Author Archives: Don Follis

Saying the Apostles’ Creed has long been part of my morning devotions.  Recently I have been praying the Te Deum Laudamus, an early church hymn traditionally ascribed to Saints Ambrose and Augustine, on the occasion of St. Augustine’s baptism by St. Ambrose in in AD 387.  [Like the Apostles’ Creed, no one really knows itsContinueContinue reading “Te Deum Laudamus”

Psalm 106 [New Living Translation]"Like our ancestors, we have sinned.  We have done wrong!  We have acted wickedly!  Our ancestors in Egypt were not impressed by the Lord’s miraculous deeds.  They soon forgot his many acts of kindness to them.  Instead, they rebelled against him at the Red Sea.  Even so, he saved them –ContinueContinue reading “Pitiful memories, all…”

Psalm 107 reveals four sets of desperate people…1.  "Some wandered in the wilderness, lost and homeless.  Hungry and thirsty, they nearly died."  V. 4,52.  "Some sat in darkness and deepest gloom, imprisioned in iron chains of misery.  They rebelled against the words of God, scorning the counsel of the Most High."  V. 10,113.  "Some wereContinueContinue reading “Oh, the deep mercy of God”

3:40 a.m. "I lie awake, lonely as a solitary bird on a roof."  Psalm 102:7Quiet…Utterly quiet.  At 3:55 a.m., the razor scrapes the stubble from my face.From my office chair at 4:05 a.m,  I sip my tea and read Psalm 102."My life passes as swiftly as the evening shadows.  I am withering away like grass." ContinueContinue reading “The early Bird”

Awake at 4:00am Sitting in my office chair, my chin resting in my left handSlowly breathing in and out; feeling the air rise into my nostrils.Looking at the darkness from my office window; listening to the wind.Tapping away on my keyboard, my mouse darting beneath my right hand."Be still, and know that I am God!ContinueContinue reading “Early Morning prayers”

The story is in Luke 7:36-50.  No artist conception of the event can capture the emotion.  Jesus is invited to a dinner party with religious and city officials.  A prostitute is there and she and Jesus become the center of attention.  Luke says the women wept at Jesus’ feet, her tears falling on his feet. ContinueContinue reading “Jesus’ emotional health”

The front-page story in last Sunday’s Washington Post fills in a few blanks about the parents of Seung-Hui Cho, the murderer in the Virginia Tech mass killings.Cho’s mother, Hyang In Cho, was desperate to help her son.  Last summer she had sought prayers, intervention and help from members of One Mind Church in Woodbridge, Virginia. ContinueContinue reading “A mother’s love…and her prayers”

Thirty years ago a killer stalked the streets of New York City.  I was a young college kid who had just  become a follower of Jesus, and I remember the story on the news.  The notorious killer is named David Berkowitz and was known as "The Son of Sam."Take a look at this recent storyContinueContinue reading “Transforming an evil heart by God’s power”