Is there anyone who doesn’t need a blessing? What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think about needing a blessing? The words “bless, blessed, or blessing” can be found in the New Living Translation of the Bible 427 times. The first is in the first chapter of Genesis, and the last is…
Last time, we focused on a list of questions to ask weekly, that will help us reach our goals. But it’s been a while since we’ve talked about the blessings of setting life goals. C. S. Lewis wrote… “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” Tony Robbins…
Do you have a list of helpful questions you ask yourself as you prepare for the coming week? Do you ever get to the end of the week – knowing you wanted to make changes only to realize you frustratingly repeated several self-sabotaging bad habits? Maybe you want to get a new job, exercise regularly,…
Have you seen the videos of people rewarding people for showing kindness to a stranger? I had a surprise moment several years ago. I stopped by a local store to buy a screen saver for my iPad. I don’t remember doing or saying anything special, although I typically try to remember to smile and say…
Everyone faces disappointment. Circumstances may be disappointing. People may disappoint us. And more often than we care to think about … we disappoint ourselves. What are we supposed to do when we’re disappointed? We all know how it feels but how do we describe what it is? The dictionary defines disappointment this way: Children know…
It’s nothing new. People have disagreed since Adam and Eve left the Garden and that has always included people of faith. Even though we want to have peace … disagreements happen. But that doesn’t mean we have to get used to them nor does mean we should accept them. Paul was inspired to challenge a…
What do you value most? Is there something or someone you believe you can’t live without? Do you struggle with idol worship? There’s a verse in Exodus 20 that tends to be overlooked. Most of us have the 10 Commandments memorized but the most common list omits the second part of the first one. “You…
How would you like to learn a quick and easy way to bless your prayer life? Just imagine All day long you listen to requests. “Please help me. Please give me. Please. Please. Please.” Oh, there is the occasional thank-you but it seems they’re always in a hurry. There’s never any time for real conversations….
Do you have times when your need is so great or you’re so emotionally invested that you don’t know what to pray? Times when it’s hard to put your need into words or you’re not even sure if what you think you need is … what you need? I can remember one time in particular…
For many, Mother’s Day is a day to celebrate but for others … not so much. Simply put – we all have to manage the blessings and challenges of Mother’s Day. So, we’ll look at both… Let’s start with some positive words of truth to encourage us on the motherhood journey… A Poem for Mother’s…
This is unconditional help for the one who… This is unconditional help for the one who… This is unconditional help for the… This is… Verses and prayers of God’s overwhelming love and unconditional help. 5 Verses to Pray…God’s Overwhelming Love and Unconditional Help John Bunyan wrote… “No child of God sins to that degree as…
If you look at my hands closely you’ll see scratches, puppy nips, a few age spots, and a few scars. Those are visible reminders of past events. What you won’t see are the scars on my heart from loss, lies, accusations, betrayal, and rejection. Those are the emotional scars I tend to keep to myself. Why?…
Always be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again—rejoice! Philippians 4:4 So, how’s that going for you? Do you find your joy in Jesus? If Jesus was all you had would you still be joyful? Did you know Paul wrote his letter to the Philippians from a Roman prison? Is it possible…
On a scale of 1-10, how good are you at living in the moment? How often do you replay or fret about the past? How much time do you spend worrying about the future? There’s a phrase that Rev and I repeated often… “I don’t want to lose today because I’m clinging to yesterday or…
What does it take for you to live your self-worth? Every advertisement wants us to believe we’re not enough. You and I can’t look at our phones, open our laptops, or walk into any store without being bombarded with ads that tell us we need to purchase their products because without them we’re not ……
I don’t know about you, but it’s hard for me to imagine a time when I would need to be bold that I could also experience peace. I think of being bold, strong, and courageous in times of crisis and the words peace and crisis do not typically go together in my world. Peace is…
Are you tired? Do you feel like giving up? I’m here to tell you … don’t! Don’t give up! It’s easy for us to look around and wonder what in the world is going on. Inflation. Wars and rumors of war. Crime. Relationship failures. Illness. Debt. Loss. Failure. Weakness. Sin. And on and on and…
If I asked you to think of someone who has integrity, would it take a minute or two … or would a face and name come to mind immediately? Wikipedia defines integrity as… The quality of being honest and showing a consistent and uncompromising adherence to strong moral and ethical principles and values. And study.com says… Someone who…
I’ve had several seasons of life when I worried and whined about what was lacking in my life … times when I believed that if God didn’t give me my heart’s desire, I would never be happy again. The Lord was so patient with me. Personally, I would have grown tired of watching and listening…
I don’t know about you, but I can be my own worst enemy. Why is it so much easier to think about wh0 I’m not rather than remembering God’s unchanging truth about who I am? You’d think that after years of living with this bad habit, I’d learn to consistently take my negative thoughts captive…
I can’t tell you how many times in the past few months I’ve cried out to the Lord praying, “I can’t do this. I need You.” Life is hard sometimes, isn’t it? I hate the storms of life! I want clear skies and still water but like the disciples in the boat when the storm…
