A stronghold is an area in which we are held in bondage to a certain way of thinking. A stronghold means a fort or fortress; a fortified place and place of security. Strongholds are formed from our thought patterns of imaginations, logic, emotions and perceptions. When sin or emotional wounding…
Recent Devotions
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.” John 10:27 For many years loud noises bothered me, and I thought my hearing was excellent. As the music in church became louder and harder to listen to, I made a choice. Rather than staying home or getting frustrated, I used earplugs. By blocking some of the volume, I could enjoy the service so much better. But as we get older, our hearing deteriorates. It does not happen overnight. We are not aware of it, until we find ourselves asking people to repeat what they have said.…
“Dead flies cause the ointment of the apothecary to send forth a stinking savour.” Ecclesiastes 10:1 I’ve often thought about the picture Solomon gives us in this verse. The ointment of the apothecary was valuable, fragrant, and carefully prepared. Yet something as small as a dead fly could contaminate it…
“To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven.” Ecclesiastes 3:1 There’s a shift in the air; even though it’s still 90 degrees in Maryland, I can sense autumn drawing closer. It seems like the gentle zephyr of crisp air is going to…
Readers Loved
Deep in the heart of China, a small bent-shouldered elderly man slowly walked between ribbons of train tracks. As I watched from a distance, a train approached at great speed behind him. It drew ever closer to the lone traveler, and its piercing whistle began to sound a warning. Yet the elderly gentleman continued walking between the set of tracks, seemingly unaware of the terrible danger he was in and the death that would befall him if he didn’t move away from the tracks. I looked on in consternation and bewilderment, thinking, Why doesn’t he move off the tracks? Doesn’t…
“While Ezra prayed and made this confession, weeping and lying face down on the ground in front of the Temple of God, a very large crowd of people from Israel—men, women, and children—gathered and wept bitterly with him.” (Ezra 10:1, NLT) After years of exile in Babylon, Artaxerxes, king of Persia, decreed that any of the people of Israel who desired were free to return their homeland. Ezra, a priest and scribe, led a group of fellow Jews back to Jerusalem. Their journey took four months, but they were finally in the land God had given them long ago. What…
“Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.” Matthew 16:24-25 Because of who you are, I give you glory. Because of who you are, I give you praise. Because of who you are, I will lift my voice and say, Lord, I worship you because of who you are. We began this week by asking ourselves if we loved the Lord…
Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men. 2 Corinthians 3:2 I did not think that sharing my life through writing would be so scary. Who knew that writing devotions would make my heart race? After all, they are only words on a page, right? Well, they are more than words on a page, they are pieces of my heart and fragments of my life’s story. I want people to know they are not alone in their struggle or victory. Like Paul said, “weep with those who weep and rejoice with those who rejoice,…
