From Luke 1: Do Not Be Afraid

”But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid…because your prayer has been heard.” (v. 13)

Maybe you’re like me.

You’ve spent some time praying at the end of one year, and you’ve spent some time praying to start the new one. You’ve prayed with hope, yes, but also with that little tinge of fear: “Lord, please don’t let THIS season be like THAT season.” You have hoped for whichever graces God has prepared for you…while dreading whatever grief might also be ahead.

So you’ve prayed.

And, from Day One, you can be reassured: “Do not fear. Your prayer has been heard.”

That doesn’t mean it will all be smooth sailing. But it does mean that you aren’t alone in the boat. It’s not just that frightful things might be removed from your path, but that the Faithful One goes with you. He knows you and secures you and accomplishes His purposes for you.

So, however you are praying today, do not be afraid.

— Tyler

From Malachi 4: You don’t have to wait

”But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings, and you will go out and playfully jump like calves from the stall.“

Malachi’s was the last prophetic voice God’s people would hear for four hundred years. It would be four centuries before the promised Elijah—the one who would preach repentance in the wilderness, who would prepare the way for the coming of the Lord—would cry out. Four hundred years.

That’s a long wait.

You, however, don’t have to wait through it with them. You already know, because you can simply turn from the Old Testament to the New, that the Sun of Righteousness has indeed risen. You already know the Son and Lamb of God. You already know Jesus.

As we conclude this season in the Word, let’s be grateful for that, together—and let’s leap into this life with joy!

Thanks for reading the Old Testament with me.

— Tyler

From Malachi 1: “You expect Me to bless that?!”

”’You also say, “Look, what a nuisance! “ And you scorn it,’ says the Lord of Armies. ‘You bring stolen, lame, or sick animals. You bring this as an offering! Am I to accept that from your hands?’ asks the Lord.“ (v. 13)

Have you ever given…grudgingly?

Have you ever worshiped…unwillingly?

Have you ever obeyed…minimally?

Have you ever skated by with mere religion?

This is the case God brings through Malachi. He speaks to His people through the prophet, and He calls them out in ways that job-insecure pastors are hesitant to do. He says, in effect, “You are doing the legalistic least, and you are offering your inferior leftovers, all while crowing about your faith.”

And then He lands His accusation with force:

“You expect Me to bless that?!”

Even as we admit that the grace He has saved us with isn’t dependent on our offerings (because it is entirely afforded by Jesus’ offering), we cannot overlook this. There is no room for a minimal, legalistic, leftovers kind of religion under God. He is worthy of our richest worship—which means He is worthy of our firstfruits, priority, joyfully submitted offerings.

Later in this Book, the Lord will extend a clarified invitation for right offerings. But, from the start, permit yourself to be challenged by His accusation—and maybe give a fresh look at the life you’re asking Him to bless.

— Tyler

From Song of Songs 2: How to Stay Married

“Like a lily among thorns, so is my darling among the young women.” (v. 2)

Let’s face it:

Marriage isn’t always easy.

Relating to some other—even when it’s the other to whom you were once fiercely attracted and with whom you have been building a life—is hard. However much you have become one by vow, you are still very much two: two minds, two hodgepodges of habits and tendencies, and at least two love languages. The lifelong task of smoothing out the rough patches and walking forward together is not easy.

So…what’s the secret to staying married?

Keep valuing her. Treasure her. No matter what other things the world calls “beautiful” and then throws at you, choose to call no other thing beautiful but the one God has given you.

If you will count everything else as “thorn” and only her as “flower"—if you will look on her with real captivation and fix your eyes on her—then you stand a pretty good chance.

— Tyler

From Habakkuk 2: The Gift

“The Lord answered me: Write down this vision; clearly inscribe it on tablets so one may easily read it.” (v. 2)

Do not do not do not overlook this:

By the purest grace, God has spoken to His people.

By the purest grace, the Holy Spirit in history led those inspired to write it down.

And, by the purest grace, it has all been preserved for you

You and I get to hold, read, and revisit the very voice of God in His Word. We “may easily read it,” so long as we choose to. When we want to hear God’s voice—when we want to know what He would say to us in our days—we can, for He had prophets and apostles and obedient men write it down for us.

It really is a gift.

Don’t overlook it.

— Tyler

From Nehemiah 10: Religious Realignment

”We will impose the following commands on ourselves: To give an eighth of an ounce of silver yearly for the service of the house of our God…” (v. 32)

When God’s people rebuild their home in Jerusalem, and when they recommit to the Word and the worship of God, they also pledge their family names to a kind of religious realignment.

And religious realignment almost always begins with one category of behavior:

Giving.

Systematic, thoughtful, biblical giving isn’t a secondary concern. It’s fundamental, foundational. The people of God, who desire to honor Him in worship, start here: We will give, as the Bible directs. What’s more—and this is kind of unpopular, culturally—they entrust their gifts to those called to serve the ministry. It’s a submitted, hands-off, pure practice.

Would you sign your name to that, you who would realign your life with His ways?

— Tyler

From Nehemiah 9: Confession Time

”While they stood in their places, they read from the book of the law of the Lord their God for a fourth of the day and spent another fourth of the day in confession and worship of the Lord their God.“ (v. 3)

When you look back in history, the comparative conclusion is pretty obvious:

We are unserious when it comes to confession.

We rarely offer it publicly.

We hardly lead people into it.

We devote minimal time to it.

Unserious.

Here is where the example of this ancient people—the ones who, by grace, had been brought home to worship—ought to convict us. They gave seriousness time to confession, to admitting their sins with sorrow, and to worshiping with a hope for healing. They were honest. They were devoted. They spent a fourth of the day doing just that.

Maybe the modern church should learn something here.

— Tyler

From Nehemiah 8: Choosing a Minister

”They read out of the book of the law of God, translating and giving the meaning so that the people could understand what was read.“ (v. 8)

I have read a lot of ministry job descriptions in my life.

Churches tend to be pretty open about what they’re seeking in a minister, which actually gives you quite a bit of insight into what a church values. They get detailed about expectations and qualifications and even preferences. And, typically, the lists all run together: preach from the Bible, administer the church’s polity, serve the members while also reaching the community.

I wonder, however, if we could simplify it.

(And by “simplify,” I mean, “Keep it biblical.”)

During the great revival under Ezra, God’s people had one expectation of their priests: Read the Word, translate it, and help the people understand it. When the Word is read, translated, and applied with understanding, the rest of religion follows in order. It’s not a facet of ministry; it is the ministry!

Keep this in mind as you consider who among you might minister—and how you expect him to minister—so that our churches will be ordered rightly.

— Tyler

From Nehemiah 7: Choosing Leaders

”Then I put my brother Hanani in charge of Jerusalem, along with Hananiah, commander of the fortress, because he was a faithful man who feared God more than most.” (v. 2)

Let’s face it:

We’re bad at this.

We account for all kinds of ultimately useless qualities—attraction and charisma and education and whatever else—and we determine that that is what we need in a leader. (Heaven help us if we also include “he speaks his mind” on that list….”

None of that is what actually indicates a trustworthy, effective, quality leader.

Look to Nehemiah’s example: When Jerusalem (rebuilt) needs a leader, he doesn’t choose based on political or personal influence. He chooses a man who fears God, who is faithful. It’s not based on perfection or preference—it’s based on a pattern of worship.

Here’s the thing: If the one you seek out genuinely fears God and submits to His authority, an uptick in integrity typically follows. The leader who loves the Lord will also love his people—and will love them enough to model quality character from his position.

So maybe let’s reprogram the way choose our own leaders, and see if God blesses us the way He blessed His people in history.

— Tyler

Read the Bible: The New Testament (2024)

Whether it’s a practiced rhythm or a rekindled discipline, one thing remains true for every believer:

You need to be in the Word.

At Sojourn, we’re all in this together. That’s why we’re inviting you to read the entire New Testament with us in 2024. We’ll following the F260 reading plan, setting you up for five reading days per week, and we’ll stay connected throughout. Join Tyler’s public reading group on the Bible App (YouVersion) or follow this blog, and engage with the reading reflections of fellow Sojourners. If you need help developing your own reading discipline, check out the HEAR Journal resource below.

See you all in the Word in 2024!

From Ecclesiastes 11: Investing Advice

”Give a portion to seven or even to eight, for you don’t know what disaster may happen on earth.“ (v. 2)

You might not have thought to look here..,

…but the Teacher in Ecclesiastes has some quality investing advice for you.

Spread it out. Divide what you have across several investments. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

It’s curious that this advice comes in the same chapter as some encouragements for younger people. Maybe it’s because young people are more likely to let all their “investments” ride on day trading and crypto and sports betting. (The Teacher wasn’t thinking about that, be we can see the Word being fit together for our good.)

But, whether young or less-young, the advice is valid: Save, for it is a vital facet of stewardship. And do so with an eye to diversification, so that your savings can remain stable without stumbling. Provide for your household—and, on that solid ground, give and send and help with generosity.

— Tyler

From Nehemiah 4: A Lesson for the Leader

”And I, my brothers, my servants, and the men of the guard with me never took off our clothes. Each carried his weapon, even when washing.” (v. 23)

We’ve all known the leader who stays on the platform.

He speaks. He directs. He encourages. He points you back through the doors to the work we’re all called to.

We’ve all know that kind of leader…

…and there’s a word for it:

Unbiblical.

Instead of looking for leaders who merely expect you to listen, look for the ones who expect to live out this calling with you. Nehemiah is a brilliant example of this. He describes the work that so many are doing, the work he prayerfully led them into, and he punctuates it with two words that make all the difference: “And I.” He is there, working and guarding alongside those he leads.

Avoid leaders that are all talk. And you, too, avoid the all-talk trap. Then watch how God works among a people who are led—and who live—rightly.

— Tyler

From Nehemiah 3: Concerning Daughters

”Beside him Shallum son of Hallohesh, ruler of half the district of Jerusalem, made repairs — he and his daughters.“ (v. 12)

Don’t underestimate them.

Don’t exclude them.

Don’t keep them from the tall tasks of serving the Lord and His church with their hands.

Instead, raise them up, to serve and to strive toward and to strengthen the missional purpose given to the body.

From one dad of daughters to, well, whoever needs to hear it:

Let’s bring these girls up, fully co-laborers under Christ.

— Tyler

From Nehemiah 2: Step One

”Then the king asked me, ‘What is your request?’ So I prayed to the God of the heavens and answered the king, ‘If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor with you, send me to Judah and to the city where my ancestors are buried, so that I may rebuild it.’” (vv. 4-5)

You will be asked something like a million-and-half questions in your life. Not all of them are very important, but some are: What do you need? Where will you go? What’s next for your life?

Maybe you’ve got some ideas about the answers, and maybe you’re tempted to respond readily.

But follow Nehemiah’s example…

…and don’t skip Step One.

So I prayed to the God of the heavens.

There’s really only one way to discover if your own answers match His, and that’s to pray, to seek both His face and His Word on the way to your response. This is at least part of why the Scriptures implore us to be slow to speak: we need a beat for prayer, so that we might hear His answer before we answer.

So, when the next question comes, ask your own of the God of the heavens—and you’ll know better what you ought to say in reply.

— Tyler

From Nehemiah 1: Troubled

”When I heard these words, I sat down and wept. I mourned for a number of days, fasting and praying before the God of the heavens.“ (v. 4)

Where do you go when you are troubled? How do you process your sorrow and your pain and your self-conscious guilt? What do you do when you see suffering in the wider world?

For too many of us, the answers are scattered, and they are often part of the modern pursuit of the therapeutic. Too many of us turn to relief in entertainment or substances or consumption.

Yet the Bible magnifies Nehemiah’s example.

This man prayed. He translated his sorrow—for God’s people, and for God’s things—into a godly sorrow. He wept. He fasted. And he prayed.

Let us turn here when we are troubled, friends, for it is here that we find real comfort. Pray—and confess, and obey, and worship—for the One who hears is faithful.

— Tyler

From Ecclesiastes 5: A Word for You and a Word for Me

”Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Better to approach in obedience than to offer the sacrifice as fools do, for they ignorantly do wrong.“ (v. 1)

This text got me thinking about you.

I’m often so concerned about getting people to church that I forget about how they get to church. I forget to pray for them to come with repentance and obedience and submission. I forget to hope that the ground of their lives is one upon which worship can stand.

So this got me thinking about you, and about a prayer for your obedient and repentant and submitted approach to worship.

Then I kept reading, and I got a word for me, too.

Because, as it turns out, there’s an especial warning in the same paragraph for those who say a lot of words. I can aim for obedience in a number of ways, but, if I don’t guard my words and keep myself from guilt, I’m one misplaced utterance away from trouble. So I’ll take this message to heart…

… and I’ll see you at church.

— Tyler

From Ecclesiastes 4: Better

”Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their efforts. For if either falls, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to lift him up. Also, if two lie down together, they can keep warm; but how can one person alone keep warm? And if someone overpowers one person, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not easily broken.“ (vv. 9-12)

I read this text at weddings.

Why?

Because two are better than one.

Our individualistic culture tries to convince you that you are enough, that you don’t need anyone else, that you can do you. It tries to make self supreme. And, when times of pain or difficulty or need come, it offers little more than a shoulder shrug.

What does God’s good order tell us?

That we need each other. That the shoulders of another help you bear your burden, carry your load, or at least give you a place to shed some tears. It tells us that companionship and community—built up from our homes, through the church, and into our neighborhoods—are where we find comfort, security, and love.

Oh, and it tells us that when we wrap our communities around Him, they’ll prove hard to break.

And that is better.

— Tyler

From Ecclesiastes 3: Built In

”He has made everything appropriate in its time. He has also put eternity in their hearts, but no one can discover the work God has done from beginning to end.“ (v. 11)

The words of the Teacher bring us all to a sort of intersection—and, there, we realize a vital truth about the Image of God in us.

First, there is the realization that we want to know more. This entire book is a testimony to the search: for meaning, for purpose, and for worth. The one who is inspired to write here keeps seeking more. The problem, of course, is that he can never quite know enough.

That collides with the truth recorded in v. 11:

God has put eternity in our hearts.

We want to know more…because we know there is more. The pull toward the ultimate reality is built in. Whatever our lived days are like, we know that they are not all there is.

When these two ideas meet in our hearts, it could be…well…disheartening. We don’t get to know what we want to know, what we need to know.

But we do get to know! You and I have the fuller revelation! We know Christ, who has prepared a place for us! The pull toward the ultimate is Spirit-led, truth-driven, and grace-given, here in this Gospel age. What God has built into us—a longing for eternity—is bought for us by Christ.

The Teacher longed to know this. Don’t discount the privilege you, who knows, has.

— Tyler

From Ecclesiastes 2: The Problem with “Treat Yo Self”

”All that my eyes desired, I did not deny them. I did not refuse myself any pleasure, for I took pleasure in all my struggles. This was my reward for all my struggles.” (v. 10)

In a lot of ways, we are not very much like the Teacher of Ecclesiastes.

Here, in the beginning of the book, he recounts his relentless pursuit of things: pleasures, riches, security, the stuff of earth. He takes it on as a sort of experiment, hoping to discover whether any of it satisfies. So he scientifically indulges in all of it.

That…doesn’t sound like us.

But the part where he seeks pleasure in the midst of his pains? Where he tries to cover his struggles with more stuff? Where he aims to solve heartache with having?

Yeah, that’s us.

We make some of our worst decisions when we are hurting. And by “worst,” I mean “most fleeting, least enduring, self-serving” decisions. We try to treat our wound with “treat yo self.” Our materialism becomes medicinal.

And it still comes to nothing.

Let the Scriptures lead you, then, to a pursuit of those things that endure. Aim for heavenly treasure, even when you are hurting. Learn from this example (and every example), and don’t fall into the treat-yo-self trap.

— Tyler

From Ecclesiastes 1: Know It All

”I applied my mind to examine and explore through wisdom all that is done under heaven. God has given people this miserable task to keep them occupied.” (v. 13)

Books.

Movies.

Social feeds.

Twenty-four hour news networks.

Podcasts.

Have you ever thought about just how much you’re taking in, in pursuit of knowledge?

We always want to know a little more: more trivia, more current events, more about what they’re doing and what they’re saying and what’s going on. We occupy ourselves by chasing more and more input, as if knowing more and knowing it all will somehow satisfy us.

The testimony of the Scriptures reminds us that someone already tried that once—made it his life’s pursuit to know more and know it all—and he was miserable.

This is why all knowledge isn’t the ground for our peace; knowledge of the Savior is. We don’t have to have every book in our heads, just this Book. Information can help us operate in this world, but it can’t satisfy us.

So, instead of trying to know it all all the time, maybe trust what you do know, in Christ—and stay out of the know-it-all’s pit.

— Tyler