Psalm 126:1-2 "When the Lord turned again the captivity of Zion, we were like them that dream. Then was our mouth filled with laughter and our tongue with singing: Then said they among the heathen, the Lord has done great things for them." There is incredible power in laughter. God laughs! I love to laugh, and I laugh loud, ask my family and friends (LOL!). My dog Benny...
Read MoreMary, Did You Know?
Luke 1:31 "And thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name Jesus."
If you’re anything like me, you want to know as much as you can about a new experience before moving forward. What's it going to be like at the new job. What the accommodations are like when you go away. Will I get along with the new neighbors? All the unknowns. Questions, questions, questions!
I Slept In and Saved Thousands
Proverbs 10: 22 (Amplified Bible) “The blessing of the Lord it makes {truly} rich, and He adds no sorrow with it {neither does toiling increase it}” We’re in the height of the Christmas shopping season! People are running all over town, or sitting for hours in front of their computer screen shopping for that got-to-have-it gift. Personally, I don’t have a problem with
Read MoreGrace Period
John 1 : 17 " For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ". Have you ever experienced a "Grace Period" in your life? A grace period is "a period of time after a deadline for an obligation, during which a late fee or other action that would have been taken as a result of failing to meet the deadline is waived. Grace periods can range from a number of minutes to a number of days and even longer". In the world's system...
Read MoreNot Guilty - All Charges Dropped
Romans 8: 33 "Who shall bring any charge against God's elect [when it is] God Who justifies [that is, Who puts us in right relation to Himself? Who shall come forward and accuse or impeach those whom God has chosen? Will God, Who acquits us?]". A few weeks ago I was driving in an area where the speed limit was 25 miles per hour. I had just pulled out of a 7-11 and headed down the road, going maybe 35 mph, I really wasn't paying attention. All of a sudden...
Read More"Whatsup"
Revelation 3:20 "Behold, I stand at the door and knock; If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to Him, and I will SUP with him, and he with ME" (Emphasis mine). "Whatsup" or "whasup", that's what my kids always would say to me years ago. "Hey dad, WHASUP?" It's a combination of two words, what's and up. Recently a beautiful family from a church that I had been privileged to preach at, invited me to their home for "supper"...
Read MoreWithout a Trace
Isaiah 43:25 "I, even I, am he who blots out and cancels your transgressions, for my own sake, and will not remember your sins". Trace: a surviving mark, sign, or evidence of the former existence, influence or action, a barely detectable indication or evidence of something left behind. That's exactly what...
Read MoreExhale
Genesis 12:2 (Amplified Bible) - “And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you {with an abundant increase of favors} and make your name famous and distinguished, and you will be a blessing {dispensing good to others}”. There's a really great song that says it all for me about grace, it's called Exhale by Plumb. Listen to these powerful lyrics...
Read MoreNo Sweat
Matthew 11:28-30 (Message Bible) “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me - watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace.” I love that, the unforced rhythms of grace. When it comes to exercise, I know that I’ve done an exceptional workout when...
Read MoreTeach Me Lord to Wait
Galatians 5:22-23 - "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. " I heard a very interesting fact recently that really changed my perspective about waiting. Ready for this?...on The Golf Channel! The presenter was talking about the recipe for success for winning a golf tournament. They gave many "ingredients", but the one that caught my attention was...
Read MoreThe Perfect Resort
Psalm 71:3 (Amplified Bible) "Be to me a rock of refuge in which to dwell, {and} a sheltering stronghold to which I may continually resort, which You have appointed to save me, for You are my Rock and my Fortress." Whether you made your summer vacation plans many months ago or several days ago, the anticipation of getting away is like no other. The countdown starts…
Read MoreThe Honeymoon is Never Over
Romans 5:8-9: “But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.” For those of you who are married, remember how wonderful your honeymoon was? I hope so! You and your spouse...
Read MoreSchool's Out for Summer
2 Corinthians 5:21 (NKJV) – “For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him”. My favorite moment of the school year was the minute the last exam was finished and I heard...
Read MoreThe New Adams Family
Colossians 3:3 – “For you died, and your new life is hidden with Christ in God”. Some of you might be old enough to remember the 1964 TV series, The Addams Family, about a rather different, shall we say, type of family...
Read MoreJust Bring Yourself
Hebrews 8:10 - "I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people". When I was single, I got a lot of dinner invitations to people's homes, and I would always ask them, "What can I bring?". Being that I wasn't the most domesticated bachelor, I couldn't bake, and I couldn't cook very well, they would always answer...
Read MoreError Message
Romans 2:4 – “…the goodness of God leads you to repentance”. For so long, Satan has trapped people into a sin consciousness, always thinking about what’s “wrong”, a performance based system of measuring our worth, accusing us of every little thing. That’s a lousy way to live, but so clever on his part. Why? He knows if he can...
Read MoreNo If's, And's or But's
Romans 8:4 – “That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.” You’ve probably heard the phrase “No if’s, and’s or but’s”, most likely from your…parents! It means “No excuses! If you don’t mow the lawn, you can’t go to the movies, no if’s, and’s or but’s!” Sound familiar? Maybe so, however, the way I’m thinking about this phrase is entirely different.
Read MoreAdding Fuel to the Fire
1 Corinthians 15:56 – “The strength of sin is the law”. Recently in the news was a story of a man that accidentally set fire to three cars while trying to get rid of bed bugs! The New Yorker was hospitalized after dousing the interior of his rental car with...
Read MoreSweatless Grace
Ezekiel 44:17-18 – “And it shall be, when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with bleached linen clothing. And no wool shall come on them while they serve in the gates of the inner court, and inside. Turbans of bleached linen shall be on their heads, and shall have bleached linen undergarments on their loins. They shall not clothe themselves with anything that causes sweat.” Did you ever buy a deodorant that didn’t…do what it was supposed to do, stop the sweat? I have...
Read More
Who's Your Daddy?
John 17:25-26 – “O righteous Father, indeed the world has not known You; but I have known You, and these have known that You have sent me. And I made known to them Your name, and will make it known, so that the love with which You have loved Me may be in them, and I in them.” In the movie Taken, Liam Neeson plays a character named Bryan, the father of a young adult girl abducted in Paris by a human trafficking ring. The outlook is not good as the daughter...
Read More