From ghoulies and ghosties And long-leggedy beasties And things that go bump in the night, Good Lord, deliver us!1 In our modern culture in the West, or most of it, this night is known as Halloween, and it is largely a harmless time of dressing up and getting candy—all pushed by commercial culture. Connected with…
This is a project I have worked on since 2009 using all the research and writing I had done on prayer. I read through the Old and New Testaments to locate every biblical prayer, mention of prayer, or implication of prayer in the Bible. My idea was to write a “devotional commentary” on each one, as a resource to…
My most recent book, Prayer in the Ancient Stoic Tradition: A Preliminary Study with Comparisons to Prayer in the New Testament, is now available on the Apple iBooks store for the iBooks app and iPads. Click here for more. Paperback version here. Kindle version here.
It is often said that to live in Christ is to live a cross-centered life. What does that mean? Some believers emphasize that “spirituality” primarily consists of “following God’s path” or “seeking God’s will” for our life. Though there is truth to those ideas, they run the danger of putting us in the driver’s seat,…
Book review of Ancient Collections and Other Prayers, for the Praying Through the Bible Project by Mark McDowell.
A story about prayer, a cowherd, and a Jewish sage, reaching us that prayer is more about relationship than duty.
The “Kaddish” is an ancient Jewish prayer, going back at least to the 13th century. It is a prayer of praise, often used in worship services, usually as a responsive prayer between a speaker and the congregation. But it is most well-known for its use in the mourning ritual. It is usually recited three times…
So the leaders partook of their provisions, and did not ask direction from the LORD… Background This passage mentions prayer, but there is no prayer. Unlike the passages in 1.17 and 7.20–21, where it was not clear if there was a prayer or not, here the writer tells us that the leaders did not pray. …
Join Dr. Mark McDowell as he explores this Passage from Joshua, which may or may not be a prayer. What can we learn about being too busy to pray?
The book of Joshua is an interesting book because of the seemingly contradictory issues or themes. On one hand, the story demonstrates God’s faithfulness to his people. He had promised them their own land, and, in the book of Joshua, he gives it to them. On the other hand, the book is filled with instances…
