Tag: Christ

SubscribeStar Saturday: Chaplaincy

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Today’s post is a SubscribeStar Saturday exclusive.  To read the full post, subscribe to my SubscribeStar page for $1 a month or more.  For a full rundown of everything your subscription gets, click here.

This school year I began a new role at my school. My official title is “Chaplain and Chapel Coordinator,” which sounds both lofty and bureaucratic. Fortunately, it is neither.

My basic job is to organize the weekly Chapel services, which are Thursday mornings at our school. Initially, I thought I’d be delivering a short devotional or sermonette every Thursday, as our school chaplains have done traditionally. However, right before school began, the new headmaster told me he would like me to invite in members of our community to speak to the students; the Associate Head of School also requested that I invite students to perform music for some services.

Those were both fantastic ideas, and I was beginning to understand why “Chapel Coordinator” was part of my title: beyond merely giving a weekly devotional, I would be coordinating with multiple people from within and without the school.

With that mandate, I set about coordinating chapels for the first semester; at this point, I essentially have everyone scheduled through September; most of October; and most of November. I’m holding off on the two December dates, as those fall around the time of the annual Christmas Musical and the Christmas Concert, and I’m not sure what impact those will have on Chapel services just yet.

Today I though I’d give readers a glimpse into my new role: what I am planning, how it’s going so far, and what I hope to see unfold (lots of salvations, of course).

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Lazy Sunday CDII: Chapel Stuff

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It’s been a Chapel-filled week here on the blog, so I’m dashing off this quick Lazy Sunday before dashing off to play bass at church:

Happy Sunday!

—TPP

TBT^16: Chapel Lesson: Listening

The Portly Politico4 Comments

Today is the second Chapel of the new school year, and the first devotional I’ll be giving as the Chaplain! My plan is to play a saxophone rendition of the hymn “Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling” and to tie that into my brief devotional.

That being the case, I thought I’d look back at this little devotional from a chapel way back in 2022, one that I’ve reblogged several times since then. It’s message is one we all need to hear regularly—especially me!

With that, here is 21 August 2025’s “TBT^4: Chapel Lesson: Listening“:

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Chapel Lesson: “Jesus Is Calling”

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Tomorrow is my first chapel devotional/lesson of the school year! The headmaster took the first one and gave a powerful sermonette to the students. I decided to build upon the theme of his talk while also incorporating my saxophone.

I recently played the classic hymn “Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling” at my old church one Sunday night (you can hear a bass guitar rendition here), and I’ve grown partial to the hymn over the past few years. I’m going to play my alto sax arrangement for the students before launching into my brief devotional.

With that, here is the text of the Chapel lesson I’ll deliver tomorrow:

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Telephone!

The Portly Politico2 Comments

Apparently, back in April blogger vᚻællKᚱᛁᛗvosᛏ of Vermont Folk Troth tagged me and several other bloggers in his post “Sonnelicht Telephone Whispers Game.” I don’t know much about vᚻællKᚱᛁᛗvosᛏ, but from what I can gather, he’s a pagan Vermont nationalist. That sounds on-brand for that part of the country.

What I do know is that my blog desperately needs some crosspollination with other blogs, so I’m going to join in on this game of telephone tag. Also, my apologies to vᚻællKᚱᛁᛗvosᛏ for not getting the notification back in April; apparently, Akismet was doing its job a bit overzealously. That said, thank you, my friend from the frosty North. May your people one day feel the breath of Odin wafting through their locks in the Republic of Vermont.

Now, on to the questions. vᚻællKᚱᛁᛗvosᛏ posed eleven questions to me; I, in turn, will pose eleven questions (goodness, that’s a lot) to some other bloggers, and we’ll all learn about each other (perhaps!).

Here are the questions:

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TBT^4: A Discourse on Disclaimers

The Portly Politico1 Comment

In surveying the vast expansion of the much-discussed Overton Window last year, it seemed like things couldn’t get any better. After a decade of oppressive wokery, people were suddenly letting it all out in a cathartic moment that felt incredible.

A year on, it seems to be getting even better. Maybe that’s because I’m using Substack more, which basically takes all the hot takes of X and transforms them into pseudo-intellectual essays (the writing on Substack is really good, by the way). People on there have zero qualms about saying anything, which makes it a pretty exciting intellectual environment. When no idea—even the bad ones—are off-limits, everything gets discussed—and exposed.

It’s refreshing. I remember how bad things got in 2015-2016, when even here in super conservative South Carolina you couldn’t audibly espouse support for Trump in mixed company, and certainly not in a professional setting. Now people are like, “Trump hasn’t gone far enough.” I mean, look, I agree; it’s just wild how we can say it out loud now.

So, no more equivocating, folks, no more disclaimers. Let it all out in a flurry of free speech!

With that, here is 26 June 2025’s “TBT^2: A Discourse on Disclaimers“:

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TBT^16: Go to Church

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Any churchgoing Christian will understand that feeling that sometimes hits on Sunday mornings—even though you typically want to go to church, you just don’t want to that Sunday.  The week is long and hard; the weekend is short (and usually full of the stuff you couldn’t get done during the week).

My brothers and I used to joke with our dad—a man who was borderline giddy as he’d wake us up for a marathon session of church (we were Pentecostal in the 1990s and early 2000s, so church was pretty much an all-day affair)—that we would “worship God in our own way” by staying home and playing Nintendo.  Thank goodness he had a sense of humor and understood we were lampooning the milquetoast cultural “Christians” and New Age spiritualists who framed staying home and washing their cars as an act of piety.

But the struggle is real.  I sincerely believe that Satan and his minions attack us the hardest right before church.  Like most things, the justifications are reasonable:  “I really need the rest”; “I have a crazy week ahead and need to get prepared for it.”  Sometimes those things are legitimate concerns; more often, though, they’re just lame rationalizations, and we know it.

I’m preaching to myself here.  I know from experience that missing one week of church makes it that much harder to return the following week; missing two weeks in a row or more is lethal to regular attendance.  Due to our current living situation and Dr. Wife finishing up residency, we often find ourselves out of town on Sundays, but we try to attend one of our churches.  Indeed, there have been times I’ve proposed staying home so we can “rest,” and she’ll insist we go to church.  She’s a good woman.

Again, I understand there are exceptions.  Some people—even here in the South—work on Sundays.  People travel.  Family events and the like sometimes interfere.  Look, I’m not a Catholic—I don’t believe your salvation is contingent upon checking off the “I attended Mass so I’m good for another week” box.  I do, however, believe that Scripture Instructs us to be part of a body of believers.

Going to church is beneficial spiritually first and foremost, but it’s also an opportunity to build Christian community.  In an age of economic isolation and social atomization, folks are desperate to be part of something bigger than themselves.  What’s bigger and better than the Bride of Christ?

Here in the South, there a sometimes more churches per square mile than people.  I know other parts of the country are not so fortunate, but churches are not hard to find.  Find a good one and start going!

With that, here is 17 April 2025’s “TBT^4: Go to Church“:

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SubscribeStar Saturday: God’s Judgment, Timing, and Provision

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Today’s post is a SubscribeStar Saturday exclusive.  To read the full post, subscribe to my SubscribeStar page for $1 a month or more.  For a full rundown of everything your subscription gets, click here.

On Wednesday, 4 March 2026 I led the men’s devotional, Master’s Men, at my church. Master’s Men meets the first Wednesday of each month, and men in the congregation take turns leading.

I wasn’t sure what to discuss, so I turned to a devotional my late paternal grandmother gave me many years ago. I flipped to the verses for 4 March, and it prominently featured James 5:10. The other verses emphasized how Christ Will Bear our burdens. Given that my wife and I are in the midst of moving while she’s finishing her residency and I’m entering the busiest part of the school year, that seemed like the natural direction to take.

However, as I dove deeper into James 5 itself, I realized there was so much more to discuss. I came away with a very different message (although it does, of course, touch upon how Christ Bears our burdens). The result is included below. —TPP

James 5 (NKJV)

Rich Oppressors Will Be Judged

1 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you! 2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have heaped up treasure in the last days. 4 Indeed the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. 5 You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury; you have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned, you have murdered the just; he does not resist you.

Be Patient and Persevering

7 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. 8 You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.

9 Do not grumble against one another, brethren, lest you be condemned. Behold, the Judge is standing at the door! 10 My brethren, take the prophets, who spoke in the name of the Lord, as an example of suffering and patience. 11 Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compassionate and merciful.

12 But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your “Yes” be “Yes,” and your “No,” “No,” lest you fall into judgment.

Meeting Specific Needs

13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. 18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.

Bring Back the Erring One

19 Brethren, if anyone among you wanders from the truth, and someone turns him back, 20 let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save a soul from death and cover a multitude of sins.

Lesson: God’s Judgment, Timing, and Provision

Let us pray.

The Book of James is, perhaps, one of the most challenging books of the New Testament. James does not pull any punches, but exhorts believers to be doers of the Word, not merely hearers of it in James 1:22—and to take joy in our strife and suffering in James 1:2.

Indeed, each chapter of this short book offers up warnings for the reader. James 2:20 tells us that “faith without works is dead.” James 3:1-8 always convicts me; I have set far too much ablaze with an unruly tongue in my life. James 4 cautions against pride and encourages humility, reminding us that we cannot boast about tomorrow because God Controls and Numbers our days.

I think part of the appeal of James, particularly for men, is that it calls us to action—that our faith, if it is true faith at all, will show itself through our actions. If the faith we claim we have is true, then our deeds will reflect our faith. We are not saved by works, but works are evidence of our faith. As Christ Says in Matthew 7:16a: “You will know them by their fruits.”

So it is that we come to James 5, the final chapter in this useful little book. This chapter strikes me as a culmination of everything before it. So much of James is a reminder of our own limitations as fallen, sinful humans, and how dependent we are upon Christ’s Grace. James 5 demonstrates this dependence upon Christ by emphasizing God’s Judgment, God’s Timing, and God’s Provision.

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