“All the believers lifted their voices together in prayer.” Have you ever had one of those days where everything seems to go wrong? The day begins normally until you arrive at work and the boss calls you into her office. Grilled for half an hour about a situation that happened the day before, you are…
“the man was holding tightly to…” “Holding tightly” stirs one image in my mind, but two different scenarios. The image is fingers fastened around an object intensely enough it would take a set of plyers to peel them off. The first scenario is out of sheer fright; a fear gripping terror locked in from the…
“I will speak tenderly to her.” One of the most exhilarating experiences in life is to live a moment when we realize the God over each cell in our bodies is also over each star in all the galaxies, that God has spoken to us. We’ve been praying, asking, looking for God, and the moment…
“Cast your burden on the LORD.” Hiking is an outdoor therapeutic adventure for me. Moving to north Georgia has provided an all-you-can-eat buffet of opportunities for new quests to conquer. A short hike requires simple gear like the classic fanny pack carrying the basic bug spray, protein bar, water bottle, and phone/camera. A longer hike…
God’s Word Gives Hope LISTEN “keep on praying” “Keep on praying” is our final effort in the list of three actions, Christ-followers are encouraged to take, found in verse 12 of Roman’s chapter 12, “Rejoice in our confident hope. Be patient in trouble, and keep on praying” (NLT). At first, we may treat this step…
LISTEN “Be patient in trouble” The last thing we want to hear while going through a difficult situation is to be patient. I am the last person to be writing about patience as my natural tendency is to challenge, resist what I do not like, and search for a strategic solution to change the situation…
Listen “Rejoice in our confident hope.” My third cycle through seasonal depression has reminded me of the pain and struggles those with depression experience. Shame, isolation, avoidance of social interaction, tears shed in secret, and an overall lack of motivation making even the simplest of tasks seem monumental; these are a few of the symptoms….
LISTEN “In the beginning, God created…” Silas finished painting the world the other day; it was a Social Studies project where he chose to create a poster-size map of the world labeling the continents and oceans. According to Silas, it had to be painted, no markers. One evening, while he worked and I made dinner, Silas…
LISTEN “You have stored my tears in your bottle and counted each of them.” “Mom, what are we supposed to do when we feel like crying? Are we supposed to pray or….” My daughter asked one night, after I had crawled into bed with her and held her tight, and cried like a baby stricken…
LISTEN (This was first posted as a reflection for Good Friday in April of 2012) “The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water.” Have you ever noticed when someone is uncomfortable; the first response is to do or say something to help minimize the discomfort. I find it odd…