“By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.” Hebrews 11:8 I never get tired of reading Abraham’s story in the Old Testament. There are so many lessons we can learn from this man who was so faithful to God. He was willing to leave everything he had and start on a journey to an unknown place, simply trusting that the Lord would be with him. The Lord led him step by step until he finally reached the…
“Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” Psalm 119:105 I have always been intrigued by Psalm 119. God’s Word, or some equivalent description, is mentioned in all the verses except Verse 122. The writer expressed throughout the psalm that he at some point had gone astray and felt guilty, but he depended on the Word of God to lead him on the right path. He desired it more than food or gold. I remember beginning the practice of reading the whole Bible every year when I was just a teenager. I know I missed a few years but have certificates for the last twenty years. I confess that there have been times when I had to binge-read to meet the deadline. No matter how many times we read it, there are always things to discover, verses that we do not remember seeing before. Golden nuggets of truth appear in stories that we have read before. I mostly read it in the KJV but sometimes use a different translation. As I opened my Bible this year to begin reading, I decided to go more slowly, taking my time to digest what I was reading.…
This is the day which the LORD hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it.” Psalm 118:24. The news throughout the past year has been filled with stories of natural disasters – fires, floods, hurricanes. Several countries are at war and affect us no matter where we live. As we enter this New Year, there are many questions. What will it bring? One thing we know for certain: God already knows and whatever we face He will give us what we will need. Many people will be making resolutions – planning just how they are going to change their lives in areas of diet, exercise, and other things. Statistics show that most of these resolutions will only last for a few days or weeks. That idea that sounded so good on January 1, is not as attractive as the days go by. Rather than making resolutions that we cannot keep, a better idea is to choose some scripture verses that tell us what God has already provided for us to help us make this a good year. Read them regularly, meditate upon them, and claim them as your own. As you awake each day, quote the one above,…
“Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.” Titus 2:13 Because of our Christmas plans, I am writing this week’s devotions early. I will be traveling with my daughter and her husband to visit my son and family. We have been looking forward to it for weeks and anticipating the pleasure of spending time with them. It will mean a full day of traveling there and another full day returning. By the time you are reading this, we will be back home. Planning trips is always interesting, especially at this…
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” Proverbs 3:5-6 At my age, every day is a blessing from the Lord. I thank Him for the health and strength that He has given me. I thank Him for the confidence that I have that He is with me every day and my future is in His hands. I thank Him for the avenue He has given me to share my thoughts on this site. I thank Him for each one of you faithful readers who support us. May the Lord richly bless each one of you as we begin this new year. I would like to share the following poem with you. I had written it a few years ago but have revised it a bit. I trust it will be a blessing to each one of you. As a new year dawns before us, uncharted and unknown. We know not what each day will bring, but we do not walk alone. Trusting in our precious Saviour, His promise is secure. Knowing He’ll guide each step we take and lead…
“Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:12-14 KJV At midnight tonight, we will close the chapter on another year. It hardly seems possible this can be true; the year has sped by quickly. It seems like just a few days ago we were beginning the year. As we look back over the last twelve months, there have been some good times and some tough times. But through it all the Lord has been there for us, watching over us and meeting every need. He has been our Comforter when we faced times of mourning, our Counselor when we had decisions to make, our Encourager when things looked dark, our Physician in times of sickness, and our Friend when we needed Him. Our church theme this year was 24/7/24 – “living for…