Ryan's Ramblings

[This devo is from my book, Nudgings: Gentle Whispers, Holy Reminders.] Have you noticed all the “don’ts” in Ephesians 4? Don’t be rebellious, don’t lie, don’t pretend to be something you’re not, don’t seek revenge, don’t stay angry, don’t drive angry,  (sorry, that’s not from Eph. 4, it’s from the movie, “Groundhog Day”) don’t steal,…

[This devo, from my book Nudgings: Gentle Whispers, Holy Reminders, feels especially meaningful as I recently passed the two-year mark of serving in full-time pastoral ministry.] “I will follow you, Lord; but…” —Luke 9:61, NIV I used to be an elementary school teacher. A few years ago, I sent out an email to let my colleagues…

He must become greater; I must become less. — John 3:30, NIV For most of my school years, one item appeared on the supply list with almost sacred regularity—a pencil. But not just any pencil. A Number 2 pencil. Elementary school, junior high, high school—it was always there. Somehow that little yellow stick could do…

[This week’s Nudging is adapted from my men’s devotional, Be Ready: A Man God Can Use.]  “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.” —Joshua 3:5, NIV It’s quite a moment. Israel stands at the edge of the Jordan River. Forty years behind them, the Promised Land before them. You can…

“What else will distinguish me…?” — Exodus 33:16, NIV In the movie The Truman Show, Truman Burbank believes he is living an ordinary life in an ordinary town. He has a home, a wife, a job, friends, and familiar routines. And every morning he gets up and goes about his day believing the world around…

(An excerpt from my book, Be Ready.) I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.
— Ezekiel 36:26, NIV There’s a scene in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe where Edmund slips quietly…

[This devo is an excerpt from my book, Nudgings: Gentle Whispers, Holy Reminders.] Forgetting what is behind… —Philippians 3:13, NIV My grandparents had a small farm in Southern Idaho and it was my privilege to spend my summers working alongside my grandad on that farm. It was a great adventure that included tractors, milk cows,…

Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.—Matthew 6:33-34, NIV A friend of mine was rear-ended the other day. The traffic ahead had slowed, and…