Month: December 2018

Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. Amos 5:24 Most of us in chemical dependency treatment were compelled by some outside force to be there. This meant that most of us felt that in some way, we were being mistreated. It’s not fair! I shouldn’t have to stay this long. I’m the…
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The days are coming when I will send a famine on the land – not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord. Amos 8:11 I’ve been eating right lately, not gorging myself before bed, which means waking up hungry. It was in such a state, that…
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Go, flee away to the land of Judah, and eat bread there, and prophesy there, but never again prophesy at Bethel . . . Amos 7:12-13 I must admit that sometimes, I get irritated in ways that are just ridiculous. When I’m in a hurry and get stopped by a train, I imagine the engineer is…
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I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. Amos 5:21 I’ve often been a hypocrite, but nowhere have I been guiltier than in church on Sunday morning, where I have sung of my love for and obedience to God, while using drugs. I wanted my words to be true,…
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Seek good, and not evil, that you may live . . . Amos 5:14 At the end of my junior year of high school, I told myself I was going to lift weights every day that summer in preparation for my senior year of football. I was going to get bigger, stronger, and faster. When football…
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Prepare to meet your God, O Israel! Amos 4:12 It’s not uncommon in medicine to meet those who insist they have a high pain tolerance. This usually indicates the opposite – it’s most often a ploy (of those who don’t tolerate pain) to convince others of the severity of their symptoms. Addicts are an odd…
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Go to Bethel and sin . . . Bring your sacrifices every morning . . . Amos 4:4 (NIV) Long ago, I attended Northwestern College (MN), which sat just across the lake from its closest rival, Bethel College. Today’s passage was a long running nerdy joke – Go to Bethel and sin – between the two…
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Hear this word, you . . . who oppress the poor, who crush the needy . . . Amos 4:1 In my drug use, I neglected the concerns of those around me. I did what I wanted without considering the consequences for others. Frankly, my needs and desires were more important than the needs and desires…
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Thus says the Lord: “As the shepherd rescues from the mouth of the lion two legs, or a piece of an ear, so shall the people of Israel who dwell in Samaria be rescued . . .” Amos 3:12 Years ago, I trekked up a spectacular mountain in Colorado with a large group of guys.…
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You made the Nazirites drink wine . . . Amos 2:12 I’ve been wrestling with the same five pounds for the last couple months, some days winning the battle and some days losing it. I’ve known for a while that I needed to start a food diary, but I hate the idea, so I’ve been dragging…
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