bible is a vein of pure gold, unalloyed by quartz or any earthly substance. This is a star without a speck; a sun without a blot; a light without darkness; a moon without its paleness; a glory without a dimness. O Bible! It cannot be said of any other book that it is perfect and pure; but of thee we can declare all wisdom is gathered up in thee, without a particle of folly. This is the judge that ends the strife, where wit and reason fail. This is the book untainted by any error; but is pure, unalloyed, perfect truth.” Charles Spurgeon

There are a lot of different ways to talk about the nature of the Bible, but one way of splitting up categories I found helpful is to talk about (1) what Scripture is and (2) what Scripture does. On Instagram and Facebook, I’m posting during August on the doctrine of Scripture, and this week have focused on what the Bible is.

Interesting Facts about John Newton’s “Amazing Grace”

“Amazing grace how sweet the sound that saved ______________.”

Whether you grew up singing in church or not, most people know the next few words of this famous song. It has been called the spiritual anthem of the United States. You’re just as likely to hear it sung on American Idol as you are at a local church.

Biographer Jonathan Aitken describes John Newton’s hymn, “Amazing Grace,” as “the most sung, most recorded, and most loved hymn in the world. No other song, spiritual or secular, comes close to it in terms of numbers of recordings (over three thousand in the United States alone), frequency of performances (it is publicly sung at least ten million times per year), international popularity across six continents, or cultural longevity (234 years old and still going strong).”^[1]

Known & Loved by Glenna Marshall

I don’t rate books based on stars or numbers. I tend to classify them mentally more in terms of books: “to avoid,” “not worth your time,” “good for a specific person or season,” or “everyone should prioritize reading this.” It’s not as memorable or clean as the stars approach, but it’s how I think about books (especially as a pastor who views recommended resources as part of shepherding).

Glenna Marshall’s newest book, Known & Loved: Experiencing the Affection of God in Psalm 139, would be in the “everyone should prioritize reading it” class. The structure (Psalm 139) and style (deeply personal and deeply biblical) root the reader in Scripture with the aim of seeing just how much God’s knowledge of us and love for us can change our everyday life.

A Helpful Book on Anxiety

There are many good books on anxiety written by Christians. It’s a broad and complex issue, and no book can say everything, so there are also a lot of angles in which to approach it. One of the books I’ve found most helpful is Struck Down but Not Destroyed: Living Faithfully with Anxiety by Pierce Taylor Hibbs.