Have you read Isaiah, chapter nine? It’s a little famous this time of year because of verse 6 which says, “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder, and His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” But I want to ...

What is it about putting up a few twinkle lights and decorations that make us breathe a little slower and smile a little more? I remember growing up and driving to my grandma’s house. She had been a widow my entire life. She lived simply but her house was full of love (and good food). Going to grandma’s house was ...

There are certain phrases so common that almost anyone could fill-in-the-blank. For example, if I said, “If you can’t say anything nice…” you could finish that sentence with “…don’t say anything at all.” Or how about: “A picture is worth… a thousand words” or “Better late than… never.” I was thinking about this because when my heart whispers, “Bless the ...

As I was contemplating whether I should share something with someone or not, the Holy Spirit whispered to my heart: My grace in you helps you give grace to others. I immediately thought of 1 Peter 4:8, “And above all things have fervent love for one another, for ‘love will cover a multitude of sins.'” Love covers. Love doesn’t have ...

“For what the world says is wisdom is actually foolishness in God’s eyes. As it is written: The cleverness of the know-it-alls becomes the trap that ensnares them” (1 Corinthians 3:19 TPT). Has someone ever made a comment on something that made you question yourself? I imagine that has happened to all of us at one time or another. I ...

How many times has the grace of God appeared, as if out of nowhere, to help us? I can think of so many times when I sat in sheer gratitude for the love and grace of God in my life. I recently took a couple of trips to Colorado and being from West Texas where everything is flat, my eyes ...

As Christians, we know God has called us to reflect Him to the world and to each other in love, kindness, strength, peace, and so forth. We could say, it’s expected. Not that it’s always easy, but for the most part, we understand these expectations. So I understand that my decision to choose love, have patience, forgive others (and myself), ...

Are you a note-taker? Do you like to write in journals? I realize not everyone is, but I stumbled on something that made me pause and think, wow I think we’ve missed the real power of this. Let me explain. In Paul’s first letter to Timothy, his purpose was to encourage his young protege as he led one of the ...

We become what we believe about ourselves– not what others say, or even what God says, but what we say and believe about the person reflected in our mirror. Do you know the verse that explains this? Proverbs 23:7 says, “For as he thinks in his heart, so is he.” This isn’t a hard principle to understand. Even Jesus said, ...

Deeply or sincerely felt. As I read through a handful of prayer requests, I was reminded of a verse in the Book of James: “The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working]” (James 5:16, AMPC). Heartfelt. I don’t know the origin of this word but its very descriptive, isn’t it? Just ...