“…I make all things new.” Revelation 21:5. This week in Maryland has been wonderful; there is a gentle zephyr that invites warm weather, buds are forming on the ends of barren branches, and green shoots are rising from the ground—all promising a change in seasons. We have shining yellow daffodils…
“They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.” Isaiah 61:3, NIV. Small Beginnings Spring is only a few days away; a time of rejuvenation and new growth. Even the smallest seeds will take root and become a beautiful plant or tree.…
“Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand.” (Proverbs 19:21, ESV) My friend laughs at my list-making and calendar-keeping ways. She does neither. Oh, she sometimes tries to write things down, but just as frequently she forgets to…
“Sorrow is better than laughter, for sadness has a refining influence on us.” Ecclesiastes 7:3 I know, this scripture is usually recited in times of utter despair as a means of encouragement. While the above scripture is 100% true, it can be a hard truth to swallow in moments of…
When I was eight, Mount St. Helens erupted in fiery fury. Not long after, I read a book about the disaster. It told the story of Harry Randall Truman. This elderly man lived alone in a cabin at the foot of the mountain. The volcano began to rumble inside the…
“While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.” (Genesis 8:22 KJV) This is as it SHOULD be. It was God who, on the 4th Creative Day, made Days, and Seasons, and Years. God created this sequence,…
Seasons don’t last forever—they were made to END. “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:” (Ecclesiastes 3:1 KJV) I remember spring in Alaska—REAL spring, not calendar spring—when after the seemingly endless months of winter, the hardy little blades of grass would…
“Altared” – the devotional title is not a typo. Research data shows the percentage of regular church-goers is diminishing weekly, so congregations have upped their marketing game to get the unchurched masses through their doors. First-time visitors get bags of gifts, while church services are designed to offer comfort and…
“I have often wondered at the unaccountableness of man in this, among other things; that tho’ he loves changes so well, he should care so little to hear or think of his last, great, and best change too, if he pleases.” -William Penn- My husband often comes home to find…