Help is On the Way
“The Lord hears His people when they call to Him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles”— Psalm 34:17(NLT). When I saw flashing lights from law enforcement officers parked in the middle of the road, I did a double take. My mouth fell open as I saw why they’d stopped. A pickup truck was stranded on the highway with only three tires. The fourth was lying in a nearby ditch. Since I didn’t see a jack propping up the vehicle, I assumed it had fallen off while in transit. After arriving home, I couldn’t get the picture of …
Encourage One Another to Grow Stronger in Faith
“So, encourage each other and help each other grow stronger in faith, just as you are already doing”— 1 Thessalonians 5:11(ERV). Meeting over lunch with a Christian friend, I wanted to encourage her during her time of uncertainty and need. She’d lost her job and was now working at our church as the senior pastor’s administrative assistant. However, the pay was much less than her previous job. Since I could relate, I shared stories of how God had provided for me after I retired almost 20 years ago. After taxes and health insurance, I could barely meet my needs. I’d …
Prayer is Our Most Powerful Weapon
“Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer”— Romans 12:12 (ESV). How often do we find ourselves helpless in a situation, then throw up our hands and give up? Some might say, “All we can do now is pray.” I’ve found myself saying that at times. Quickly, however, I’m reminded by a holy gentle tap on the shoulder that prayer should be my first response. Not my last. How easily we forget the power of prayer. A recent reminder in one of Billy Graham’s devotionals stated, “We have learned to harness the power of the atom, but …
Even Before Creation, God Loved Us
“This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins”— 1 John 4:9-10 (NIV). In a recent devotional I read in Billy Graham’s book titled Hope for Each Day: Words of Wisdom and Faith, Graham opened that day’s devotional with the following words: “God’s love did not begin at Calvary.” The opening paragraph continued. “Before the morning stars sang together, before …
Did You Know You’re God’s Masterpiece?
“For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago”— Ephesians 2:10 (NLT). Until a neighbor posted the following on social media, I’d planned to toss the small wood scraps from a project still under construction in my backyard: With spring coming and people cleaning, getting rid of things and sprucing up, I wanted to see if anyone ends up wanting to toss empty paint cans, furniture you want to get rid of or any wood items. I would love to take them off …
Fear Not For God is With Us
“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me”—Psalm 23:4 (NKJV). As my dog and I huddled underneath a makeshift tornado shelter in my bedroom, I was listening for weather updates on my cell phone. Meteorologists were releasing tornado warnings for our area of northeastern Oklahoma. Yes, in February, we were experiencing wicked weather. Since experiencing a May tornado hitting one of my previous houses in 2016, I knew to prepare, thanks to the warnings. Harley and I rode …
Well Done, Good and Faithful Servant
“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!”—Matthew 25:23 (NIV). It wasn’t like any funeral service I’d ever attended. Instead, it was a celebration of a friend’s life—a life well-lived. I can only imagine when she met Jesus face-to-face. Standing there to greet her, I’m sure Jesus was smiling. Then, those words we all hope to hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant.” During the celebration of Terri’s life, there were tears and laughter as six …
There’s Hope for the Brokenhearted
“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit”—Psalm 34:18 (ESV). For more than five months, one of our church members was ill. Despite the loss of two teenage grandsons, she was a spirit-filled joyful woman. She gladly volunteered at church and in our community, and those who knew Terri were richly blessed by the love and care she showed those around her. Since Terri became ill, I stayed in touch through text messages. Through her next-door neighbor and Terri’s replies to my inquiries about her health, I knew she was struggling. She was waiting to …
Knowing the One Who Always Keeps His Word
“For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil”—Genesis 3:5(NIV). We all know people who have broken their promises. If you follow politics, you know it happens more times than we can count. But we all fall short because we, too, are promise breakers. Just like Adam and Eve were tempted by Satan in the garden, we all fall prey to our human condition. Knowing we’ve given in to our selfish desires, we lose the peace that comes from obeying God. In Adam and Eve’s …