Tag Archives: Creation

When the Spirit Hovers Again

March 12, 2026 Tom Vander Well Leave a comment

https://open.spotify.com/episode/221UBgz4HNJ06Vzdkw6lPk?si=5HadTM96QC6kL9mbIi-bnw

The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God.”
Luke 1:35 (NIV)

Yesterday we finished our trek through the story of Esther in which God providentially works through two unassuming individuals to save the Jewish people from genocide. Mordecai and his niece Esther were exiles and foreigners in Persia. Mordecai was a bureaucratic paper pusher. Esther was just a young girl.

God loves to work through unassuming people of faith.

As we begin our Lenten trek through Luke’s biography of Jesus, we see this same paradigm again.

An old priest and his wife who live in the back-country hills of Judah.
A young girl in the backwater town of Nazareth.

These are nobodies. Simple people living faithfully where life has planted them. But through them, God is going to begin a new creation.

When Mary asks the angel Gabriel how she could be pregnant, since she was a virgin, he said that God’s Spirit would “overshadow” her. That’s a fascinating word to use. The Greek word means “to overshadow,” the language used when God’s presence fills the tabernacle. It also echoes the opening chapter of the Great Story in which God’s Spirit “hovers” over the chaos and creation begins. Gabriel is announcing that through Mary a new creation is about to begin, and Mary will become like an Ark of the New Covenant.

The Ark of the Covenant was the most sacred object in Israel.

Inside it were three things:

The stone tablets of the Law
A jar of manna
Aaron’s priestly staff

Above it rested what was known as the mercy seat, and God’s glory—the Shekinah—was said to dwell there. In other words, the Ark represented the place where God’s presence touched the earth. And when the Ark was placed in the tabernacle, Scripture says the cloud of God’s glory “overshadowed” it — and there’s that word again.

Now watch what Luke does.

Luke structures Mary’s visit to Elizabeth so that it mirrors an earlier story in Israel’s history.

The story appears in 2 Samuel, when King David brings the Ark to Jerusalem.

Let’s compare the passages.

Ark Story	Mary Story
David travels to the hill country of Judah	Mary travels to the hill country of Judah
David asks: “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?”	Elizabeth asks: “Why am I so favored that the mother of my Lord should come to me?”
The Ark stays in the house of Obed-Edom three months	Mary stays with Elizabeth about three months
David leaps/dances before the Ark	John leaps in Elizabeth’s womb

Now, let’s compare what was in the Ark of the Covenant and what is inside of Mary…

Ark Contents	Fulfillment in Mary
Stone tablets of the Law	Jesus — the living Word
Jar of manna	Jesus — the bread of life
Aaron’s priestly staff	Jesus — the ultimate High Priest

Luke begins his version of Jesus’ story by telling us that God’s glory no longer lives in a golden box inside a temple.

Instead, it lives:

in the womb of a teenage girl
in a stable outside Bethlehem
in the life of a wandering rabbi with the calloused hands of a carpenter

God has moved out of the temple and into the neighborhood.

And what neighborhood?

Not the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, nor in glorious Rome— but to a back water town in Galilee. A rural nowhere where you’ll find simple people of faith living quiet, every day lives.

The kind of unassuming people God loves to use.

The same Spirit who overshadowed:

the waters of creation
the tabernacle in the wilderness
Mary in Nazareth

now chooses to dwell in ordinary lives that say yes to Him.

In the quiet this morning, my heart is mulling over the reality that God tends to create the most world-changing things in hidden places. The very theme I saw all over the place in Esther’s story.

Before creation, there was dark water.
Before redemption, there was a quiet womb.

The Spirit doesn’t only move in thunder.

Sometimes He hovers.

Over a life.
Over a calling.
Over a slow, unseen work of grace.

And when He does, creation happens all over again.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”
2 Corinthians 5:17 (NIV)

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Promotional graphic for Tom Vander Well's Wayfarer blog and podcast, featuring icons of various podcast platforms with a photo of Tom Vander Well. — These chapter-a-day blog posts are also available via podcast on all major podcast platforms including Apple, Google, and Spotify! Simply go to your podcast platform and search for “Wayfarer Tom Vander Well.” If it’s not on your platform, please let me know!

Chapter-a-Day

The Rocks Remember

January 22, 2026 Tom Vander Well Leave a comment

https://open.spotify.com/episode/6TlGZ9WN8c5ieqpzSr5QUP?si=TPbbPcokR7C7_iUXi3tpoQ

When you have crossed the Jordan, these tribes shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people: Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Joseph and Benjamin. And these tribes shall stand on Mount Ebal to pronounce curses: Reuben, Gad, Asher, Zebulun, Dan and Naphtali.

The Levites shall recite to all the people of Israel in a loud voice…
Deuteronomy 27:12-14a (NIV)

In the years that Wendy and I spent summers at our house on the lake we would sit on the deck for hours overlooking the water. Especially in the morning when the world was quiet the acoustics of the water and the terrain allowed you to clearly hear conversations taking place between people on the on the other side of the cove. It was eerie.

The further I get in my earthly journey, the more I’ve realized my ignorance regarding creation’s role in the Great Story. Creation is filled with fascinating wonder that we humans continue to discover. God celebrates His creation throughout the Great Story. Creation is alive. It has a voice. It hears. It bears witness. It is a participant in all that God is doing.

When Jesus was criticized for allowing His followers to shout in celebration proclaiming He was the Messiah, He replied that if His followers didn’t shout it, the rocks would cry out. Creation itself cries out in worship.

Creation plays a central role in today’s chapter. Moses has finished reminding his children and grandchildren of the Law. Now, he gives them instructions. When they enter the Promised Land, they are to write the Law clearly on stones covered in plaster. The Law is not to be a tribal secret, it’s a public declaration to the whole world. Then God has them do something strange. Half the people are to climb Mount Ebal. The other half are to climb Mount Gerazim. Not just the priests…everyone.

The Levites and tribes on Mount Gerazim are to pronounce the blessings God promises for faithfulness and obedience (interestingly, these are not recorded in the text). The Levites and tribes on Mount Ebal are to pronounce curses and consequences for breaking God’s Laws. Interestingly, the laws prescribed to be proclaimed include behaviors that are easily the most secret and personal of sins.

This whole thing sounds really strange to our modern sensibilities, but this is where things get really cool. This is where creation plays a role in the public ratification of God’s Law.

Mount Gerazim and Mount Ebal have a really strange and unique formation. The mountains and the valley between them create a natural acoustic amphitheater and echo chamber. Even today, people standing on one mountain can hear what’s being spoken on the opposite. It gets even better. Your voice not only carries across the valley to the top of the other mountain, but it echoes back to you.

When the Levites proclaim the curses, the sound doesn’t dissipate into open wilderness. It bounces, returns, wraps around the people.

The Law doesn’t just go out.

It comes back.

Every “Amen” would echo—not theatrically, but bodily. Chest. Bones. Breath.

This is communal consent.

No one is hidden in this ceremony. Everyone participates. Everyone agrees. The people are the chorus. Accountability has a voice. And creation bears witness. The mountains hear the people shouting “Amen.” Their sound waves leave an impression. The mountains may not speak, but they remember.

Long after Moses is gone.
Long after Joshua dies.
The hills still stand there saying, “We heard you.”

God could have delivered the Law in silence for the people to accept by faith. He could have delivered it with lightning and thunder and to force the people on their knees in terror. He might have simply slipped Moses and the High Priest a parchment as they stood privately in God’s tent tabernacle.

Instead, God wanted His people to ratify His Law in a public way. He chose a place where your own voice would come back to you.

Because covenant isn’t just something you believe.

It’s something you have to hear yourself say.

There is no solo spirituality in this valley.
No quiet loopholes.
No private reinterpretations whispered into a pillow at night.

Just this aching, honest moment:

“Yes. I heard it. I said it. I agreed.”

Once I’ve heard my own voice echo off the stones, it’s awfully hard to pretend I never spoke.

And, the rocks remember.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Trailblazer

November 11, 2025 Tom Vander Well 2 Comments

In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered.
Hebrews 2:10 (NIV)

A month or so ago I had to make a trip to northwest Iowa for work. I decided to take a little extra time on that gorgeous autumn day to enjoy the road trip. The Missouri River provides Iowa’s western border and along this stretch is a geological formation, Loess Hills, that is only found one other place on Earth, in China. I took my time traveling up the backroads of Loess Hills and along the Missouri River Valley. The featured photo on today’s post is one I took that afternoon.

220 years ago, Lewis & Clark and the Corp of Discovery made their way up the Missouri River along the same stretch. The only member of that legendary crew of pioneers to die on the voyage, Sergeant William Floyd, did so near Sioux City, where my meanderings led that afternoon. The references to Floyd, Lewis, and Clark are everywhere in that part of the state, from highways to backroads to towns, and rivers.

“Pioneer” is layered with meaning for many Americans. My very life here in Iowa is rooted in my pioneer great-grandfather who risked all to leave the Netherlands as a young man and, by himself, create a new life in America. American history itself is steeped in the legendary stories of pioneers like Lewis and Clark who blazed the trail for others.

It was the word “pioneer” that leapt off the page at me in the quiet this morning. It’s not a word that appears anywhere in the Great Story except two uses by the author of Hebrews. The Greek word translated “pioneer” is archēgos which comes from two words, the first meaning “origin” or “first” and the second “to lead.”

Jesus was the first to lead. He was the trailblazer. In yesterday’s chapter, Jesus was described as the celestial Alpha of all creation. In today’s chapter, the author of Hebrews brings the divine trailblazer to the humble dusty human trail of earthly existence. Jesus blazed the “trail of salvation” right here, by being one of us, experiencing this world of woe right along side us, and suffering the same human death that awaits each one of us. The God who spoke galaxies into being also whispers comfort beside our hospital beds and tax forms and broken dreams. He doesn’t rescue from afar; He wades into the flood beside us. He sanctifies our suffering by sharing it.

My meditations this morning led me to dig deeper into the Greek word archēgos because I suspected there was an etymological connection to another English word: archetype. Sure enough, the two words share the same Greek root. The words are related much like the author of Hebrews describes the pioneering Jesus making us all family. The English word archetype is from the Greek archétypon meaning “first form” or “original pattern.” Which makes the author’s choice of archēgos in today’s chapter all the more poetic: Jesus isn’t merely one who leads; He’s the original pattern of all who follow, the archetypal pioneer.

I don’t know about you, but it’s easy for me to feel small and unseen in the long daily slog of this earthly journey. I’m reminded this morning that I am following in the steps of the original pioneer. The One who “was made a little lower than the angels” has already walked this valley and suffered through it — and in His footprints, glory grows. These footprints will lead me home.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Light and Life

November 10, 2025 Tom Vander Well 1 Comment

In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word.
Hebrews 1:1-3 (NIV)

Wendy and I stumbled upon an internet meme yesterday that I had to dig into. It’s rooted in a 2016 research study at Northwestern University. studying fertilization. They discovered that when an egg is successfully fertilized there is a “zinc spark” When they captured this burst of zinc atoms and contemporaneous calcium waves under the microscope it created a flash of light.

How cool. Life and light.

Today, our chapter-a-day journey starts a pilgrimage through the book of Hebrews. The author of Hebrews has forever been steeped in mystery, but from the opening sentences there is no doubt what the book is about. Writing to a first-century Jewish audience, the book of Hebrews is written to provide a definitive answer to the question Jewish people had been asking since the days of Jesus’ ministry.

When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred and asked, “Who is this?”
Matthew 21:10 (NIV)

Jesus pressed the question to his disciples.

“Who do people say that I am?“

“Who do you say that I am?“

It’s now thirty-years after Jesus’ death and resurrection. The Jesus Movement has stirred up the Roman world and as it spreads there are more and more people, Jews especially, asking the same question about who Jesus is. No different than today, no different than when Jesus asked his disciples, depending on who you ask you might get a completely different answer. A prophet, a good rabbi, Elijah returned from the dead, or the Messiah.

The author of Hebrews begins with a direct proclamation. Jesus is the Son of God, “through whom He made the universe” and the “Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being.”

“Let there be Light!” God shouts as creation begins in Genesis.

John started his version of the Jesus story in similar fashion:

“Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind.The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”
John 1:3-4 (NIV)

Radiance. Glory. Light. Creation. Life.

Paul said in his letter to the believers in Rome: “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.” Romans 1:20 (NIV)

Genesis.
John.
Paul.
The author of Hebrews.

All of them begin with the same nod.

“Who do you say that I am?”

God. Creator. Light. Life.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Holy Order

October 27, 2025 Tom Vander Well Leave a comment

So my God put it into my heart to assemble the nobles, the officials and the common people for registration by families. I found the genealogical record of those who had been the first to return. This is what I found written there…
Nehemiah 7:5 (NIV)

Wendy has worked for our company for many years. Over the past few years, I’ve put her in charge of most of the administration of our business. Her title is Director of Operations, but I always joke that it’s really Senior Director of All the Things. When it comes to the organization of our lives, Wendy brings order to chaos in everything she does. It’s how God wired her heart and brain. The more I unleash her to do what she does well, the more everyone benefits.

In the beginning of the Great Story, there is chaos of nothingness which God carefully orders over a period of six days. It’s not haphazard. He doesn’t act willy-nilly. There is order to everything He does and how He does it. When it’s finished, He calls it good.

Later in the story, when humanity and human empire muck up the works, things descend back toward chaos. Noah’s flood, the aftermath of Babel, and the ten plagues on Egypt are all metaphorical reversals of God’s creation. Instead of order leading to holy goodness, human acts of the flesh lead back to disorder and chaos. In fact, the events described in John’s Revelation can also be seen through this same metaphorical lens.

In today’s chapter, Nehemiah follows up the restoration of Jerusalem’s walls and gates with administrative order. The project is complete, but now the walls and gates have to be manned and guarded. With the city safe from attack, the rebuilding and restoration of homes and buildings within the city walls can safely commence. There’s a ton of work to be done, and Nehemiah sets about to create an orderly administration of the work by taking stock of who he has to work with and how best to manage that work force.

Nehemiah and Wendy would have worked well together, I’m sure. Today’s chapter makes it obvious that God wired their hearts and brains in similar ways. I’m not wired the same way. I’m capable of administration and organization, but Wendy will be quick to tell you (with examples) that I’m not gifted at it. I’ve learned along this life journey that I want people using their gifts where they can have the greatest positive impact on the whole. Things are more orderly when this happens. There is less chaos.

As I embark on a new work week, I’m quietly grateful for my Senior Director of All the Things. Order is a good thing. Order is holy. I could do with more order and less chaos. And so, it’s time for me to get to my calendar and my task lists to get the plan for my day and my week in order.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Colors

July 17, 2025 Tom Vander Well 1 Comment

“Over the gold altar they are to spread a blue cloth and cover that with the durable leather and put the poles in place.”
Numbers 4:11 (NIV)

For Father’s Day this year, our daughter Taylor arranged for the two of us to have our portraits taken with a special camera that purports to capture the color of the energy that surrounds a person, commonly referred to as an aura. It was a fun and fascinating experience (there’s a link in the episode details to today’s post at tomvanderwell.com where you can see the results). I was pretty much covered in deep blue that faded to white above me and down the center of my chest. Taylor was surrounded with warm orange and scarlet. Together, the warmth of Taylor’s orange wrapped around us while my blue covered her.

A photo triptych showing three portraits: the left image features a man with a deep blue aura, the center image shows the man with a woman, enveloped in warm colors, and the right image depicts the woman with a warm orange and scarlet aura, smiling.

Here’s the summary of the interpretations.

Tom:
Highly intuitive and emotionally intelligent.
Likely introverted or reflective by nature.
Possibly a teacher, guide, or someone others come to for insight
On or seeking a deeper life path—spiritually, creatively, or intellectually.

Taylor:
Charismatic, confident, and emotionally intuitive.
Naturally creative—may excel in arts, communication, or leadership.
Likely very warm and approachable but with a fierce inner drive.
Possesses a radiant personal energy that can light up a room or inspire those around her.

Together:
The tryptic reveals a beautiful portrait of two strong individual spirits who meet in a space of warmth, love, and deep connection. Your daughter’s joy and warmth bring brightness to your contemplative depth, and your centered presence seems to ground her radiant energy. The central photo is not just a mix of colors—it’s a visual metaphor for a balanced, evolving, and mutually enriching relationship.

Fascinating. I think it described each of us and our relationship rather well.

I share this to make one simple observation. Stick with me here.

God is creator of all things, including the universe, its energy, and the entire spectrum of colors it contains. By the way, there are more colors than our eyes can see. Many people who have died and had Near Death Experiences (NDEs) report that in eternity everything was more colorful than they could possibly imagine and there were colors they’d never seen before.

As my followers may get sick of me repeating, God’s base language is metaphor. God layers everything with meaning. Therefore, it does not surprise me that color has meaning.

In today’s chapter, God has Moses and Aaron count the number of men between the ages of 30-50 in each of the Levite clans, then gives them instructions and responsibility for preparing and carrying the traveling tent temple known as the Tabernacle for transport. They are making preparations, after all, for their journey into the wilderness. God commands that the Ark [cue: Raiders of the Lost Ark Theme], the altar, and all the articles used in the sacrificial worship system are covered in cloth, then durable leather for safety during transport.

What struck me as I read today’s chapter is that God designated different colors of cloth for different items of the Tabernacle. Why? Because colors have meaning. For the ancient Hebrews:

Blue is associated with heaven, divinity, and God’s presence.
Red/Scarlet is associated with blood, sacrifice, and atonement.
Purple is associated with royalty, sovereignty, and nobility.

Together, these colors were metaphorical of God and His character. In fact, they still represent the same things today as they did back then. I have a purple shirt and the last time I wore it someone made a passing reference to me being royalty.

In the quiet this morning, as I meditated on these things, I was reminded that to this day I know that women will have their “colors done” to help determine the palette of colors in which they look best. Again, I find it fascinating and it made me wonder if there is possibly a connection between the color of the energy a woman emits and the colors she physically looks best in. It wouldn’t surprise me. Our creative God does things like that, layers them with connection and meaning we don’t even think about.

I head into my day today paying a little more attention to the colors in creation and being grateful to God for caring about such details. The words of Jesus are ringing in my heart:

“See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith?”

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

Ordered Procession

July 15, 2025 Tom Vander Well 2 Comments

So the Israelites did everything the Lord commanded Moses; that is the way they encamped under their standards, and that is the way they set out, each of them with their clan and family.
Numbers 2:34 (NIV)

There is always a subtle tension in our household. There is a ying and yang to the way Wendy and I operate, the way we were created, and the way our brains are wired. It can be at once exasperating and beautiful. For the most part, you’ll find our home well-ordered. There is a place for everything and everything in its place. It doesn’t take long to know the patterns, where to find things, and the places they belong. That’s Wendy. I, on the other hand, tend to bring chaos to that order. This isn’t out of antagonism or ill-will but rather from simply not being wired the same way. Our brains work differently. Wendy is Rembrandt and I’m Pollack. She’s Bach and I’m Bird. The truth is that I love order. In fact, I tend to find it in places others can’t see it while being blind to it in plain sight.

Chaos. Order.

That’s how the Great Story begins.

Formless, empty, dark, and deep chaos.

Then God brings order in seven days. Six days of work. One day of rest.

Then there is a serpent, a lie, temptation, desire, disobedience, shame, and blame.

Order gives way to chaos.

For the rest of the Story, there is an ebb and flow between order and chaos. It has been observed that when God delivers the Hebrews from slavery in Egypt, the 10 plagues mirror creation in reverse order. Egypt, the greatest, most ordered and glorious human empire on the earth descends from order to chaos before Pharaoh finally relents and lets the Hebrews depart.

Out of the chaos, God leads the Hebrews into something new. He gives them a detailed and orderly blueprint for doing life together in Leviticus. Now, as they make preparations to set out on their wilderness journey, God provides order to both their camping and their procession. In both walking and resting there is a pattern to be followed. Every member is part of a tribe and every tribe has its place in the camp and in the parade.

God loves order.

In fact, what most casual readers fail to notice is that even today’s chapter is written to reflect the order of the Hebrews camp described in the text. God in His tabernacle are at the center of the camp. This is mentioned smack-dab in the middle of the chapter. It’s called a chiasm. The most important bit is in the center, and everything else is symmetrically structured around it.

God loves order.

In the quiet this morning, I find myself meditating on the fact that there are patterns even in the seemingly randomness of nature. I find it meaningful that the first thing we find God doing at the beginning of the Story is turning chaos to order. Because, along my life journey, I’ve observed that no matter how ordered I try to structure my personal, earthly human empire, the chaos of my own failings, blind spots, and foolishness eventually plagues me. Who will set me free from the chaos of my own making?

Thank God, He’s been doing it from the beginning. He’ll be doing it to the end. He’ll be doing it when He begins everything anew. He is my hope and salvation from the chaos of my own making, and the chaos of this broken world.

Time for my procession through another day of this life journey. I may not see it clearly, but I know God has a plan, just like He gave to the Hebrews in today’s chapter. It’s who He is. As I proceed, I take comfort in that.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

“New Things Come”

February 27, 2025 Tom Vander Well 2 Comments

On the eighth day Moses summoned Aaron and his sons and the elders of Israel.
Leviticus 9:1 (NIV)

I have learned over almost 45 years as a disciple of Jesus that this spiritual journey as His follower is all about my transformation. It’s the gradual migration from my earthly and worldly mindset into having my mind fixed on the things of God. Treasures on earth lose their perceived value for me as spiritual treasures are considered increasingly more priceless in my mind. What I desire becomes less significant (in fact I desire things less) and what God desires of me becomes more of a priority. This is literally what Paul was writing about when he told the Corinthian believers: “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, they are a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

In today’s chapter, Aaron and his sons are facing an abrupt transformation. The chapter begins by describing the events as taking place on the eighth day. In yesterday’s chapter, God told Aaron and the boys to camp out at the entrance of His tent for seven days. Granted, this seems like a strange request to our logical sensibilities. Today’s events take place on the eighth day. God is using His base language of metaphor again. What does everyone know, from the very beginning of the Great Story in Genesis took place in seven days? Yep, creation. How long were the dudes camping with God? Yep, seven. It is now the eighth day. Something is new. A spiritual transformation has taken place. Something new has been created in Aaron and His sons. The dudes are now priests of the Most High God.

In today’s chapter, Aaron performs the priestly duties and sacrifices for the first time. This is new. Another thing that is abundantly clear is that Aaron performs the offerings exactly as prescribed by God through Moses. The text is painfully repetitive as it recounts Aaron’s exact actions detail for detail. In fact, it’s one of the strange things about Leviticus that drives modern readers bonkers. As I meditated on this in the quiet this morning, two things came to mind.

First, I returned to the reality that these are events are taking place in the toddler stage of humanity thousands of years ago. Writing is a relatively new technology that few know and reading isn’t even a thing for the masses. Things were passed down orally and as an actor currently working on my lines for a role in a play I am reminded that repetition is the key to memorization. When toddlers watch Sesame Street they are introduced to a letter and a number and those are repeated over and over and over again in that episode. The repetition was likely helpful and necessary to the ancient Hebrews learning these detailed instructions.

Second, there is a spiritual lesson taking place even in Aaron’s exacting conformity to God’s instructions. Five hundred years or so later, the Hebrews will decide they want a king and they will choose a guy named Saul. Saul will subsequently decide that he can perform these offerings even though he’s not a son of Aaron as prescribed. Samuel tells him:

“Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices
as much as in obeying the Lord?
To obey is better than sacrifice,
and to heed is better than the fat of rams.”

One of the spiritual lessons God is attempting to teach His fledgling people through this sacrificial system is the importance of obedience. The obedience is more important than the sacrifices themselves. In fact, God makes this abundantly clear in Psalm 50:

“Listen, my people, and I will speak;
    I will testify against you, Israel:
    I am God, your God.
I bring no charges against you concerning your sacrifices
    or concerning your burnt offerings, which are ever before me.
I have no need of a bull from your stall
    or of goats from your pens,
for every animal of the forest is mine,
    and the cattle on a thousand hills.
I know every bird in the mountains,
    and the insects in the fields are mine.
If I were hungry I would not tell you,
    for the world is mine, and all that is in it.
Do I eat the flesh of bulls
    or drink the blood of goats?“

At the end of the chapter, as a result of Aaron’s obedience in presenting the offerings according to the instructions, the “glory of the LORD” shows up in the form of fire. So this spiritually transformed dude who is now a priest obeys God, does as instructed, and God responds. It’s the eighth day. It is a new beginning for Aaron and the boys. Old things have passed away. New things have come.

Which is exactly what God has spiritually done in me through being joined with Christ thousands of years later. In fact, spiritually speaking that transformation includes making me a priest of the Most High God, as well (see 1 Peter 2:9).

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, even as I communicate about these same things differently to my toddler granddaughter than I do to her adult parents.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

These chapter-a-day blog posts are also available via podcast on all major podcast platforms including Apple, Google, and Spotify! Simply go to your podcast platform and search for “Wayfarer Tom Vander Well.” If it’s not on your platform, please let me know!

Chapter-a-Day

Best of ’24: #6 When Rest Becomes Work

February 7, 2025 Tom Vander Well Leave a comment

For two weeks, while Wendy and I are away enjoying some warm weather, I’ll be counting down the top ten chapter-a-day posts of 2024 (based on total views anIt’ s always interesting which posts resonated with readers and listeners. The chapter for tomorrow’s post will be listed at the bottom.

Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the lake, and a large crowd from Galilee followed.
Mark 3:7 (NIV)

Wendy and I are in the process of selling our place at the lake. For those who know us and for those who have followed my blog for any length of time, this may come as a surprise. “The Playhouse” has been a part of my family for over 25 years, and for the past 15 years it has been regular place of retreat, refreshment, and relationship for ourselves, our family, and many, many friends. The featured image on today’s post is our final farewell to the Playhouse as we moved things home.

The truth is that Wendy and I have been praying about the end of this season in our lives for a few years. We’ve talked about it with friends, but circumstances consistently told us that it wasn’t time. This summer, we once again prayed in earnest whether it was time and everything rapidly fell into place in a way that told us the time was right.

One of the themes that God weaves into the Great Story from the very beginning of Genesis is the blessing of rest. God creates everything in six days, and on the seventh day He rests. Then, in the book of Exodus when God through Moses prescribes how His people should live and conduct themselves, He emphasizes rest in multiple ways on multiple levels. This was a radical idea. For 400 years God’s people had been slaves in Egypt without a day off. Now God prescribes that they need a day off every seven days. In fact, whether you’re a believer or not, you can thank God every weekend because the weekend was born when the Roman Emperor, who was a Christian, followed God’s prescription and declared that everyone in the Roman Empire gets Sundays off.

In today’s chapter, Mark’s choice of scenes reveals several things. Jesus’ teaching and miracles are drawing huge crowds from all over. Word has spread and people are traveling from far away places. Between the crowd scenes, Mark shares that Jesus “withdrew” from the crowds. Once He withdrew to a lake. Another time He withdrew up a mountain. What that tells me is that Jesus knew He needed rest from the crowds, the teaching, the miracles, the exorcisms, and the chaos of His Miraculous Mystery Tour.

But Mark plants another seed when he begins by telling the story of Jesus teaching in the synagogue. Jesus challengers, who I wrote/talked about in yesterday’s post/podcast, have now become His outright enemies. No longer simply challenging Jesus, they’re seeking a way to accuse Him, discredit Him, and bring Him down. So, they lie in wait to see if Jesus would perform a miracle on the Sabbath day of rest. Because the good religious fundamentalists had deemed that performing a miracle was work.

Mark says that this “angered” Jesus, and He was “deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts.” Why? Because they had perverted and profaned the plan. The Sabbath, which had been prescribed as a blessing of rest, had been transformed into a burden in which people had to expend time, energy, and resources to track and follow all the rules that had been made around it. What was meant for rest became work.

Which brings me back to our place on the lake. As Wendy and I prayed and discussed it over this past spring and summer, we realized that things had changed. What was meant to be, and used to be, full of retreat, refreshment, and relationships had slowly become a burden on multiple levels. And, the opportunity arose to pass it on as a blessing to others in answer to their prayers

So, in the quiet this morning I’m reminded that the prescription for rest remains. Like Jesus, Wendy and I need to find our new places to withdraw and find retreat, refreshment, and relationship amidst the chaos of work and worry. We are excited for the new season ahead. And, in the wake of a long and wonderful Thanksgiving weekend, I’m also grateful as I think about what a blessing God has woven into the plan of creation in prescribing, and exemplifying, regular periods of rest.

Tomorrow’s Chapter: Romans 9

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Chapter-a-Day

God’s Base Language

December 11, 2024 Tom Vander Well 2 Comments

Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked them: “Why are you talking about having no bread? Do you still not see or understand? Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear?”
Mark 8:17-18 (NIV)

I’ve recently begun listening to a brilliant and fascinating podcast series about what “mountains” represent throughout the Great Story. It reminds me a lot of three messages I gave a year or so ago as part of a series exploring the seven “I Am” statements that Jesus made (e.g. “I am the gate,” “I am the bread of life,” “I am the resurrection and the life”). With each of those messages, I unpacked that the metaphors Jesus was using (bread, gate, resurrection) were metaphors that are woven throughout the entire Great Story from Genesis to Revelation. To understand the power and completeness of what Jesus was claiming with those statements, I have to understand each metaphor in the context of the entire Great Story.

Those who have followed this blog for any length of time are probably sick of me saying this, but God’s base language is metaphor. A metaphor is simply something that represents something else. In his letter to the followers of Jesus in Rome, Paul explains that creation itself is a metaphor of who God is, it is an expression of God’s very person. How often did Jesus use creation and every day pieces of life as a teaching device? Mustard seeds, weather, pearls, sheep, sons, gates, shepherds, wine, debt, and bread.

In today’s chapter, Jesus makes a simple statement to His disciples in telling them to watch out for the “yeast” of the Pharisees and of Herod. Remember, it’s become plain to the disciples through their recent experiences that the Pharisees are actively working against Jesus, and they all know that Herod had recently executed Jesus’ cousin, John the Baptist, at the whim of his step-daughter. The disciples, however, are perplexed. They think Jesus’ is somehow upset with them for forgetting to buy enough bread for their cruise across the Sea of Galilee.

I picture Jesus rolling His eyes and slapping His forehead in frustration.

These are good Jewish boys who have been brought up in the Hebrew tradition and learning the Law of Moses. The Law of Moses is repeatedly clear about eating unleavened bread, bread made without yeast. It’s an important part of the most important ritual in the Jewish tradition: the Passover seder. Jesus had also used yeast in His teaching. Why?

It’s so simple it’s profound. Anyone who has baked bread knows that you take this tiny amount of yeast in order to get a large amount of dough to rise. I get it that most readers today may have never baked bread, but for Jesus and the disciples, the act of baking bread was as daily a routine as brewing coffee or tea is today. They all knew the concept that a little bit of yeast spreads to a whole lot of dough. So, the “yeast” of the Pharisees and of Herod was their hard hearts, their refusal to repent, their clinging to the things of this world like wealth and power, and the resulting outcomes of each of their forms of evil. It was the same evil but wore the different cloaks of human government and religion.

The disciples were struggling to understand that to get at who God is and what God is about, one must learn and know God’s base language of metaphor.

In the quiet this morning, I’m grateful for the dawn of this new day, which is a daily metaphor of resurrection. I’m also grateful for my warm office and my Pella windows as I hear the icy winter wind howling against them right behind me, which is a metaphor of God’s provision and protection. That icy wind of winter is an annual metaphor of death which is a natural part of life, what Jesus called me to in today’s chapter, and what physically awaits me at the end of this earthly journey. Along this life journey, I’ve learned that God is speaking to me everywhere, every day, through every thing. It’s all connected. I just had to learn to hear and interpret the language God speaks everywhere, every day, at all times.

If you know anyone who might be encouraged by today’s post, please share.

Wayfarer

Tag Archives: Creation

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Just another wayfarer on life's journey, headed for Home. I'm carrying The Message, and I'm definitely waiting for Guffman.

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Just another wayfarer on life's journey, headed for Home. I'm carrying The Message, and I'm definitely waiting for Guffman.