If the Lord delights in a man’s way, he makes his steps firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand. Psalm 22:33-34 This past weekend my family and I traveled to Pennsylvania to spend a bit of time with extended family. Because of Katelyn’s recent hospitalization, surgery and recovery, we had intentionally stayed home over Christmas. She is doing remarkably better, so we thought we’d slip up to PA to catch up with loved ones we had missed…
1 Corinthians 2:2 For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. re·solve /riˈzälv/ n. a firm determination to do something. So I’ve been trolling around Facebook looking at everyone’s New Year’s resolutions; at least those who were bold enough to post them. I’ve never been too good at holding to New Year’s resolutions. But there sure are a lot of great resolutions flying around this time of year- lose weight, diet, exercise,…
But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. Galatians 4:4 Time is a weird phenomena. It marches on unrelenting- sixty seconds in a minute, sixty minutes in an hour, 24 hours in a day. If I live to be 75 years old I will live 27,393 days, not a day longer, not a day less. Time never changes and cannot be stopped. …
In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, and the virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to [Mary] and said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God!” Luke 1:26-27, 30 Fear is perhaps our most primal emotion. In small doses it can be very helpful- alerting us to potential danger and suggesting a course…
All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: the virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel”- which means, “God with us.” Matthew 1:22-23 Every year as a family we try to read through the Christmas story from beginning to end in the month of December. My intent is to take a little time here and there- after meals, before bedtime, once a week…
“Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes. Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil. ~ Psalm 37:7-8 Two men sit in rush hour traffic. Each in their own car. It’s 7:15AM and the beltway has been reduced to creeping along at 5 miles per hour. It would have been a great day to try out those new toll express lanes, but…
“It is not good … to be hasty and miss the way.” Proverbs 19:2 Life in Northern Virginia happens at an insane pace. You see evidence of it all around you. I don’t often have to commute on I-66. But on the occasions that I do (usually in stop and go traffic), I see people texting, putting on makeup, reading the newspaper, eating breakfast, talking on their Bluetooth devices, and listening to the radio; all while they are supposed to…
“Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid.” Proverbs 12:1 Gotta love those proverbs. They don’t mince words. You hate correction and you’re stupid. Well, meet stupid! As I was reading this proverb this morning, the Spirit of God brought to my mind three specific incidents this week in which faithful friends lovingly confronted me with a fault, failing or weakness. Three! And it’s only Wednesday! Now, I don’t think these friends will even remember…
1 Chronicles 22:7-10 David said to Solomon: “My son, I had it in my heart to build a house for the Name of the LORD my God. But this word of the LORD came to me… ‘You are not to build a house for my Name… But you will have a son who will be a man of peace and rest… He is the one who will build a house for my Name… and I will establish the throne of…
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…. (Romans 12:2) Ever wonder why when you get into a really great novel, a favorite hobby or a good movie it seems like you lose track of time? As unfocused and distractible as most of us are, once we really get into something, it seems like our house could burn down around our ears without us even noticing! Natalie Phillips, an English professor at Michigan…