We continue the unfolding vision of God’s self-revelation through the prophets—now among the exiles in Babylon. By the River Chebar The heavens open far from Jerusalem. Not in the Temple.Not in the land of promise.But in exile. Ezekiel stands among the displaced, the disoriented, the judged—and suddenly: “I saw visions of God.”

Last week in Haggai, the message was clear and direct: “Build again.” The people had returned from exile, but the work had stalled. Their hands were busy—but not on God’s house. Now comes the prophet Zechariah. If Haggai speaks like a hammer, Zechariah speaks like a window. He does not just command the people—he shows them what God is doing.

The encounter comes quietly. There is no throne like Isaiah saw. No burning coal. No overwhelming display. Just a simple, decisive moment: “The Lord put out His hand and touched my mouth.” It is almost easy to miss—but everything changes here. If Isaiah was cleansed by fire, Jeremiah was commissioned by touch. And then comes the word that defines his life: “Behold, I have put My words in your mouth.”

God Speaks Again — But Differently Through the prophet Haggai, God does not roar like in Zephaniah. He asks a question: “Consider your ways.” You are busy…But not satisfied. You earn…But it slips through your fingers. You build your house…While Mine lies in ruins. This is not just rebuke—it is diagnosis. They have returned geographically… But not spiritually.

When God Sends You Anyway Last week, Isaiah said the words every servant longs to say:“Here am I. Send me.” But what comes next is not what we expect. God answers Isaiah’s willingness with a difficult assignment: “Go and tell this people…” And then something startling—Isaiah’s message will not soften hearts. It will harden them. It will not gather crowds. It will scatter them. This is the moment where calling becomes costly.

Uzziah began well. Crowned young, he “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord,” and as long as he sought God, he prospered (2 Chronicles 26). His reign was marked by strength, innovation, and national success. He built towers, strengthened Jerusalem, and led Judah into a season of stability and military confidence. In many ways, he was the kind of father whose life set a powerful example—disciplined, capable, and blessed.

A Prophet Who Asks “Why?” Habakkuk lived in the final years before the Babylonian invasion of Judah, around 600 BC. Violence, corruption, and injustice filled the land. And Habakkuk saw it. But instead of speaking first to the people, he spoke to the Lord: “O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear?”— Habakkuk 1:2 This is not unbelief. This is faith that is struggling to understand.

March 25, the Church keeps one of its quiet but world-shaping days: The Annunciation — often called Lady Day. ine months before Christmas, we stand at the moment when everything changed. Not in a palace. Not before crowds. But in a small room, in an obscure town, with a young woman whose name would be remembered forever. Heaven Comes Near

Last week we looked at Samuel and Saul — a faithful man and a failed king.We saw something sobering: faithfulness in one generation does not guarantee faithfulness in the next. Now we step back a little further. Before Samuel stood as a prophet…Before Saul rose and fell as king… There was a father in Israel named Eli. And in his house, something went terribly wrong.

In Amos, the Lord stood in judgment. In Isaiah, the prophet sees the Lord in majesty. This is one of the great vision passages in all the Bible: “In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.” — Isaiah 6:1

St. Patrick's journey is a powerful reminder of resilience and purpose. From his beginnings as a slave to becoming a missionary, his story inspires us to overcome adversity. I met St. Patrick at McGovern's Bar in Newark, NJ, where dozens were drinking themselves drunk to celebrate this saint. -----Pātricius [paːˈtrɪ.ki.ʊs], the only name he used, was a holy man of God who knew Him well -----God spoke to him in visions and sometimes audibly and called him to be His own.

Like several prophets before him, Micah was not impressed by the outward religion of the nation. The temples were busy, the sacrifices continued, and the leaders spoke pious words. Yet underneath the surface, there was corruption, greed, and injustice. Judges took bribes, rulers exploited the poor, and prophets spoke what people wanted to hear rather than the truth of God.

This week, the Scriptures lead us forward into the lives of Samuel and Saul — two very different men whose experiences as fathers remind us of another sobering truth: faithfulness does not always produce the legacy we expect.

A Prophet Running the Wrong Way The word of the Lord came to Jonah with a clear command: “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry against it.” Nineveh was the capital of the Assyrian empire — a brutal power feared throughout the ancient world. To Jonah, it was an enemy city, not a mission field. So Jonah ran.

Sons in Sacred Office Eli’s sons, Hophni and Phinehas, served as priests at the tabernacle in Shiloh. Their position was sacred, entrusted with the worship of God. But Scripture speaks of them bluntly: “Now the sons of Eli were sons of Belial; they knew not the LORD.” (1 Samuel 2:12) They abused their office. They took the best portions of sacrifices meant for God. They treated worshippers with contempt. They even used their position to exploit women serving at the entrance t

Today, as we begin our long walk through Paradise Lost, the Church also pauses to remember two brothers who helped awaken England from spiritual slumber: John Wesley (d. 1791) and Charles Wesley (d. 1788). In the calendar of the Anglican Church in North America, their memory is honored not because they left the Church of England, but because they sought to revive it. They were Anglican priests. They loved the liturgy. They believed in the new birth. And they would not let

Polycarp was a disciple of John the Apostle and bishop of Smyrna. Some speculate that he was the “angel” mentioned by the Lord Jesus in Revelation

Not a Professional Prophet Amos makes a point of telling us who he is — and who he is not: “I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet’s son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit.” (Amos 7:14) He is not trained, credentialed, or attached to the religious establishment. That is precisely why God sends him. Amos stands as a reminder that God’s word does not belong to institutions. It belongs to God — and He may put it in the mouth of a shepherd if priests ha

Before Job is a suffering man, he is something else first. He is a father. Job at the Beginning — A Father Who Prayed

Joel opens not with a vision, but with a disaster. A devastating locust plague has swept through the land of Judah. Crops are destroyed. Vineyards are stripped bare. Grain, wine, and oil — the essentials of daily life and temple worship — are gone. This is not distant theology. It is lived catastrophe. “That which the palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten…” (Joel 1:4)