For to us a child is born,to us a son is given;and the government shall be upon his shoulder,and his name shall be calledWonderful Counselor, Mighty God,Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. (Isa. 9:6 ESV) My worst Christmas was the year we almost had a white Christmas. Snow is a rare event in southern Louisiana. And snow on the ground for Christmas—well, that only […]
“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the […]
When You’re Fighting a Losing Battle…God is Victorious “The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but the victory belongs to the Lord.” (Proverbs 21:31 ESV) I just can’t win, I thought. I’m fighting a losing battle. In my wildest worries, I never expected to find myself struggling as a newly single mother of two college-age […]
For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Heb. 4:12 ESV) I winced. Here comes the needle. I’d already been poked earlier that day, and the phlebotomist had had trouble finding a […]
When Your World Flies Apart, Jesus is the… U – Upholder of All Things “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him […]
(This blog first appeared as a guest post for restore-ministries.net under the title “Courage” in February, 2016.) Not too long ago I received a gift from a couple of my friends. It is a Willow Tree “Angel of Courage,” a simple six-inch statue of an angel with wire wings. Her fists are clenched and her […]
When you don’t know who’s telling the truth, God is… T True and just And I heard the altar saying, “Yes, Lord God the Almighty, true and just are your judgments!” Revelation 16:7 (ESV) Not long ago, I read a quote from a high-level infectious disease expert lamenting what he perceived as an “anti-science” bias. In his […]
“The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.” Psalm 23:1 Troubled. Lost. Unsure of what to do next. In the darkness, I fumbled for my phone. The numbers read 3:00. A few seconds later, the cuckoo clock in the den chimed three times, a confirmation that my eyes had not deceived me. I squirmed […]
Four Reasons to Keep Praying I was sitting on my barstool, drowsily sipping my morning coffee and reading my Bible study, when this question jolted me: What was one of the most passionate or intense prayers you can remember praying? Immediately I recalled several intense prayer sessions. Sadly, not all of my heartfelt cries produced happy […]
Last week, the death of my sweet “mother-in-love” took us by surprise. Though she was 87, she had been in relatively good health. Then with one sudden stroke, she was gone. The funeral was a bittersweet event. Those of us who loved her gathered to celebrate her life and trade stories about her. We laughed […]