One of my favorite verses is one that deals with something hard for me to accomplish. That’s why I return to it often. Philippians 4: 6-7 reminds me that Paul, who suffered many distresses in his life and had every reason to be stressed, decided to drill this truth into himself and tries to make sure I understand it too. While I do not face anywhere near the difficulties Paul faced, I tend to return over and over again to…..
We serve a holy God. He is sovereign, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, and righteous. He is not “the guy upstairs” or the beneficent grandpa. The commandment says, You shall love the Lord your God. He is a jealous God. We must not have any other gods before Him. That means we need to keep our priorities straight and not entertain the idols that keep us from worshipping and serving Almighty God. His holiness is our measuring stick.
If we are truly…..
Ev and I took our grandchildren to an exciting presentation on Saturday. The topic was Whales and the presenter, known as the Science Guy here at Glenbrooke Senior Living, is a talented local teacher who loves exploring the living creatures in the world. This week’s topic was Whales, and while I thought I was somewhat knowledgeable, I learned as much from our granddaughters as I did from the presenter. They showed such excitement about the topic, and delighted those around…..
The Bible says Jesus came to take up our burdens and give us rest. It was not a good idea. One of the most beautiful choral pieces for this verse’s setting is in Handel’s Messiah. It is given to the soprano soloist with beautiful string accompaniment. “Come unto Him, all ye who labor. Come unto Him all ye who are heavy laden. And He shall give you rest. Take His yoke upon you and learn of Him. For He is meek…..
Let’s face it. The last evil to be conquered in this mortal life is death. Yes, it stings. Yes, it hurts. Yes, it’s what, indeed, makes us mortal. But, thanks to the resurrection of Jesus and God’s promises, there is more to life than what we know here, with death, tears, sorrow, depression, and lost hopes. Jesus allows us, no gives us the gift, of eternal worship of the Lord who conquered death.
Yes, our saints die. But the Psalms…..
Even Christians get depressed sometimes. When we are weighed down with family issues, troubling finances, newscasts, and don’t know where to turn, I’m here to tell us (me included) that God says He is always near, always hears our pleas in our prayers, and is a citadel against all forces that assail us. From my book, Restore My Soul Psalms, written especially for the season of Lent when we are self-examining our walk with Jesus, I deal with the things that hamper…..
When we think of restoring our souls, whether we’re just tired, not as attentive the the Word as we’d like to be, or bowed down in discouragement because of events occurring around us and to us, discouragement is a fact of life. As we strive for sanctification, the words of everything is find when we walk with Jesus sometimes sound jarring to us if…..
Whether is is the tragedy at Parkland school or the more recent one at a football win celebration, our hearts are tarnished, if not broken, by senseless killing and unrest. The human tragedy is that man is a sinful creature; therefore we live in a fallen world. Yet, those of us who are believers in Jesus know that this world is temporal, therefore temporary, and that while disappointments, whether personal or national, can teach us to number our days and…..
in 2024, Lent begins today and ends March 30. I have written a book called “Restore my Soul Psalms” for Lent. It is original psalms designed as prayers and a journal for you to record your thoughts in sketches or words to enhance your prayer time during Lent. I will post the Psalms each day here on my website or you can purchase your copy on Amazon or from me if you’re local.
MY PSALM 300: KEEP ME CLOSE
…..
Most of us stayed up too late last night. We’re a bit blurry-eyed, definitely tired, and either euphoric at come-behind victory or depressed, deflated, disappointed and in denial that the hard-fought contest is over and the outcome is now history.
The kitchen’s a mess. All the food prepared (most of it bad for our diets) was quickly stashed in containers, plastic bags, or stuck on dishes waiting for us to pry it lose and destroy the leftovers or keep munching…..