“But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:57-58). Can we stress this part again: “…knowing that our labor is not in vain in the Lord.” ...
The Apostle Paul might have answered this question best when he said: “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify” (1 Corinthians 10:23). The Amplified Bible says it this way: “All things are legitimate [permissible–and we are free to do anything we please], but not all things ...
When you develop your relationship with the Holy Spirit and maintain a steady diet of God’s Word, the Lord will speak things to your heart. For example, I was praying and thanking God for a new day (one I desperately needed after feeling unnecessary pressure from the previous one) when this scripture rose up in my spirit: The blessing of the ...
“Is it about me? Or is it about them?” “Or is it about me being transparent to help them?” This was part of my conversation with the Lord this morning. As a writer, I want to help people. And because of that, I’m very aware of trends in writing and blogging and what the industry says is popular or necessary ...
This morning, as I sat and prayed, an old song came bubbling up out of my spirit: When I think about the Lord, how He saved me, how He raised me, how He filled me up with the Holy Ghost, How He healed me to the uttermost When I think about the Lord, how He lifted me up and turned ...
If you’re even a little bit of a Bible-studier than you’re familiar with the example James uses in describing the power of our tongue. He said, “A bit in the mouth of a horse controls the whole horse. A small rudder on a huge ship in the hands of a skilled captain sets a course in the face of the strongest ...
I was an 80’s girl. As a senior in high school, I chanted with my peers, “We’re gonna party like it’s 1999” and in 1987, future years like “1999” and “2000” seemed like a time-warp to the space age. But here we are, beginning 2018, and those space-age years are nothing more than history now. Thankfully, my understanding changed quite ...
One of my desires is to run my race with joy. Regardless of good intentions, it’s easy to slip into grumbling and complaining without even realizing it. We fuss about the finances or lack of time to accomplish our goals. Then we justify our complaining by trying to cover it up with “faith” and “prayer” when in reality we’re only ...
The Bible says, “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance” (Psalm 33:12). So what happens when the Christian majority is saddened that our nation, as a whole, doesn’t acknowledge or honor God? We recognize it for what it is… Welcome to the End Times. The Apostle Paul warned Timothy ...
I am a contributing writer for The Inspired Woman, a ministry based in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. It is a group of women in ministry who share personal, practical, and ministry-related ideas, devotionals, and more. One of our contributors, Kim Dillingham, shared her thoughts on Halloween and I loved how she answered this question: Is it Ghoulish or Godly? Kim said: ...
While attending a ladies Bible Study group, I was intrigued by a comment by one of the women regarding a statement from Lisa Bevere’s book “Fight Like a Girl.” She said, “I like how she said ‘Favor with God is realized in secret’ because too many times Christians seem to want to show off our Christianity in public and forget that it starts in private.” ...
“For many are called, but few are chosen” (Matthew 22:14). This may be one of the most questioned scriptures of all time. In fact, at a particular event I speak at regularly, a question about this passage was asked during Q&A more than any other. What did Jesus mean? Let’s start by looking at the words individually, and then the ...
Have you ever wondered (like I have) what Jesus meant when He said there will be some who will call Him Lord but He never knew them? I’ve studied this out before because if it’s possible to hear those words, I want to avoid whatever it is that would make Him say that to me. What I first discovered was ...
Part 1 | Part 2 2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation…” So how did we become new? Continuing from my last post, I want to explain what it means to be “In-Christed”–which is a biblical idea referring to the fact that we have been engrafted into Christ. Paul said in Romans 11:17-18, “Some ...
When I hear the word stray, I think of a lost dog– one who doesn’t have a home, a wanderer looking for its next meal. And then I think about people and the spiritual falling away that happens oh-so-slowly over time. I’ve been guilty of this myself. It’s not something we plan or even want to do. It just happens. ...
“In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it” (John 1:4-5). If you want to frustrate Hell, let your light shine! Recently, I was in our sanctuary with my husband and our daughter-in-love (who works as our Administrative Assistant) making preparations for a ...
Yesterday, while in my front yard, I noticed one of my new flowering plants was opening several of its buds and beginning to bloom more fully than the others. I was delighted because, although I was raised around those who are very good with plants, gardening is not my expertise. I had planted four of these particular flowers in a ...
Purpose, destiny, whatever you want to call it, we all have one. But what most people don’t realize is that we play a bigger role in that than we realize. Psalm 119:109 says, “My life is continually in my hand, yet I do not forget Your law.” Other translations read: “I always take my life into my own hands, but I ...