Recent Devotions
They stood on the edge of the cliff looking over to see the dark water below. The pounding of the waves crashing against the rocks drowned out all other sounds except the intense beating in their chests. It didn’t look quite this high from the safety of their boat below, which was now floating several hundred yards away. The plan was to jump together. After all, this was vacation – they wanted to live a little. Have a good story to tell. The longer they stood on the edge, the longer the line behind them grew. In their impatience, kids…
One afternoon, a father went to pick up his son from school. He was eager to ask about his son’s day because there were always animated stories about playground life, cafeteria food, and even the occasional heartbreak. He was quickly learning that the life of a 3rd grader was extremely…
“You spread out our sins before you—our secret sins—and you see them all.” (Psalm 90:8, NLT). A friend of mine was never very good at following doctor’s orders. When appointment time came, his guilty conscience kicked in. On that day, he would sleep a little longer and eat a lot…
Readers Loved
“Everyone whose heart stirred him to action and everyone whose spirit was willing came . . .They came, men and women alike, all who had willing hearts . . .The Israelites brought a freewill offering to the LORD, every man and woman whose heart was willing to bring materials for all the work that the LORD through Moses had commanded them to do.” (Exodus 35:21-22, 29, New English Translation) What things excite you? Stir you? Make you want to get involved? For some people, it’s politics. Others are passionate about the arts, a sports team, religion, or environmental issues. It…
“So Boaz took Ruth, and she was his wife: and when he went in unto her, the LORD gave her conception, and she bare a son. And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the LORD, which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman, that his name may be famous in Israel. And he shall be unto thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age: for thy daughter in law, which loveth thee, which is better to thee than seven sons, hath born him. And Naomi took the child, and laid it in…
For the Lord is righteous, he loves justice; the upright will see his face. (Psalm 11:7, The Message) Just when we think we have life figured out, something happens that throws us for a loop. In those moments we have a very important decision to make. We can use the situation to either draw us closer to God or allow it to make us weak. God is not out to get us. He only wants what is best for His children. In the end, everything will always work out if we keep our eyes on Him. Prayer: When faced with life’s struggles,…
“And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; II Peter 1:6 The third step in our journey towards becoming more like Jesus is temperance. Just what does that word mean to us? In the 19th and early 20th centuries, one of the larges and most influential women’s groups in our country was a movement called the Women’s Christian Temperance Union. It was a social and political campaign advocating moderation or total abstinence from alcohol, prompted by the belief that drink was responsible for many of society’s ills. I wonder how many of these women would feel…
