Corona Devotionals

Psst!   I have a secret to reveal  to you.  Well, God wants it revealed , and He has given us the responsibility of proclaiming it. Are you in? "Secret" is God's word for this news, not mine.  And that's because in the past, everyone hasn't had the opportunity to know it and live  it...but we can (God's secret  has been revealed ). And God wants us to proclaim this secret to God's people. ...Are we down for joining in this responsibility ?   ...Are we ready to hear the secret  so that we can then proclaim it?                  Okay, then...Lean in.                                    A little closer... And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory.   ~Colossians 1:27 That's a doozy, isn't it?:   Christ lives in us.   And if we have already heard this secret ...wonderful.  Hopefully, it has changed our lives.   And now that we know  the secret ...we have a responsibility that accompanies the knowledge of i

Our middle child (apparently) learned to juggle this week.   He was learning the routine for an upcoming show that his high school group will perform, when he (wisely) decided that one of the assigned moves was not a prudent one for him, because u nfortunately, he has a thorn in his side.  And it's actually not just one thorn but two, and they aren't in his side, but in his knees. At (only) age 15, he has dislocated both knees once...and he isn't looking to do it again.   But what about the assigned steps that he was supposed to perform?   The ones that everyone else  would be performing...but that he couldn't? Sidenote : What do you and I  do when we have a ( physical/social/intellectual/etc.)  limitation?  I know what I do: I often feel sorry for myself and self-conscious.  I sometimes think not-so-nice thoughts about those who are not having any issues.  I even sometimes think not-so-nice thoughts towards God:  Why me?  What did I do to deserve this?   (Sidenote to

What  in the world  is happening  in our world?   Lord , you are searching for honesty.   You struck your people,  but they paid no attention.   You crushed them,  but they refused to be corrected.   They are determined, with faces set like stone;  they have refused to repent.   ~Jeremiah 5:3 What  in the world  is happening with our people... and our leaders ? ( 4)  Then I said, “But what can we expect from the poor?   They are ignorant.   They don’t know the ways of the  Lord .   They don’t understand God’s laws.   ( 5)  So I will go and speak to their leaders.   Surely they know the ways of the  Lord  and understand God’s laws.”   But the leaders, too, as one man,  had thrown off God’s yoke  and broken his chains.   ~Jeremiah 5:4-5   Is anyone looking to the Lord?  Are our leaders ?  Are we , the people?  His people. Is anyone listening  to what God has spoken ?   Our businesses, our schools, our government, our families, our marriages... ourselves: Too many no longer champion  t

One of my besties is on vacation this week, and she sent me a picture of the beach outside her window.   Let's go. No--I'm serious: let's take a break in our day and get away  with Jesus.  Who doesn't need a moment of relaxation and rejuvenation right now, and (Guess what?) we don't have to hop on a plane or drive hours to get there. Jesus offers us His peace  anytime  and anywhere  we ask. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  ( 29)  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.    ~Matthew 11:28-29 Let's let those words wash over us like waves at the seashore.   The Lord knows that we get battered by the storms of life and crushed by its waves sometimes.  But we serve a God who is mightier  than anything we face, and He invites us to step-away with Him in spirit right now.  He reminds us of His power and might.   We do not face anything alone today. Mig

What kind of " seed " are we?   Here is a better question: What kind of seed do we want  to be today and  in five years ? Again Jesus began to teach by the lake. The crowd that gathered around him was so large... ( 2)  He taught them many things by parables, and in his teaching said:  ( 3)  “Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed.  ( 4)  As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.     ~Mark 4:1-4 Sometimes we don't even give God and His Word a chance .  We know He's here (somewhere).  We've heard there is wisdom in His Book (the Bible).  But we are not giving Him a foothold or cracking that Bible open.   As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.     ~Mark 4:4 Our boys attended a high school church conference with about 2,000 other young men and women last week.  They invited quite a few of their friends to come, and a number of them actually seemed interested.  I was

Dear Child of Mine,  This includes you....      Love, God No matter how long we have been at this "follower-of-Jesus" thing, there are some parts that never get old.  Namely, the part where God and His Son say, " This includes you... ".   They could choose anyone... The person who is worthy of the Lord is no one... And everyone I know deserves the  reconciliation that God brought through Christ more than me...but (brace yourself): God says, " This includes you " to me and you,  too.   It never gets old to hear that. It actually never seems possible, or logical, or even Biblical to hear that, no matter how often in our Christian-walk that we do.  But (perhaps), that's what God is repeating into our ears and hearts again today.   This includes you...  ~Colossians 1:21 ~~~ Let's allow the Bible to break it (salvation) down for us (again)...because it never gets old to realize. Christ is also the head of the church,  which is his body.   He is the beg

Have we been to the mountains lately?  Or ever?  To be up-close to them, or even to view them at a distance: they are glorious and majestic. Powerful in physical state, and in their aura too. And if we can imagine/remember/conjure the feeling and sense that we have when standing before a big, bold, mountain ...then the Psalmist asks us to keep-that-thought...and multiply it, as we consider the Lord our God:  You are glorious and more majestic  than the everlasting mountains.   ~Psalm 76:4 If we think the mountains  are strong...bold...amazing... our God is more .   More majestic  than the everlasting mountains. Scripture ( Psalm 76 ) tells us this today... why?   Because maybe we can/will/should consider a mountain today.  Whether on a trip and enjoying one, or even in our mind's-eye, imagining a mountain .  It is glorious and majestic ... but the Lord is more.   You are glorious and more majestic  than the everlasting mountains ( Psalm 76:4). But why else might God present this Sc