Finding Hope Through Discovery in Bible Study

The Rhythms of Rest   August 28, 2021 Larry R Evans   I’ve outlined today’s study into four sections: 1.       Wholeness Before Brokenness 2.      A Brokenness that Leads to Wholeness 3.      Remaining Whole in a Broken World 4.      The Dawning of a New World of Wholeness    Introduction   During the past few days, the news has drawn our attention to a place called Afghanistan.    For over 20 years we have seen how nations have fought to regain power over the land occupied by the Taliban. In part, the obsession came with an attitude of revenge. It sought retaliation for what happened on 9/11.    A discussion about this tragedy can easily drift into political debates. Today, we need to be concerned with a much greater issue.    Note how Abraham Joshua Heschel describes it. There is a realm of time where the goal is not to have but to be, not to own but to give, not to control but to share, not to subdue but to be in accord. ( The Sabbath: Its Meaning for Modern Man. Prologue) Heschel i

  Evil Doesn’t Have to Win The Power of Forgiveness   Larry R Evans Introduction   What I did could have been brushed off as an impulsive childish act. My mother, however, didn’t see it that way. I don’t remember what I took from the Piggly Wiggly grocery store.  Most likely it was a candy bar.  I have not forgotten, however, what Mom did that day. She took me back to the grocery store, introduced me to the store manager, and I then explained what I had done. Expense-wise it was no big deal.  Mom paid for what I had taken, but I did the hard part. I confessed.  The lesson learned, however, was enormous. Honesty and integrity are deep-seated but learned values.  The bigger lesson for us today is the power of forgiveness in the lives of those who forgive and in the lives of those who are forgiven. The store manager and my mother forgave me. Today I highly value honesty and personal integrity.  There is much to learn about forgiveness and the power it has to change lives. The story of Jos