Joy in the Journey

But Jesus said, “It is written, ‘Man is not to live on bread only, but Man is to live by every word that God speaks.’” Matthew 4:4 Jesus said to the devil, “It is written also, ‘You must not tempt the Lord your God.’” Matthew 4:7 Our adorable youngest grandson, Luther, is about eighteen months old. A couple of months ago he discovered the power of the word please and he’s been using it ever since. When he asks for anything he quickly says, “I said please!” Which given his age sounds a lot more like “I said peas” but that makes it even more powerful. The problem is that in Luther’s mind, “I said peas” is an absolute guarantee of a positive response. Not so for poor Monkey, (my nickname for him). Imagine his reaction one day when he gave me his “I said peas” and I responded, “I said no.” He was shocked! How I dare I say no when he said please? Luther’s please, as precious, adorable and sometimes powerful as it is, follows the pattern of Jesus’ response to Satan. The difference bei...

You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. Genesis 50:20 The other day I heard the old song, “American Pie” by Don McLean. Toward the end of the song, he references, “the three men I admire most.” He goes on to identify them, “the Father, Son and the Holy Ghost.” If you look up the lyrics, those names are appropriately capitalized so, I suppose the writer has at least a passing respect for those precious names. I don’t pretend to know anything about his faith but I know his lyrics shine a spotlight on my own faith. I love running into words about God where you don’t readily expect them. There’s another old song called “Get Together” which contains the lyric “when the One that left us here, returns for us at last”, referring to Jesus’ return. I write fiction. Some of my characters are very strong in their faith and because of that, my readers come across Scripture and conversations about God. I know that ...

When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him he said to Phillip, “Where shall we buy bread for all these people to eat?” Jesus said, “Have the people sit on the grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). John 6:5, 10 “About five thousand men were there.” Five thousand men. That doesn’t even begin to address women and children. We have some pretty good indicators that there were women and children were there as well. The verses say, “people” not just men and they eventually get the starter food from a boy (verses 8-9). So how many people were there? If we say that even half of the men brought a wife with them that takes us to seven thousand five hundred. If each couple came with one child (highly unlikely that there would only be one child in each family) that adds another two thousand five hundred for a grand total of ten thousand and that is a low estimate. Have you ever gone to an outdoor event where there is a speaker? We don’t...

Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. James 1:17 The other day I was running low on paper towels. Realizing that fact, I became more aware each time I used one. Just the day before I would grab a paper towel and not think twice but once I knew that I was on my last roll, I became cautious. That made me think about God and how I handle all that He has given me. In several places in my home you will see the first half of the verse above, “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights.” Those words are followed by the reminder, “Remember to thank the Giver.” I have one on the door coming into our house from the garage. There’s one on the pantry door, one on the door to our bedroom, one on our hall bathroom mirror and maybe one or two more. If someone stops to read it and gives thanks to God, that is great. That is not, however, why th...

Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free. John 8:32 There is a list of words that I hope never to hear again, ever. Prominently on that list is mask. Wear the mask, don’t wear the mask, I hate the mask, the mask is necessary and on and on. Enough! In the last few weeks more and more places in our community are making the, well you know, mandatory. That has sparked more conversations, more use of the word. The other day as I was praying for complete transparency with God I had to give a little laugh. Masks. As we walk through the world we make adjustments. I wouldn’t say that at work, wear that to school, talk to my parents that way or let my children hear me use that term. We carry ourselves differently depending on our level of comfort in our circumstances or with the people involved. We protect our hearts. We hide. How do we do this? Masks! These may not be the over the mouth and nose kind of masks but they do the same thing. Our mental and emotional cover...

  Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know. Jeremiah 33:3 This morning I was thinking about how little people see each other.   I don’t mean that we aren’t together. It’s more of a level of observation thing.   There are people in our lives who cross our paths every single day.   Do we truly see them? Think of the person closest to you, someone you see every day. What is that person wearing today? What did he/she wear yesterday?           I will never forget picking my oldest son up from Junior High, many, many years ago.   At that time I worked in an elementary school and so, left the house before he did. Getting to his school that afternoon I realized that I had no idea what he was wearing and in the sea of faces pouring from the building that would have been very helpful information.   The longer it took him to come out to the car, the greater the...

  “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemies.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Matthew 5:43-44 Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. Colossians 4:6 Grace and peace be ours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. 2 Peter 1:2   There’s a lot of talk, too much talk, right now in the world about germs and viruses and the spread of both. This morning I am expecting to see five of my grandchildren. As I was praying to be a blessing to them today a thought occurred to me, it’s a little silly but hear me out.           When some of the children are here it’s as if I’ve grown a third leg.   I can easily stop and have some little body slam into me, they stay that close. Often when I’m washing dishes or washing my hands, there’s a little one a...