Wayfarer

History has dubbed the young man in today’s chapter as the “rich young ruler,” but I think “eagle scout” is a more apt moniker. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 19. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Sometimes the traditional, yet out-of-date, wording of famous passages like The Lord’s Prayer are like a comfy old sweatshirt that wraps you in the warmth and comfort of something familiar which has been with you and seen you through long stretches of life’s journey. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 18. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Mountains are yet another metaphorical theme that runs throughout the Great Story in ways I've never seen or understood until now. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 17. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Along my chapter-a-day journey over the years, I’ve learned that spiritual lessons are found in Jesus’ actions as well as His words. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 16. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

In the quiet this morning, I love the fact that Jesus poked the big dogs from Jerusalem regarding their rabid hypocrisy when it came to their traditions. Less than a week after Good Friday, I’m equally reminded that these same rabid, big dogs will quite literally kill Him for it.A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 15. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

It was a simple enough question. There are so many things in life that we do because they are habitual or traditional. We rarely stop to ask “Why?"A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 14. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

The difference between the 25% of seeds that became productive and fruitful plants in Jesus’ parable and the 75% of seeds who didn’t make it was the quality of the soil. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 13. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

My heart is heavy and sad this morning. I have recently found myself in the midst of many conflicts. I don’t like conflict. I confess that I don’t do it particularly well. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 12. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

In the quiet this morning, I find myself thinking about the spiritual posture that Jesus is asking of John. It is a kneeling, open, and surrendered posture. It is the same that He has demanded of His disciples and anyone else who would follow, including me. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 11. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

I’ve learned along my life journey that sometimes one has to do something novel in order to “cut in” during a deep-seated cultural dance. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 10. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

I long ago took off my Junior Holy Spirit badge pretending that I had exclusive rights, insight, or editorial control of the Story God is authoring in me or anyone else. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 9. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

While I was in high school, a spiritual revival broke out. I and my friends in our holy huddle had nothing to do with it. Zero, zip, zilch, nada. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 8. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

It is only later in life that I have learned to recognize one of my patterns of behavior. The truth is that I am, at the heart of things, a wallflower. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 7. The text version may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

When our friend Nathan was entering adolescence, I read a review in theWall Street Journal of a clever little book of etiquette for boys by Meghan Doherty called How Not to Be a Dick. We gifted it to our young friend. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 6. The text version may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

One of the observations I’ve had of recent generations is the difficulty they’ve experienced in maturing into adults. So much so that “adulting” is now a common term. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 5. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

It is the season of Lent, a time when many followers of Jesus around the globe choose to fast in preparation for the annual memorial of Jesus’ death and subsequent celebration of His resurrection. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 4. The text version may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

We live in very unique times. In fact, I believe that we are in one of the most tectonic shifts in the history of Christianity. It is, perhaps, the most significant shift since the Reformation. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 3. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

In the quiet this morning, I’m reminded that the connections I find in the text aren’t just trivial literary observations. There are spiritual truths present here that are true for me today. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 2. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

I love that God uses the uniqueness of every individual’s experience, personality, giftedness, and temperament for the good of the whole. A chapter-a-day podcast from Matthew 1. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.Videos mentioned in today’s episode:https://youtu.be/7IUL9yq0We8?si=pRq-8wHDmrIpz7ubhttps://youtu.be/kxduwZpLcCM?si=8YjE6VHvleyYiDwv

The further I get in my spiritual journey, the more I come to understand that the extent of my generosity is a leading indicator of the depth of both my spiritual understanding of the economics of God’s Kingdom, and my gratitude for God's insane generosity towards me. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 27. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

My choices have natural consequences of both flesh and Spirit. What choices will I make today? A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 26. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

The more I think I own something, the more it ends up owning me. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 25. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

The lesson of the “continuous flame” in today’s chapter was a spiritual lesson for the day when Jesus would come, indwell, and illuminate my 14-year-old heart, mind, and soul. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 24. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

It has been so woven into the fabric of our lives for so long that we don’t even think about it. It is universal. It is unequivocally a basic human right: The weekend. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 23. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Other than some relatively loose leadership structure mentioned by Paul, there is nothing in scripture that hints at anything like what “church” became once Christianity became the state religion of the Roman Empire. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 22. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

"To whom much is given, much is required,” Jesus said. During my brief few years in professional vocational ministry I learned to ask, “Exactly who is requiring this of me?” A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 21. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

One of the hardest things for modern readers of the Great Story to grapple with is that the God of Leviticus seems so different and hardcore than the teachings of Jesus. I think it’s easy to lose sight of who really changed between the two. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 20. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

I’m sure that I’m not the only one who has noticed that the level of vitriol between both individuals and tribes of individuals has risen dramatically in the last 10 years. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 19. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Our appetites are good and meant for our physical health and life. This includes our appetite for sex. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 18. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Everything we’ve been reading in our chapter-a-day journey through Leviticus is as equally revolutionary for the Hebrew people as the Technology Age has been for the entire world. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 17. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

We continue to scapegoat individuals in all sorts of situations rather than doing what Jesus called on me to do as His disciple. Forgive others, as I’ve been forgiven. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 16. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

When something was dirty or nasty or something you shouldn’t touch, our wee daughters called it “acky.” This became a euphemism for when they did the number two in their diapers. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 15. The text version may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.YouTube video referred to in today’s podcast:https://youtu.be/u7-ps9QBAGk?si=_xvDB2DavuhbhyD8

At what point does the avoidance of death at all costs become empty of any kind of Life? A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 14. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Today’s chapter is strange, repetitive, and more than a bit boring for modern readers. It is all about skin diseases and mold. But there’s more here than meets the eye. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 13. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.Video referenced in today’s podcast:https://youtu.be/jbkSRLYSojo?si=EVu0pU-dvXX-f1mb

I am once more blown away at how God perpetually connects all things together even as He perpetually recreates, with old things passing away and new things coming. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 12. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

I like to wear hats. I have a lot of them. Not the ubiquitous baseball cap, but actual hats like a pork pie and fedora. It’s a thing. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 11. The text version may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Sometimes, it is lost on children just how serious a matter can be. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 10. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

In the quiet this morning, I find myself marveling once again at how God’s message is consistent even as He communicates it differently at different points of the Great Story. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 9. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Holiness always seemed to me to be defined as some kind of super-powered moral perfection, but the further I get in my spiritual journey, the more I realize that’s not it. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 8. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

One of the things modern readers struggle with in reading Leviticus is understanding some of the rules God put down. They seem so strange to our 21st century lives. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 7. The text version may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

It’s hard for me fathom, but the Hebrew people had no formal code of law or order at the time Leviticus was given. Life together was one big game of Calvinball. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 6. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Along my life journey I’ve observed fundamentalist types who use sin as a tool for social control rather than treating it as the universal spiritual condition that it is. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 5. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

One of the things that modern readers struggle with most is the blood and guts of ancient sacrifices in Leviticus. It is so foreign to both our modern realities as well as sensibilities. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 4. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

In ancient Mesopotamian religions, the gods inhabited their own spirit world and had little regard for human beings who were lesser than and relatively unimportant to them and their world. The God of Moses is so very different. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 3. The text version may be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Along my own life journey, I confess that generosity is a spiritual lesson that I’ve had to learn. I did not grow up, by nature, a generous person. Quite the opposite, I was both selfish and foolish with my money and resources for many years. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 2. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Today our chapter-a-day journey wades into perhaps the most ignored and misunderstood book in the entire Great Story. A chapter-a-day podcast from Leviticus 1. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Today and tomorrow, I’m reposting a couple of listener's favorites. If you have your own favorite chapter-a-day episode that has stuck with you over time, please feel free to let me know. You can reply to this podcast in the comments or email me at tomvanderwell@gmail.com.

“Oh! That was such a good night!” Wendy said to me as we began our daily nocturnal preparations. A chapter-a-day podcast from 1 Corinthians 16. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

Along my spiritual journey, I have worshipped and served in a number of different denominations and traditions. While they all shared that salvation was by grace through faith in Jesus, they varied in other thoughts, in their rituals, and in their worship. A chapter-a-day podcast from 1 Corinthians 15. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.

As a disciple of Jesus, I’ve had to embrace that the process of growth and maturity never ends. A chapter-a-day podcast from 1 Corinthians 14. The text version may always be found and shared at tomvanderwell.com.