Corona Devotionals

We can ask. Because, really...we won't know (or receive) unless we do.   We can ask today...for God's blessing.  And (even) for God's victory.   You do not have because you do not ask God.  ( 3)  When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.  ~James 4:2-3 We can ask...but we've got to be asking (living!)  in God's name , and for His glory--not ours.  Those are God's starting points.  And if we want  what He wants , then (He says)... ask Him. We often don't pray for a blessing for ourselves (for any number of reasons), but the Psalmist in Psalm 119 did. Please guarantee a blessing for me.  ~Psalm 119:122 He (most likely David) asked God to bless Him.  Maybe not everyday, but on the day that he wrote this Psalm, he asked God to  guarantee a blessing for  him.  He even said, " please" . What does this tell us?  Belov...

We've had some interesting occurrences in our house and hearts this week, and it has caused a reaction: of prayer.   For various reasons, from jittery-legs, to crazy dreams, to insomnia...I think we went about a week without my husband getting a night's rest.   And then one evening our fire alarm blared... for three beeps , and then ceased.  Our fire alarm has gone-off before, but the beeps are usually incessant and unyielding until a battery is removed, or the whole darn device is taken down.  But never (never) have we experienced three beeps and then silence. And don't forget the morning earlier this week when I came downstairs at 5:30 AM to begin my day in the quiet house while the rest of my family still slept, but...on this morning the house wasn't  quiet.  Our  basement television was turned on and blaring loudly up the stairs.   You are my refuge and my shield;  your word is my source of hope.  ~Psalm 119:114 I...

What does it take to "win" in life?  That's the golden question isn't it?  And the answer seems to be a secret to most.   How to prepare.  How to proceed.  How to decide/determine/detect which direction to go in, and which decisions to make?   What's the secret ?   Everyone wants to know how  to succeed, but few people ever figure out the secret or the steps, or the understanding  that leads to "winning" in life. The "secret" to figuring out how to live life well is that... it's no secret.  In fact, the instructions are all written out neatly for us in a book called The Bible.  Everything that we need to know, in order to succeed in life... (everything!)  is in there.   It's no secret at all---God shares His Truth plainly through His written Word, and if we will receive His instruction (Scripture), and better yet ...if we will live in community with others (family/friends/co-workers/ teammates) and...

Sometimes we need to dissect God's Word to better comprehend its meaning, and so we study the Bible to learn more.   Sometimes we need historical data or resources to shed light and to gain context so that we can comprehend the meaning of Scripture.   Sometimes we need a pastor, Bible teacher or a more-learned Believer to unpack the truth of a verse if we just can't "get it". But sometimes, like today , everything that we need to know about what God is saying in the verses is crystal clear in the verses.  God gets black and white about sin and righteousness and the Lord is literal and direct about what He accepts and rejects from us. No interpretation needed.   No history lesson necessary and no theologian required.   God is blatant in His delivery of His Truth and standards sometimes, and today (in 2 Peter 2 ) is one of those times.   For instance... what are we being taught in church ? If the answer is not "the Bible", then w...

Back and forth.   Back and forth.   I was baking pre-cut sugar cookies...and reading my Bible.   Put a pan of cookies in the oven... Set timer...Sit down and read the Bible.   Beep.  Beep.  Beep.  Nine minutes goes so fast.  But...they weren't done yet.  Another two minutes should do the (golden brown) trick.   Set the timer. Sit. Beep.  Beep.  Beep.  I had a lot of cookies.  Which gave me a lot of (divided) time for reading the Bible.  But on one rushing trip from Bible to oven, I knocked my water bottle off of the table where my Bible lay.  The water spilled onto the carpet...but did not soak in.  The liquid lay there in a pool, resting on top of the (non-waterproofed/non-stain-proofed) carpet.   Meaningless? Odd? Nothing worth noting? A symbol to me that God will not take a back seat to my chores and tasks?  Yes. I want you to show love,   not offer sacrif...

This is the message that was written: Mene, mene, tekel , and Parsin . ~Daniel 5:25 Numbered...weighed...divided... ~~~ God is holy .  And His things...His places of worship (our churches and the Temple, the house of God in Jerusalem ), His institutions (communion, marriage, family, baptism) that relate to Him are holy , and we must honor them.  We must honor our God.  The Lord expects respect for the things and places and institutions that represent Him. God is not deceived or mocked or blind to it when we do not regard Him and His institutions as holy. Many years later King Belshazzar gave a great feast for 1,000 of his nobles, and he drank wine with them. ( 2) While Belshazzar was drinking the wine, he gave orders to bring in the gold and silver cups that his predecessor, Nebuchadnezzar, had taken from the Temple in Jerusalem. He wanted to drink from them with his nobles, his wives, and his concubines. ( 3) So they brought these gold cups taken from the Temple,...