This article is the first part of a two-part series. The second part will take a look at when pastors abuse their congregations.
The following entries are excerpts from Chad Bird’s new book, Untamed Prayers: 365 Daily Devotions on Christ in the Book of the Psalms (1517 Publishing, 2025), pgs. 311 and 335
Why did the church dedicate a day to St. Michael anyway? Who is he, and what does he do?

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In spite of the many issues of unfaithfulness, the LORD still refers to them as, “My people Israel,” pointing to the Covenantal promise.
Jesus did not come because we had our act together. He came because we couldn’t get our act together.
The giver of life, the source of joy, stands weeping together with the human family as they grieve under the curse of sin.
Ezekiel is not called/sent out to be “successful” in his prophetic ministry—he is sent out to be faithful!
The God whose power is made perfect in our weakness is the God who, in weakness, saved you from sin, death, and the Devil.
Jesus will bring good news, send His disciples to bring good news, and, in His death and resurrection, become good news for all.
Take away the communal aspect, take away the communal gathering around Christ’s body and blood, and the Christian will begin to suffer a malnutrition of faith.
God invites you to confess the skeletons in your closet so that he might bury them in the grave for good.
In the overall context of Lamentations this text stands out as a breath of fresh air, or perhaps more accurately, words of relief after so much dismal lamenting!
If you truly love the brethren, you will not grudge to help them in their distress.
The people you serve are still hanging on by a thread, which is another way of saying they are living by faith.
It is not her sacrifices that define Jane's faith, but her belief in the one who sacrificed for her.