Thoughts

The life of the Christian is thoroughly wrapped up in the providence of God. While it may seem that trials overwhelm and darkness prevails, He is constantly working in us, around us, and through us to accomplish His eternal purpose. The clay of the potter’s wheel must be pressed and molded into shape, but the […]

A friend of mine stepped out of this life and into his eternal home last night. If you compared the length of our friendship to my age, you would say it wasn’t very long, but it seemed that I had known him forever. Rob was a believer, a born-again child of God, and that made […]

Forgiveness – Letting go of the hurts of the past by releasing them into the hands of the Father; Refusing to pick the scab on the wound; Living in the cleanness of the moment instead of wallowing in dirty laundry; Removing the burr under the saddle rather than cherishing it to be irritated each time […]

I have a Kalanchoe plant that I have had for years. It usually sits on my front porch, and it blooms continuously. Without much water. Without any care. This plant just keeps blooming. Recently, I felt guilty about neglecting it and decided that it needed to be repotted. The leaves and stems didn’t look so […]

Six-year old Susan always found something to smile about. Even during serious moments there seemed to be a grin lurking behind her sparkling blue eyes. Her bubbly personality cheered the students in our first-grade classroom, and I looked forward to her joy each day. Like the day she came up in the middle of class […]

One of my favorite verses of Scripture is found in Matthew 28:1. In the end of the sabbath, as it began to dawn toward the first day of the week, came Mary Magdalene and the other Mary to see the sepulcher. As it began to dawn. The night had overpowered them and knocked them down. […]

A dew-pearled hill, an empty tomb, An angel’s radiance breaks the gloom. Birds awaken and start to sing Hosannas to the Risen King! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! May the Risen Christ grant you blessings of peace today. Happy Easter! I Corinthians 15:3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I […]

Anyone who has ever received a difficult diagnosis or known the heartbreak of watching a loved one die knows the agony of waiting. We wait for the results of the next test. We wait for the next treatment. We wait through symptoms, and reactions, and pain. We wait for a funeral, signaling our final severance […]

God does not fit into our rules and procedures and committee meetings. We can’t wrap Him up neatly, reach consensus, and place Him in a box. God is about love, and love is messy. Love places the receiver before the giver. It reaches to the unlovely and ungrateful and continues in the face of hatred. […]

You know what Jesus was thinking about the night before He went to the cross? You, and me, and all of the people who did and would follow Him. How do I know that? He prayed for us. It is right there in the middle of the seventeenth chapter of John. John 17:20 Neither pray […]

Today is Palm Sunday Eve, and I am thinking of my King. Today we will gather branches from the palmetto palm in our yard. I will arrange them for display on the porch in remembrance of Christ’s entrance into Jerusalem – that triumphant day before the darkest week when Jesus would pay the ultimate sacrifice […]

Psalm 46:10 Be still and know that I am God. Screams shattered the quiet as the toddler fought against the night terror that gripped him. His sobs reached his mother’s ears and brought her quickly to his bedside. Picking him up, her hand rubbed his back as she cooed whispers of love and safety. Gradually […]

If you spill a teaspoon of instant coffee, it becomes a half-pound on the floor. I should know, because this is how I began my morning. Who knew that one small teaspoon could cover ten square feet? Of course, I had to spill it beside the cabinet, so the granules scattered and stuck to every […]

There is no vaccine against this virus, but there is an antidote to fear and despair – READ.GOD’S.WORD! Psalm 27 is a good place to begin. Psalm 27:13 I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord In the land of the living. 14 Wait for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart […]

“I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” Matthew 28:20 “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as your have: for He has said, I will never leave you, nor forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5 He is with us. Wherever we are, whatever is happening – in […]

“You’ll get through this. It won’t be painless. It won’t be quick. But God will use this mess for good. Don’t be foolish or naive. But don’t despair either. With God’s help, you will get through this.” Max Lucado Isaiah 43:But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, […]

When darkness overwhelms my soul and day has turned to night, the Savior is my Rock of Strength and my eternal light. When all around my world is tossed, and I am torn and sore, I cling to Him Who died for me – this One Whom I adore. Often I find myself adrift on […]

Where is hope? Hope lives in the unchanging character of God and the absolute certainty of the resurrection. He alone holds my future. Where is grace? Grace streams from the agony of the cross, flowing into my empty, battered soul. He alone holds my forgiveness. Where is strength? Strength emanates from the presence of Almighty […]

In a world of darkness, God calls us to shine into the lives of the lonely; into the hearts of the hopeless; into the fears of the forsaken; into the despair of the desperate. Shine – for light will cause the roaches of evil to scurry for cover and illuminate the path for those struggling […]