Bible Reading

“Bless the Lord, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits” (Psalm 103:1 – 2, KJV) Someone asked me this week, “What does it mean to bless the Lord? How can we bless God?” That’s a really good question, and […]

Paul lived in troubled times. During his time in Ephesus, Nero, a wicked tyrant, was the emperor of Rome. Jewish leaders sought to persecute Jews who turned to the Christian faith, and paganism was rampant. I don’t know if there was a right and a left, but there was certainly a right and a wrong […]

In the years before engines powered great sailing vessels, a ship crossing the Equator could drift for days waiting to catch a fresh breeze that would move it ahead. The ship and all those on it were caught in the doldrums, a hot, miserable place that sapped energy and derailed hope. The experience of the […]

Galatians 4: Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differs nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; 2 But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father. 3 Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world: […]

Anthills cover our yard. Step outside and it won’t be long before an ant finds you. I don’t like ants. I have told those ants to go away. I step on them when I see them. I spray water and other things on them. We put things on their anthills that they don’t like – […]

“Horror hath taken hold upon me because of the wicked that forsake thy law” (Psalm 119:53, KJV). There is horror in this world. We see it on every newscast. We read it in the headlines, and worse, we experience it in our own families. Even the psalmist David knew it. Death and destruction. Innocence stripped […]

Some days I shake my head and think, “I do not understand.” I can’t comprehend the evil in this world or the deceit that is spouted as truth. I can’t wrap my head around people’s motivation to hurt others or destroy beautiful things. I don’t understand how someone can take joy in another’s sorrow. The […]

We downsized and moved into a new home, and I thought that the days of items piling up in closets and drawers were over. We had given away, sold, and thrown away so much stuff. Now everything had its own place. Fast forward a few years and here we are cleaning out closets and […]

“Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation.” – Psalm 62:1 If I could paint a picture of faith, I wouldn’t paint a picture of a beautiful cathedral or a church on a picturesque hillside. My portrait would not be of a mansion or of a life without care and problems. While […]

“While I live will I praise the LORD: I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being.” – Psalm 146:2, KJV The world is filled with chatter these days. Politics, philosophy, health advice, exercise advice, weight loss advice, the latest movies and television programs, sports, weather, you name it, we are talking […]

When we read Psalm 136 we may think that it sounds repetitive. It is actually a responsive psalm used in worship. The worship leader says the first part of the verse, and the congregation responds with “and His mercy endureth forever”. The psalm gives a brief history from the beginning of creation through the time […]

After almost two months of forced rest after emergency surgery, I find myself back at the computer. Don’t let anyone kid you, anesthesia brain is a real phenomenon. I am thankful for God’s healing touch and a caring family, and I am thankful to be regaining strength. The words in Psalm 23 ring true. There […]

Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life (Proverbs 4:23, NLT). Recent events in our family have focused our thoughts on hearts and heart disease. We have done a lot of reading. While our situation has been unusual, much of the literature focuses on general heart care. When reading, […]

Learning in Exodus I can only imagine the excitement as the children of Israel reached the end of creating all the implements and parts of the tabernacle. God had provided the workers and the materials. He had given them detailed instructions through Moses, and He had guided them step-by-step as they completed all of God’s […]

Written by Moses in the wilderness, Psalm 91 stands as a beacon of strength to God’s children. It speaks of His love, His protection, His strength, His nearness in time of trouble. I read the truths, the confidence, the promises of this psalm and my natural mind says, “no way”. Christians get sick. Christians have […]

The word precious means highly esteemed or valued, of great worth or price, cherished, priceless, dear. Our children are precious to us. We call our liberty precious. The memory of our loved ones is precious. The word ‘precious’ is found only sixteen times in the New Testament (KJV), and seven of those times are found […]

And he (Jesus) answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself (Luke 10:27) This command first appeared as part of the Shema, which remains a central prayer of Judaism, in the book of Deuteronomy, chapter 6. Moses repeated it multiple times to the Israelites, and Joshua […]

I am not one for making New Year’s resolutions, but as I contemplate the year before me, I am drawn to Paul’s words in the Philippians, chapter three. “That I may know him, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made conformable unto his death; (Philippians 3:10 KJV). Rather […]

On Christmas we remember and celebrate the birth of our Savior, what many think of as the beginning of his life. While it was the start of his life as a human being on this Earth, it was also a continuation of his eternal being. John chapter one tells us that he was in the […]

The birth of a child – what a momentous occasion. We love to talk about the births of our children. Our first born arrived after many hours of labor in a hospital and city where my husband and I knew no one. On that day before Thanksgiving, her tiny self sparked joy that has never […]