Joy in the Journey

  For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God Romans 3:23 For some reason it seems this verse is popping up everywhere I turn. I’ve heard it in sermons, at our family Bible study and read it in more than one devotional.   It’s true, we have all sinned. I’m not denying or arguing the veracity of the words.   Those words on their own are the quick and easy evangelism road. “Are you a sinner? Yes you are! ‘For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.’ It says so right in the Bible. Now what are you going to do about it?”           Left alone, presented that way, that precious verse is watered down, too easily ignored and basically just an ad for fire insurance. “Do you want to burn in hell? I didn’t think so!” Yuk! That’s what happens when we pull one little piece of Scripture and flail it around.   Look at it alongside the next verse.... “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory o...

  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 There are few things in this world of which I am absolutely certain. One of those is that I am saved by the grace and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ. Another is that He in His infinite kindness has blessed me with a wonderful husband.   My husband is not perfect and I can assure you that his wife is not either. We are great together and as I said, that is a huge blessing. I am thankful to need very few reminders of how blessed I am to have that man in my life, so it was extra heartbreaking for me when I watched a sad scene unfold in the grocery store yesterday.           As I entered the checkout line the man in front of me, next in line, with his things sitting right next to the cashier, went to stand a few feet away. Given that we are still in pandemic mode, I checked m...

  Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8 Submit yourselves then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. James 4:7   For some reason, don’t ask me, I couldn’t possibly tell you, I decided to do a little renovation project. Due to the fact that it involves a fairly large piece of furniture and some pretty noxious smells, I’m doing it outside on our porch.           When I first went out there this morning, I had the lovely accompaniment of bird songs. I had my music playing and the birds seem to just blend in with that, so precious. The second round was the same but on my third time out there a crow decided to throw a party. This may or may not be fact, but it appears that the way a crow summons his buddies is to squawk as loudly as possibly. LOUD! First it startled me, then it irritated me. “Shut up!” I yelled at it...

This is a rerun of an older message. I was reminded of it this morning and it seems that someone needs to hear this, to know that God loves you and is delighted to know you. So….. There She Is Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 1 Corinthians 13:12   Reading that verse this morning I was filled with joy at the idea of being fully known by God. This is a new experience for me. Any thought of God, of my Father knowing all about me has, up until very recently, made me quite uncomfortable, even ashamed. I’m human, all the way through and as such have done and said things I so very much wish I hadn’t. But God loves with perfect love. In the verses just prior, the very well known section of 1 Corinthians, it says, “it [love] keeps no record of wrong.” Thinking about that, about always, always, always being welcomed into my Father’s presence reminded me of...

    Jesus was in the stern sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” He got up, rebuked the winds and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to the disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” Mark 4:38-41 Have you ever tried to put yourself in that boat? I have.   What were the disciples thinking? “We’re all gonna’ die. We’re all gonna’ die!”   Then someone has the brilliant idea to wake up Jesus. By their reactions to his action, I can’t think they expected what happened to happen. I think they woke him up because he was the leader. It was his idea to go to “the other side.” Now it was his responsibility to get them there.   And he did!           At that point every...

  Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. Psalm 20:7   The name of the Lord is a fortified tower, the righteous run to it and are safe. Proverbs 18:10 Did you play tag when you were a kid? Do you remember home base or the safety spot? If you could get to that space before being tagged, in any given round of the game, then you were safe. No one could touch you.           I’ve watched as my students play that game and have even, on occasion been the “safe” space. They run and try as hard as they can to stay safe, to elude the catcher.           Sometimes I feel like my life is a bit too much like that childhood game. Running to evade or escape the plans of the enemy. Fortunately I have the same option as the players of the game, find the safe zone. Even better I don’t literally have to run.    ...

Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast. Ephesians 2:8-9 Just moments ago I read a message about the things God could have asked of us in order to secure our salvation.   It made me laugh because of course, the point was that grace is a gift. Grace is not something to be earned, thankfully, because none of us is capable of earning it.   It also made me laugh because of some experiences my husband and I have had at different churches.           In our search for a church home we visited a few places. One stands out as we attended there for several months. We were considering becoming members even though we weren’t quite sure it was the place for us.   Very quickly we would find out that it was not, nope, not at al...