An Anchor for the Soul by Kevin J Holt D.Min. - Very Good

I have been a senior pastor since November of 1985. I was 21 when I began and I have just concluded my 37th year in ministry. In the nearly four decades I have pastored and the three congregations I have been blessed to lead, I have experienced and seen so much change. Church music has experienced a revolutionary change, the frequency of church attendance has declined drastically, church dress (even in the pulpit) has undergone a complete metamorphosis, and the issues of our culture have become more and more complex. It is a different world today in 2022 than it was in 1985. With all that has changed, one thing has remained constant. The truth, reliability, and power of Gods Word. Jesus said when He warned of changing times and seasons, Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. Matthew 24:35 ESV That, my friends, is a source of great comfort. We need something that is unchanging when everything around us is unsettled Gods Word is just that. The focus of my pastoral ministry for 37 years has been the expository teaching and preaching of Scripture. Not only is it the one constant or our rapidly evolving world, it is a living Word that is able to set free and transform hearts and minds. Beyond that, and because of its unchanging nature, it provides a fixed point, an anchor of sorts to our soul, the very seat of our emotions. It steadies us when we drift or slip and it holds us close to God when we feel anxiety or fear. It has been my practice for many years to read though the Bible every calendar year. In 2020, I began as a daily discipline, posting a short devotional thought, from my own personal reading and quiet time, on social media (Facebook and Twitter). It served to discipline my schedule, help me write thoughts succinctly (Twitter only allows 280 characters and that is hard for a preacher), and hopefully it has been a blessing to those who have read them and reflected upon them. Last year I decided that I would take many of those and expand them into a full devotion, unpacking in a paragraph or two, the nuggets of truth from Gods Word that I feel God had shown me. That effort has led me to this 365-day devotional, all formed around my daily tweets and posts for the last three years. Each is a page long and designed to be read along with the daily reading section of Scripture that if followed, will lead you through the Bible in a year. It is my hope that this simple, brief, and personal devotional from me to you will be a source of encouragement, faith development, and challenge. Most of all I pray that while the world around us rapidly changes, too often in ways that are not wholesome and helpful, that my reflections on Gods Word will help quiet your restless hearts and serve as an anchor to steady your soul in this upside down world. Pastor Kevin J. Holt, D.Min (November, 2022)

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