“You’re not making me want to do this,” I uneasily laughed. The pre-op nurse stood before me reciting a litany of risks of surgery: from possible infection, to cardiac arrest . . . to death. For a split second, fear gripped my heart. This was elective surgery. Do I really want to go through with this? Let’s face it . . . surgery brings anxiety. The uncertainties, the unknowns, the disruption of routines, the fear of pain . . . The hidden things in our hearts that leave us teetering on the brink of fear often surface during this time….
Last week, during our Midwest travels, my husband and I took a day to enjoy a bike ride along a quiet rail trail in western Michigan. Scenic and flat, it was my kind of trail, and despite the cold weather made for a pleasant outing. We arrived in a small town called New Era, population 800. After lunch at the village diner where we were obviously “out-of-towners”, we wandered next door to check out a health food/coffee shop. While waiting for the owner to make hubby’s afternoon espresso, we noticed a sign on her wall: C.O.F.F.E.E. Christ Offers Forgiveness For…
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matthew 6:19-21) In our western culture, common interpretations of this passage of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount suggest that “treasure” refers to money and all its material enticements. It offers no lasting security, because like moth and rust, it breeds decay and thieves may…
Enjoy and be blessed as four-year-old Tanner from Texas reminds us in this short video of God’s goodness and presence!
Do you ever feel like God’s love is far from you? Wonder if He has forgotten, even abandoned you? If so, you’re not alone. In Psalm 42, David laments his sadness and discouragement, crying out to God, his rock, “Why have you forgotten me?” Throughout this beautiful Psalm we observe the struggle as David acknowledges God’s goodness and love toward him, yet feels far from it. Isaiah 49 holds one of the most beautiful expressions of God’s everlasting love in all of Scripture—that we are indelibly etched on the palms of His hands. In verse 14 ancient Zion (Jesusalem) cries…
