Devotional (Page 22)

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vineyard keeper… 4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. A branch can’t produce fruit by itself, but must remain in the vine. Likewise, you can’t produce fruit unless you remain in me. 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, then you will produce much fruit. Without me, you can’t do anything.” (John 15, CEB) At our recent teen…

Choose Joy In God’s Presence This phrase comes to my lips, and brain often. Most of the time when I am gritting my teeth, chewing my nails, tapping my foot or closing the car door a little bit too firmly. I know that God has blessed me greatly, I get that everyone has tough seasons and that while I am not going to be “happy” every moment, I can always “choose joy”. “You teach me the way of life. In…

As we begin to reflect on those special moments in life such as completing a college degree, planning a wedding, preparing for the birth of a child, we focus on every little detail of what needs to be planned out. In doing this planning we might make a list, think of the “what ifs”, contact loved ones, and share the joy of it all with others. All the preparation that we put into the long process of planning is often…

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.” (1 John 1:7) We will begin a new series this Sunday. We will look at the Book of 1 John. As I read at God’s Word, it’s like spiritual nutrition. 1 John is a small portion meal to be enjoyed slowly. The contents of the book are to be…

As many of you know I am from Arizona. This is my second Christmas and New Year that I have lived in Spokane and the journey of identifying “home” has become more complicated. My heart longs for home, which I still refer to as Arizona. Some may think that I should be over this longing since I have been here almost two years, but I don’t think the longing will ever leave my heart. You see I literally grew up…

“Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes; I will wall her in so that she cannot find her way. She will chase after her lovers but not catch them; she will look for them but not find them.” Hosea 2:6–7 When Gomer, the Old Testament prophet Hosea’s wife, continued to chase after other lovers, God placed a hedge of thorns around her, keeping her from finding adulterous relationships and eventually driving her back to her husband. Job, on the…