Bible Study

February 16 2023

When Is It A Good Time For A Christian To Be Pushy?

Sighing with frustration, I continued to press the very courteous, yet unyielding, customer service representative. Even though I understood he could only uphold his company’s policies, I hoped for an exception. I had missed canceling my subscription by one day. According to company policy, automatic subscription renewals did not qualify for a refund. I now…

February 9 2023

How Does My Reluctance To Take Risks Impact The Rewards God Has For Me?

“Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.” (John 2:4 NIV) These words, spoken from Jesus to His mother, have perplexed me for years. For context, this conversation occurred when Jesus, His disciples, and His mother attended a wedding in Cana. During the festivities, the groom’s family ran out…

February 2 2023

How Seeing Our Worth Through Jesus’ Eyes Can Boost Our Self-Confidence

It’s one of my earliest childhood memories. Our teacher asked us to write our numbers and then draw different images to represent them. So with all my first-grade enthusiasm, I dove right in. But when I got to the twenties, I found it difficult to think of new images. I’d already used all the shapes…

January 26 2023

Prayer Is Powerful ~ So Why Do We Hesitate to Pray?

Pulling out my favorite necklace, I noticed the knot in the chain. Sigh. Why does this always happen when I’m in a hurry? It had already been one of those days ~ and it was only 9:00 AM! Just after waking, my phone alerted me to some disappointing news. As I continued to process the…

January 19 2023

How To Focus Our Thoughts On What Is Still Beautiful In Our World

I splurged last Christmas and bought a beautiful wall clock. Every hour, on the hour, the clock face moves to a few bars of music. During the holidays, I set the clock to play Christmas carols and loved how it made our home feel even more festive.  When I took down the Christmas decorations, I…

January 12 2023

How Can We Be Sure We Are Serving The Lord From Pure Motives?

Recently a friend shared some exciting news ~she received an invitation to join a well-respected teaching ministry. But although she loved the idea of stepping out of her comfort zone and serving the Lord in a new way, she hesitated to accept the offer. “I know how prideful I can be,” she confided. “I’m afraid…

January 5 2023

How To Make Today Count For A Better Tomorrow

Today is the first day of the rest of your life. I’m sure we’ve all heard that phrase before. It circulated widely in the sixties, inspired songs, and continues to resonate today. It conveys this simple truth: Every day can be a fresh start. And while we can start something new at any time, we…

December 22 2022

What The World Needs Now Is The Sweet Love Jesus Brings

What the world needs now, is love, sweet love. It’s the only thing that there’s just too little of. What the world needs now, is love, sweet love. No, not just for some but for everyone. These words form the chorus of a song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David and released in the…

December 15 2022

How To Find Joy At Christmas ~ No Matter Our Circumstances

Years ago a close friend gave me a plaque with this inscription: The joy of the Lord shall be your strength. The words come from a passage found in the Old Testament. About 100 years after their lengthy exile in Babylonia, the Israelites returned to Jerusalem and rebuilt their temple. Under the guidance of Nehemiah,…

December 8 2022

In This Troubled World, Where Do We Find The Peace Jesus Promised?

After hearing the loud pop, I glanced up at the windshield. To my dismay, I saw two less-than-dime-size holes. Immediately my heart dropped. Why did this have to happen? Some generous and longtime friends had lent me their car during my short stay in Colorado. And on this, my last day, traffic caused gravel to…