Nehemiah 8:10 “… for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” It was the last day of my annual getaway to study and write. Although rain had been forecast all week, surprisingly, every morning proved to be filled with sunshine. This was welcome news, since my morning walks of prayer set the Continue Reading…
2 Samuel 6:13 And when those who bore the ark of the Lord had gone six steps, he sacrificed an ox and a fattened animal. How do you react when things go south? What you hoped for, prayed for, believed for, collapses before the finish line. You’re left standing in a lane of confusion Continue Reading…
1 Peter 1:6-7 In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Continue Reading…
Romans 8:5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. Ever experience an “Eeyore” day? Sometimes I feel like I could give Winnie the Pooh’s lovable friend Continue Reading…
Luke 24:21 “But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel.” Easter is coming! We live in a world jam packed with fears and anxieties. So much tragic news bombards our airwaves that I think many folks are losing the capacity to even recognize good news. And Easter Continue Reading…
Romans 8:24-25 For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience. I was preparing to go to church when my 5-year-old grandson came into the Continue Reading…
Jonah 4:9 “…. I’m so angry I wish I were dead.” Self-Pity. There’s nothing attractive about it. Like quicksand, it draws us in and pulls us down, down, down until we drown in SELF. Self-pity accepts no responsibility for our beleaguered state of mind and soothes our bruised egos Continue Reading…
Psalm 13: How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? Who knew perseverance was such a virtue? One we would be in so much need of. The difficulties of 2020 have caused us to step up our capacity for enduring. But how Continue Reading…
Psalm 31:24 “Be strong and take heart, all you who hope in the Lord.” How’s your hope tank these days? A little depleted? I think the coronavirus has left us all feeling more vulnerable and less secure than we were when life was normal. When was that? Decades ago? The Continue Reading…
1 Thessalonians 3:2-3 “We sent Timothy, who is our brother and co-worker in God’s service in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, so that no one would be unsettled by these trials.” The waiting time—that interminable period between crying out to God and receiving an answer—poses one Continue Reading…