“To put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” (Ephesians 4:22-24, ESV) When my now college-age grand was still pre-school age, she was a very determined child. She wasn’t pushy or mean, just very firm in her likes and dislikes. When she liked something, she really, really liked it—to the point of holding onto her favorites forever. I discovered this when I…
“Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” (Esther 4:14, NKJV) Esther, the young Jewish exile who married Persian King Ahasuerus (Xerxes I), was in the right place at the right time to bring deliverance to her people. However, in the time leading…
“Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” (Colossians 4:2, ESV) When life gets busy and things on our schedule begin to slide, is prayer one of those things? Surely the Lord understands. Doesn’t He? I could quote statistics on how many pray daily, weekly, or whenever. I…
“But the righteous shall be glad; they shall exult before God; they shall be jubilant with joy!” (Psalm 68:3, ESV) All fairy tales seem to end with that wonderful line, “And they lived happily ever after.” As a child, we could read that line and then contentedly close our storybook, knowing everything in their lives would now be perfect. We love happy endings—especially our own. Everyone wants to be happy. Some think all is well when life is good and they can enjoy the many pleasures that money can buy. This means that circumstance, rather than any inner quality, defines…
“O my son, give me your heart. May your eyes take delight in following my ways.” Proverbs 23:26 Sometimes I over-complicate things. Okay, most of the time I over-complicate things. I have always struggled with trying to figure out “what does God want from me and for me?” To be…
“Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: Thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness; To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee for ever.” Psalm 30:11-12, KJV…