June, July, August 2014, RBC Ministries, Volume 59, Numbers 3, 4, & 5

Our Daily Bread is my favorite series of Christian tracts. It is a seasonal publication that gives meditations in the form of a modern parable, a story with a moral; or what secular humanists would call a 'moralized anecdote'. I suppose my attachment to this series of pamphlets that have been in publication since 1956, has to do with the fact that it represented my father’s devotional reading, particularly when he was sick. There must be something to it since he used it to replace his pain medication when he was being ravaged by cancer.

The lady that gave this copy to me also sold me two bags of peanut M&M’s thereby reigniting a latent addiction of mine. I donated a dollar for the free pamphlet and said ‘good day’.

Perhaps it is the serene photos on the cover, like the Sandstone formations from Zion National Park, Utah, that graces this cover that always has me looking forward to meeting these particular missionaries.

The book begins with a Gospel quote from John. The copyright page credits some two dozen writers going back to 1940 for their contributions. The biblical quotes are taken from the New King James Version.

To give you an idea of the format I will summarize two pages:

June 1, Sunday, Kangaroos and Emus, suggests reading Philippians 3:12-17, offers a quote, and then goes on to discuss the mobility of two Australian creatures who are not well-constructed for retrograde motion. The next passage compares a quote from Paul in which he references the goal-seeking of athletes as analogous to the Christian path, likening this wisdom to the nature of the two above mentioned creatures. The next passage is a summation on the wisdom of learning from—but not living in—the past by the author Bill Crowder, who goes on to quote Oatman’s verse on ‘the upward way’.

June 19, Thursday, Meet Shrek, suggests reading Ezekiel 34:11-16, and then goes on to summarize the plight of Shrek, a feral New Zealand sheep, who lived alone in a cave after wondering off from the flock [Stefan Molyneux as a reincarnated Hindu entrepreneur I think]. Shrek’s coat weighed 60 pounds and made it impossible for him to climb down the mountain. As a Darwinist I would have used this as a homeless metaphor. But Julie Ackerman Link, a good Christian soul, indicts Shrek as a reprobate among sheep, referring to his ponderous fleece as ‘the weight of his waywardness’ [pretty good line that was Julie] and setting him out as an example of what happens to a sheep who becomes separated from his shepherd.

The author then goes on to discuss Jesus from John, and finishes off by quoting Baker’s verse on ‘The King of love my Shepherd’. This particular piece was very well written, and I am sure that Julie is a fine compassionate woman. But Julie, if you found yourself stranded on a Harm City street corner next to this head of feral human livestock, and you told me that I needed to reconnect with my shepherd, well, I’d have to walk off and leave you for the wolves.

I’m not a Christian—not even close—but I do recommend Our Daily Bread for a thought provoking pocket book.