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worship

Perspective corrective

June 2, 2023May 29, 2023 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

[Note: After today, The Up Devotional will go on pause for a week, returning on June 12, 2023.] If you want to read something that tells you that everything is always wonderful and that life should be a non-stop parade of flowers and lollipops, don’t read the Bible. The Bible is too honest for that. … Continue reading Perspective corrective

Blood was the only hope

April 21, 2023April 17, 2023 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

“…by his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). Susanna Petroysan and her 4-year old daughter lived in soviet Armenia. They went to visit a relative in an apartment building on December 7, 1988. After they arrived, the country was struck with a massive earthquake. They were on the fifth floor and there was no time … Continue reading Blood was the only hope

Pray for yourself… and the preacher

March 23, 2023March 21, 2023 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

In this series of devotionals we’re talking about how to get the most out of a sermon. If you’re a follower of Jesus, you listen to a lot of sermons. Yes, you certainly do other things like worship, read the Bible, pray, love your neighbours and serve others. But you also listen to sermons. Here … Continue reading Pray for yourself… and the preacher

God’s book

March 22, 2023March 20, 2023 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

If you’re a follower of Jesus you listen to a lot of sermons. Would you rather squander that time or benefit from something God might be saying to you? I’m a preacher, so this topic is a bit awkward! The reason I share this isn’t because I’m fantastic (I’m not), but because God has set … Continue reading God’s book

What YOU bring to worship

February 24, 2023February 21, 2023 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

“…at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Philippians 2:10-11). An enduring praise song from the 1990’s is Matt Redman’s “The Heart of Worship.” The song emerged after a … Continue reading What YOU bring to worship

How can you still attend church?

July 27, 2022July 26, 2022 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

“Sing to the LORD, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world” (Isaiah 12:5). Bill Clinton was the 42nd President of the United States. Some of you will remember the Monika Lewinsky scandal. It’s kind of hard to forget. Sometime later at a conference, someone asked Clinton: “How can … Continue reading How can you still attend church?

The launching pad for life

March 25, 2022March 23, 2022 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

We worship and praise God because God is great. He deserves it. Accordingly, Karl Barth says that worship is “the most urgent, the most glorious action that can take place in human life.”* But we can’t miss the fact that how you worship impacts how you live. This isn’t about worship style. It’s not about … Continue reading The launching pad for life

Stumbling into (or preparing to) worship

March 24, 2022March 23, 2022 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

We have been talking about worship and how Jesus says to worship God “in the Spirit and in truth.” In fact, “they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks” (John 4:23). Wow. What do you seek? The weekend, a raise, losing 10 pounds? God seeks people to worship him in a certain way. Today … Continue reading Stumbling into (or preparing to) worship

The antithesis of worship

March 23, 2022March 22, 2022 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

In John 4:23 Jesus says that God seeks true worshipers who “will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth…” After considering the context of this passage and others, here’s what I think this means: It means focusing more on what is happening within you than around you; being open to the movement of … Continue reading The antithesis of worship

Warning signs over sanctuary doors

March 22, 2022March 21, 2022 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

Will Willimon was the dean of the Duke University Chapel. There was a student who had never been to chapel and didn’t have any intention of going.  Willimon asked him why. The student explained that things were going pretty well in his life and he didn’t want to get “jerked around” by God in a … Continue reading Warning signs over sanctuary doors

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