Devotional

You Are My Witnesses 10 “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. 11 I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior. 12 I have revealed and saved and proclaimed— I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my…

Walk With Me And I will walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my people. (Leviticus 26:12 ESV) Leviticus, for many of us is a challenge. What’s going on in the text? There’s so many instructions that seem to be pointless. When you offer a wave offering or a grain offering, or a sin offering, you have to do it this way. And somewhere in the middle of all this my brain clicks into drone…

Obedience I must be one of those people that God gives special gifts too. A few years ago, we were given the Distinguished Service Award, here at Spokane First. About two weeks before it happened, I walked into the sanctuary, just me and God. I knew that we were getting this prestigious award.   I told my husband Wyatt first, and then I called Wayne, our son in Louisiana.  I said, “guess what? I know who is getting this award.” It…

In Matthew 6:6 Jesus says, “But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your father who is unseen.” I’ve been praying since before I can remember.  That doesn’t mean it’s always been easy.  Since high school, I’ve been told that to be a good Christian I needed to have “my devotions” every day, to read my Bible and pray without fail.  That was hard to me, that was a real struggle.  For many years…

  Then Herod summoned the wise men secretly and ascertained from them what time the star had appeared. (Matthew 2:7) What would you do if you were the wealthiest person in human history? Would you buy a nice house, standing on a high hillside overlooking the city? Would you buy influence in the political sphere with gifts of support? Would you travel the world viewing the magnificence of various cultures and their storied histories? What would you do? Herod was…

“I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.” – 3 John 1:4 This verse has stayed close to my heart ever since I became a parent. I pray daily that my children will walk in the truth, and Scripture makes it clear that we, as the adults in their lives, share a responsibility: to help them know Jesus as their personal Savior. We are called to raise up the next generation of…

Questions Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said, “Teacher, I want to see.” Jesus said, “Go, your faith has healed you.” At once he was able to see, and he began to follow Jesus on the way. (Mark 10:51-52) This week I started two new books. One is an audio book for my work commute. In that book, the author spent some time reflecting on the questions that Jesus’ asks. She…

I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. (Psalm 119:11 ESV) It was a little wire-bound notebook that would fit easily into a shirt pocket. Mine was green and I used an eraser to mark the green cover with two words—Bible Principles. I was either fifteen or sixteen years old at the time and each morning we would read a short passage of scripture and have some time to consider what thought…

“Looking at his disciples, he said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you will be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh. Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in…

I don’t know about you, but I’m not good at waiting, particularly like waiting in line.  Every person in front of you and every person in back of you is wondering how long this is going to take. In the grocery line, does that checker have to be so nice to every person?  If he or she could be a little less friendly, and pay attention to the task at hand, maybe we could get through this line.  You know at this point if you decide to change to the next…

You’ve seen the Bible picture illustrations of the Israelites traveling through the desert wilderness led by a small column of cloud out in front of them. It was a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. What a miraculous experience it must have been to be led in such a way. Many of us love to lay out in the sun, especially on a warm beach somewhere, but I’m more of a shade guy, I…

1 Peter 3:8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. There was a season in our lives together that Cas and I went out on a date once each week. I looked forward to those times when we would sit across the table from each other and allow the conversation to flow easily from one subject to another, laughing, listening, learning, and growing. We had kids in the house…