What truly divides us.

The biblical account of Ruth and Naomi has so much for us as we face such division in our world. This unlikely bond between these two women (mother-in-law and daughter-in-law) was uniquely deep, and special, and crossed strong cultural barriers. As Naomi pleaded for Ruth to leave her and go back to her family, RuthContinue reading “What truly divides us.”

Don’t trust yourself

What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? (Rom 8:31) God is for us, not against us. I recently heard a pastor say, “Don’t you think if God we’re out to get you, He would have gotten you by now?!” We laugh. We say weContinue reading “Don’t trust yourself”

He is RISEN!! Go and tell!

The ground shook.The angel appeared.The stone rolled away.The soldiers fell like dead men.The grave empty.Death defeated!The Way Made!Victory complete. JESUS IS RISEN! “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed”. John 20:6 Oh, believer, you may not have seen the resurrection with your human eyes, but you know it is all true.Continue reading “He is RISEN!! Go and tell!”

SILENCE

Silence. That day after the Savior had died. The pounding of the nails, the jeers of the crowd, His cries of pain. Now Silent. His body in the tomb. What now? They surely longed to hear His comforting voice. But Silence. They had left jobs, families, everything to follow Him. Now what? Silence. Nothing.But.Silence. Confused,Continue reading “SILENCE”

The Question No One Can Answer For You

As the religious leaders and the crowd cheered for His crucifixion, Jesus was brought before Pilate, who finding no fault in Him, asked the question we all ultimately must ask ourselves— “What then shall I do with this Jesus who is called Christ?” Matt 27:22 The question is meant to be personal. No one couldContinue reading “The Question No One Can Answer For You”

Hold on!

I have shaken my head so much my neck hurts. I’ve tried to convince myself things aren’t as bad as they seem, but I’m secretly thinking they are worse than we all know. Yes, the world is a dark place, but we, who call ourselves believers, need to diligently remind ourselves of what we believe.Continue reading “Hold on!”

“Well, what if the dollar collapses?”

Our family had been talking about news story after news story, hard things, when one of us remarked,, “Well, what if the dollar collapses?” To which my son, Ben, said, “Well that might be a good thing as it would surely bring revival to this country as hard days often do.” And, honestly, I thoughtContinue reading ““Well, what if the dollar collapses?””

When we don’t understand.

I sat crying yesterday as the news of the Nashville school shooting came, not just from my television, but from family and friends. My brother-in-law grew up with the dad of one of the little girls who was killed. My sister-in-law had gone to college with him when he started a ministry there. My husbandContinue reading “When we don’t understand.”

These people truly love you

I heard a pastor once say, “You can’t preach peace to those who walk in disobedience.” The truth is, as much as we want others to experience the rivers of peace we know because of Christ; those who insist on walking their own way, in disobedience to the ways of God, will never experience theContinue reading “These people truly love you”

Are you worried and doubting?

You realize, The Almighty God (El Shaddai) , the God Who Sees (El- Roi) knows our doubts and our worries. God knows what it is we think is too hard for Him. Here’s one reason we can know this— In Genesis 17, God makes the covenant with Abram to multiply him exceedingly and give himContinue reading “Are you worried and doubting?”

If we ignore sin are we truly loving others?

I’m not the sharpest nail in the box, but when God points out things twice, I tend to pay attention! My daughter, Abi, was recounting a dream she had about John 8 and the woman caught in adultery. She talked about how very vivid the dream seemed.  Two days later, I “flopped” my Bible openContinue reading “If we ignore sin are we truly loving others?”

How hard it is to be a believer today (especially a young one)

A few years ago I posted about my concern over the Super Bowl half time show and that post was shared a lot. Because the post was shared so much, people who wouldn’t typically see my page read what I had written. Most comments were supportive, but others were quite irate. I was called severalContinue reading “How hard it is to be a believer today (especially a young one)”

I woke up early thinking of those I love in this hard world…

I woke up early thinking about my young adults, and several others that I love like my own. They are trying to make big decisions in a hard world. They are fighting discouragement as many of the normal things, we who are older, took for granted, now seem so very far out of reach. TheyContinue reading “I woke up early thinking of those I love in this hard world…”

One thing that defeats FEAR!

There are so many things in this world right now, that tempt us to fear. I’m sick of seeing the enemy rob us of peace because we are distracted, discouraged, and gripped by fear. The enemy really uses that. But here’s one thing I’ve learned that has disarmed him time and time again in myContinue reading “One thing that defeats FEAR!”

God cherishes women and so should we!

I find myself still thinking about the genealogy in Matthew 1. Not only were several listed in the lineage of Christ who, had blown it and were were amazing examples of God’s grace; but just the fact that women were mentioned is a huge deal. Huge because many ancient cultures did not value women includingContinue reading “God cherishes women and so should we!”

Are we sitting by while they are being stoned?

Stephen had just preached the truth (Acts 7). He had meticulously explained how Jesus was prophecy fulfilled, the coming Righteous One, and how the “stiff-necked people” had rejected Him. The people were enraged. But Stephen did not shrink back. And the people, upon hearing truth, “stopped their ears”, and they stoned Stephen to death. And,Continue reading “Are we sitting by while they are being stoned?”

Even When We Don’t Understand

To watch someone suffer pain and hold on to God, knowing He could’ve stopped it, but chose not to, is truly a holy thing to witness. My words don’t seem worthy to even attempt to describe such. Yet, little has encouraged my faith as much as this story has. It’s one I’ve closely watched unfoldContinue reading “Even When We Don’t Understand”

Are some too far gone for revival?

There’s a lot of talk about revival in our country. But, have you ever wondered if some are just too far gone? Perhaps, you have even wondered that about yourself. But the thing is, not being to earn it, is pretty much the whole point of the gospel. God makes this clear when Jesus calledContinue reading “Are some too far gone for revival?”

Hope, when you feel like you have none…

Just over a year ago, an early morning message took my breath away. A mom, who loves Jesus, serves the Lord with her husband in ministry, and who had sat with me at ballgames as we watched our daughters cheer, messaged to let me know her daughter was tragically killed the night before. Tears filledContinue reading “Hope, when you feel like you have none…”