Author: Skip Moen, Ph.D.

  • Looks that Deceive

    Say to God, “How awesome are Your works! Because of the greatness of Your power Your enemies will give feigned obedience to You.” Psalm 66:3 NASB Feigned obedience – Why do you obey the laws of the land? Specifically, why do you pay taxes? Why obey speed limits (sometimes)? Why don’t you steal from the grocery…

  • Heavy Metal

    Sing the glory of His name; make His praise glorious. Psalm 66:2 NASB Sing the glory – Are you finished shouting (Psalm 66:1)? Great! Got that one out, didn’t you? Now pick up an instrument and play. Oh, it could be your voice, of course, but the verb is equally at home with playing an instrument. So,…

  • An Apple a Day

    Shout joyfully to God, all the earth; Psalm 66:1 NASB Shout joyfully – Don’t you just want to scream? The world is such a mess. Tragedy surrounds us on all sides. Nothing seems fair. Even our best days are tinged with past sorrows. Wouldn’t it help to just yell? To howl towards heaven? Ah, that’s…

  • Only the Lonely

    Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted. Psalm 25:16 NASB Lonely – Look up this verse in Hebrew and you will immediately be surprised. The word translated “lonely” is yāḥîd. It means “only,” as in “only begotten son.” Its root is yāḥad, a verb that means, “to be united,…

  • Logistically Challenged

    Five of them were foolish, and five were prudent. Matthew 25:2 NASB Foolish – But of course they were foolish. They didn’t come prepared. Is that it? Is this parable of the kingdom simply about making sure we have enough provisions to wait out the return? Hardly! In Greek, the term translated “foolish” is moros. It’s…

  • A Small Request

    My daughter, Rachel, whom many of you know from her stories from Zambia and the Philippines, is currently finishing her degree in International Political Economy and Global Development. Her career interests are in environmental protection and conservation/preservation policy and its effects on culture. She is available to work or volunteer as a intern between May…

  • But What Does It Mean?

    For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 1 Corinthians 15:3 NASB Died for our sins – The tiny preposition, hyper, is the critical element in Paul’s expression of the relationship between the Messiah’s death and our salvation. The problem…

  • The Divine Name?

    And God said to Moses, I am the one being. And he said, Thus shall you say to the sons of Israel, The one being had sent me to you. Exodus 3:14 LXX I am the one being – Hinneni. “Here I am” is the common Hebrew expression for humbly identifying oneself in conversation. There…