Recent Devotions
Then the man said, “The woman whom You gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I ate.” And the LORD God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?” The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” (Genesis 3:12-13, NKJV) I am always amazed at the number of special days that are commemorated in any given month. This month we can celebrate World Teachers Day, National Mule Day, and Treat Yo’ Self Day—just to name a few of the multitude of special days. If you aren’t all celebrated out by the end of the month, in…
So he departed from there and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen in front of him, and he was with the twelfth. Elijah passed by him and cast his cloak upon him. And he returned from following him and took the yoke…
“That is, that we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.” (Romans 1:12, ESV) I received a text message last week that said, “We need to get tea on the calendar.” I understood the message immediately. It meant we hadn’t talked in a while, and…
Readers Loved
“Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:” John 11:25 Four long days had passed. Two sisters sat sorrowfully in their home, mourning the loss of their beloved brother. On top of the sorrow, there were feelings of abandonment. Questions filled their minds as to why Jesus had ignored their messages about Lazarus being sick. They had fully expected Him to come quickly and heal their brother. Now Lazarus had been dead for four days and all hope was gone. Life would never be…
A photograph can stir memory and emotion. Most of us have had the experience of opening a photo album or rummaging through a box of miscellaneous keepsakes, and within moments we feel the emotion of a moment forgotten. Or, we sense the smell of our childhood home, a favorite spice or scent in the air. We are a composite of tens of thousands of memories, each of which, though seemingly forgotten, come to life again in unexpected ways. Parents daily create an atmosphere for their children. There are memories that shape their personalities, their spirituality, and their choices in life.…
“I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.” (John 10:14) Our first trip to the Middle East was a culture shock. Most of the passengers on Royal Jordanian Flight 264 were Middle Easterners. My husband and I were a minority on the airplane. Service announcements were bilingual, Arabic, and English. As we navigated through Queen Alia International Airport customs, we were greeted by chaos and less-than-clean bathrooms. Once outside the airport, our missionary hosts picked us up, and we headed to their home in Marj al Hamam. It was on the south side of…
I remember the conversation like it was yesterday. It was the first week of November 2005, and Mark had called out to our girls, asking them to join us in the living room. He began to somberly share that if God did not provide a financial miracle, we would need to end our AIM term in Estonia at least nine months earlier than expected. Costs had proven to be a bit more than the expected budget, and we had run out of funds. Candace, eleven years old at the time, asked her dad, “How much money do we need to…
