Prairie Pastoral

This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

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October 13, 2021 | Leave a Comment

Scripture never disappoints

It’s early. I do my Bible reading first in my day, which means I’m often still shaking off last night’s dreams. My coffee’s on my left; our two sleepy dogs are on my right, and words are swimming in front of my eyes.

I’m in Genesis 10, the list of Noah’s descendants. Noah had three sons, and his three sons had sons. I search the names, looking for a foothold, someone whose name calls to mind meaning in a chapter that otherwise seems perhaps less important but certainly less exciting than the previous chapter’s account of the covenant and rainbow. 

My eyes slide down the names of the sons of Japheth, Ham, and Shem. Some are familiar; many are not. 

“These are the sons of Shem, by their clans, their languages, their lands, and their nations” (Genesis 10:31).

Clans. Languages. Lands. Nations. Is this how the world knows us? Is this how we know ourselves? By our family, by our words, by our homes, by our nations?

My family is complicated. By birth, adoption, and marriage, my family extends farther now than it ever has, into the past and into the future. I stop and pray for them all.

My words? I love words. I use words all the time. In a recent assessment, I scored high in the need to express myself, but then I’m reminded that this blog hasn’t been updated since July. Maybe it’s less a fire in my belly and more a dead ember. But I’m reminded, and I’m motivated, so here! I’m sitting down to write.

My land isn’t much. It’s my one lot on a short street in a small town. I don’t know that I want to leave it ever, but I have to go where God calls me. For now, though, I’m safe here. The doors swing wide for friends, and the walls tell stories of my children. I’ve got work to do later to take care of it.

And my nation, well, my nation is a crazy mix of blessing and challenge, as I’m sure all nations are. I’m glad to live here. I marvel at the principles upon which it was founded. They’re good bones. I’m thankful.

The dogs are still sleeping, but my coffee is running low. I’ve been led to pray, to make a plan, to care, and give thanks, all by one verse tagging the end of a long list of names. 

Scripture never disappoints.

Bible, Discipleship, Old Testament Tagged: family, Genesis 10, land, nation, words


May 19, 2020 | 1 Comment

Fires, Locusts, and COVID-19: A Closer Look at 2 Chronicles 7

This is the transcript from a weekly v-blog posted to the Facebook page of the First Presbyterian Church of La Junta, Colorado.

“You get what you get”

My daughter was not an easy toddler. Or preschooler. Or youngster, for that matter.  But let’s start at the beginning.

At her first preschool, at the age of 2, she staged what her teachers called “the great candy raid,” involving several children in the scaling of a half-wall, into a storage area of their classroom, during naptime. The teachers complimented her on her leadership and organizational skills before calling the school psychologist, whose advice to us amounted to, “Good luck with her.”

At her next preschool, she exhibited a similar lack of remorse for wrongdoing.  Sent to the director’s office for some wrongdoing and told to sit against the wall, she managed to  find a spare thread and began unravelling the carpet, row by row.  By the time the director returned, a decent sized square of her office was down to the padding.  It wasn’t pretty.  

At her third and final preschool before beginning kindergarten, we registered her and then waited for the phone call.  And waited. And waited.  Finally, after about a month, I approached the new director.  “Any problems?”  She looked at her curiously.  No.  “Really?”  No.  “You haven’t had any problems with her?”  No.  I explained some of the problems she’d had at the other preschools.  The director looked at her surprised.  “No, no.  She’s fine. We just tell her, ‘You get what you get and you don’t throw a fit.’”  The director shrugged. “That’s all it takes.”

You get what you get, and you don’t throw a fit. If she behaved, she was rewarded. If she misbehaved, she was punished.  Period.  

It worked on my daughter, because it was clear and predictable.  No negotiation. No room for response. No so-called love and logic.  An eye for an eye.  A tit for a tat.  Period. 

This is human reason at its simplest: cause and effect.  But, as David Hume was quick to point out long ago, the effect we predict is not necessarily, well, necessary.  Our ideas of cause and effect are formed by habit, largely, rather than real observation or experience.

I’m digressing a little bit, and you’re wondering where this is going, so let me just cut to the chase and show you what I’ve been ruminating on, several times, during this coronavirus quarantine.

Here it is, in the form of a meme I found on social media this morning, though it’s been forwarded to me several times in different media.

It’s simple cause and effect:  We’ve been wicked, so God is punishing us.  If we humble ourselves and pray, God will bless us.  It’s “you get what you get and you don’t throw a fit” taken to a cosmic level, right?  But does it hold up?  

Let’s dig deeper.

[Read more…]

Courage, Fear, Old Testament, Social media, Trust Tagged: 2 Chronicles 7, COVID 19, locusts, memes


June 15, 2017 | Leave a Comment

Mephibosheth’s dad

Mephibosheth is hardly a household name. Thank goodness. Imagine the t-ball games with Mephibosheth at bat. “You got this, Meph!” Or little Mephibosheth rounding the bases. “Go, Shethie, go!”.

No, thankfully, Mephibosheth is not a household name. It’s a name that appears only briefly in scripture. Yet, his short story speaks volumes to us about the power of fathers to shape our lives for good.

Mephibosheth was the son of Jonathan and the grandson of Saul, [Read more…]

Family, God, Old Testament, Praise Tagged: 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, Father's Day, gratitude, Jonathan, King David, Mephibosheth


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This is the day that
the Lord has made;
let us rejoice
and be glad in it.

– Psalm 118:24
Rev. Dr. MJ Romano

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Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children.
Ephesians 5:1
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