Coram Deo ~

Looking at contemporary culture from a Christian worldview


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Last Words


Our senior pastor recently preached about Joshua’s last words in his sermon titled “Cling to the Lord Your God” on Joshua 23, in which Joshua delivers his final words. In his message, our pastor shared the last words of a few others, such as:

  • Last words are for fools who haven’t said enough. Karl Marx
  • Live in Christ, die in Christ, and the flesh need not fear death. John Knox
  • This is the end – for me, the beginning of life. Dietrich Bonhoeffer
  • It is Finished. Jesus

I remember being fascinated some years ago reading Walter Isaacson’s biography of Steve Jobs, in which he recounted Jobs’, who was not a Christian, final words as being: Oh wow! Oh wow! Oh wow!

I’ve previously written about what our legacies will be, and what our message to the next generation will be. Our pastor’s sermon got me to thinking about the idea of “last words”, understanding that in many instances – including those of my parents – we never get to hear the last words of a loved one as a result of end of life issues.

Have you ever thought out what you would like your last words to be? Think of being in your bed surrounded by your spouse, children and grandchildren. What would you like your final words to be if you would have the opportunity?

I think of the Apostle Paul’s words in 2 Timothy 4:7. Although they were not his final words, they were probably some of his last. He wrote:

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.

Wouldn’t those be wonderful words to end our lives with?


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THIS & THAT: A Gathering of Favorite Articles and Quotes

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  • More interesting article links
  • Favorite Quotes of the Week

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FAITH AND WORK: Connecting Sunday to Monday

Faith and Work News ~ Links to Interesting Articles

  • Six Ways to Practice Sabbath. Tim Keller writes “I suggest that you should be sure to get six kinds of Sabbath rest. All of these represent different kinds of breaks from ordinary work that can refresh and enrich.”
  • Mentoring in the Third Third of Life. Mark D. Roberts writes “Mentoring isn’t the same as training, teaching, or supervising. It’s not just passing on skills, knowledge, or even wisdom. Rather, mentoring involves a deep relationship, one in which shared experience and mutual learning are key.”
  • Women & Work Podcast: Courtney Doctor. On this episode of the Women & Work Podcast, Courtney Doctor, Director of Women’s Initiatives for The Gospel Coalition, answers questions from Courtney Moore and Missie Branch.

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Living Out Our Faith at Work, Part 5

I had the opportunity to speak to a wonderful group at Truth in Love Counseling on living out our faith at work. This is part 5 of a five-part series inspired by that talk.
Here are some additional ways I personally tried to integrate my faith with my work. Hopefully they will be helpful to you as well:

Connect with Your Team Members and Co-Workers. Get to Know Them as People, not just for the Role they Play in the Workplace. 

As a leader, my first meeting with a new team member was always just about them, not about the work (unless they specifically addressed it). I called these “Getting to Know You” meetings. I wanted to know about them, their families, etc., basically what was important to them. How can you lead and serve someone if you don’t know what is significant to them?

One of my favorite leadership authors is John Maxwell. He has said that the people on your team won’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. We should be leaders who are known to care about their team members and co-workers. We should see them as people with families, dreams, goals and concerns, and not resources. Continue reading


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MUSIC REVIEWS and NEWS


The Beautiful Letdown: Live from Los Angeles – Switchfoot
*** ½

Switchfoot has been celebrating the 20th anniversary of their breakthrough album The Beautiful Letdown, which was recorded in Los Angeles, and has now sold more than three million copies and had more than 550 million streams. In May 2023, the band released The Beautiful Letdown (Our Version). This new surprise live album preceded the band resuming their The Beautiful Letdown 20th anniversary tour.
Switchfoot has always been an excellent live band, and they prove it again on this album, in which they play all of the songs from The Beautiful Letdown.

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  • A review of Live at Orangefield: Be Just and Fear Not by Van Morrison
  • Music News
  • Song of the Week Lyrics ~ Run and Run (Christ is All My Righteousness) by Matt Boswell and Matt Papa

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BOOK REVIEWS and NEWS


Yogi: A Life Behind the Mask by Jon Pessah. Little, Brown, and Company. 577 pages. 2020
****

I grew up as a New York Yankees fan, probably because in the 1960’s the Yankees were often on television on Saturday afternoons. There were no ESPN or regional sports networks on which all of a team’s games were broadcast. My favorite player was Mickey Mantle. I did not know much about Yogi Berra as he completed his Yankees career when I was still quite young.
I am glad I read Jon Pessah’s well-researched and enjoyable biography of Berra – the result of hundreds of hours of interviews with more than 150 people conducted during a more than four-year span. I had no idea how impressive Berra’s career was. He won thirteen (ten as a player and three as a coach) World Series championships, was a fifteen time All-Star and was the American League’s Most Valuable Player three times.

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BOOK REVIEWS ~ More of this review…
BOOK NEWS ~ Links to Interesting Articles
BOOK CLUB ~ Truths We Confess by  R.C. Sproul
I’M CURRENTLY READING…. Continue reading


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New and Upcoming Music

I enjoy music in a number of genres. There are several new and upcoming releases that you might be interested in. Here are 8 of them:

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THIS & THAT: A Gathering of Favorite Articles and Quotes


  • The God Over Geopolitics. On this episode of the Ask Pastor John podcast, John Piper answers the question “I think I used to understand God’s relationships to the rulers of superpowers of the world as predictive. He was sovereign in that he foreknew what global rulers would freely do. Then I encountered Revelation 17:17. This verse stopped me in my tracks. Everything has changed for me. Can you explain the meaning of this text, whether it generally explains how things work today? If so, what role is God playing in geopolitics right now?”

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  • Favorite Quotes of the Week

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FAITH AND WORK: Connecting Sunday to Monday

Faith and Work News ~ Links to Interesting Articles

  • Golfing for Jesus: A Conversation with Webb Simpson, U.S. Open Champion. On this episode of the Working with Dan Doriani podcast, Dan is joined by professional golfer Webb Simpson to talk about the pressures of playing golf on the PGA tour–playing in adverse conditions, facing intense pressure in the public eye, and being on the road, away from his family. Being a follower of Jesus influences every part of Webb’s game, from the longest drives to the shortest putts. On the course and off, Webb is looking to use his talents to influence his sphere of the world for God’s Kingdom.
  • On Following Mediocre Leaders. Tim Challies writes “We must see and understand that it is not the skill of the leaders that gives them the right to call us to follow them. It’s not their ability. Not their track record. It’s their position.”

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Living Out Our Faith at Work, Part 4

I had the opportunity to speak to a wonderful group at Truth in Love Counseling on living out our faith at work. This is part 4 of a five-part series inspired by that talk.

Here are some additional ways I personally tried to integrate my faith with my work. Hopefully they will be helpful to you as well:

Serve as a mentor. I’m a big proponent of the value of mentoring relationships, and never turned anyone down who wanted to enter into a mentoring relationship with me at work or a discipling relationship at church. A mentor is someone with more or different experiences that they can share with a mentee. Still, I always learned from those who sought me out as a mentor. I see mentoring as a way of giving back and pouring myself into others just as my career mentor poured himself into me. Continue reading