Recent Devotions
“A glad heart makes a cheerful face.” (Proverbs 15:13, ESV) I discovered something today. The word smile is not in the Bible, or at least not in the King James Version. It does appear a few times in other versions, but usually in supplication for God to smile (shine) upon us. What caused this sudden interest in smiling? I saw a short clip online of an experiment in which someone would smile at a stranger on the street and wish them a good day. As you can imagine, some of the “smiled at” viewed the smiler with suspicion, while others…
Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? (I Corinthians 3:16, ESV) It’s January—that month when gym memberships rise as many resolve to become lean and healthy. It’s also the month churches focus on getting our spiritual life on target for the…
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” (II Timothy 2:15, ESV) In a recent conversation with a friend, she confided that things seem to be shifting in her feelings about her…
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One of the nastiest tasks that I volunteered to undertake at the church we pastored was to bring the aluminum cans home for recycling. You might ask how that could be nasty. All that’s necessary is to toss them in a recycling bin somewhere, right? Well, that would work, IF… Everyone would read and heed the signs! We had two trash cans in that particular area. One is clearly labeled, “ALUMINUM CANS ONLY.” However, what I brought home was a conglomeration of icky trash amidst the cans! Partly because I’m a little particular (okay, a LOT particular) about some things,…
“Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.” Matthew 5:6 I saw this quote today and thought it would fit into this very well: “Let your hands be so busy catching blessings, that there is no room to hold on to a grudge.” All of us like to be shown mercy, but when it comes to others, we want to see them get what they deserve. In this verse Jesus is reminding his listeners that God has been very merciful to them and in turn they should show mercy to others. David cried out to God for mercy because…
“A man’s heart deviseth his way: but the LORD directeth his steps.” Proverbs 16:9 The New Living Translation puts it this way: “We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.” Today we start a new month, the last one of this year. I am sure that we all have plans and ideas for the coming weeks. I believe it is necessary to plan our days, weeks and months. We need to have some goals to work towards. The important thing is that we talk to the Lord as we make those plans and ask Him to guide…
“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.” Acts 2:1 The Christian holiday of Pentecost, which is celebrated the 49th day after Easter Sunday, commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Apostles and other followers of Jesus Christ while they were in Jerusalem celebrating the Feast of Weeks, as described in the Acts of the Apostles. Wikipedia When Jesus told His disciples to tarry in Jerusalem until they would receive the promise of the Holy Spirit, they had no idea how long it would take. And they were…
