God = Steadfast Love
Read: 1 Corinthians 13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love. (v. 13) I like the logic of math. The Transitive Property of Equality states that two things that are both equal to a third thing are equal to each other; also recognized as “If A = B and […]
Humongous
Read: Psalm 36 Your steadfast love, O LORD, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. (v. 5) A few years ago, my husband and I visited a planetarium in Bradenton, Florida. We sat in the darkened theater as the dome overhead brightened. First, we saw Bradenton, then zoomed out above the state of Florida, […]
Steadfast Love
Read: Lamentations 3:21-33 The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end. (v. 22) In the ESV translation of the Bible, the adjective translated steadfast is used to describe God’s love for us about 200 times. If you look up the word steadfast in a dictionary or two, you will […]
February 2023 Prayer Guide
TURKEY — Praise the Lord that our ministry director in Turkey was able to share about Jesus in person recently with six young men. All but one of the men were very interested in what our director had to say and asked to keep learning more about Jesus. We praise the Lord for opening doors […]
Delight in Each Other
Read: Romans 12:9-21 Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. (v. 10) One of the first songs I learned to play on the guitar was “They’ll Know We Are Christians by Our Love.” The song only has four chords, so I could pause between changing chords without making the song sound […]
Rejoice in What’s Good
Read: Deuteronomy 26:1-11 And you shall rejoice in all the good that the LORD your God has given to you and to your house, you, and the Levite, and the sojourner who is among you. (v. 11) My garden in Iowa had an asparagus patch. Every year, the asparagus came up before anything else. When I […]
Rejoicing in Mercy
Read: Luke 15:11-32 But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. (v. 20) Abraham Lincoln once said to former colleague Joseph Gillespie, “I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice.” Even if we agree with Lincoln’s […]
Delight in the Unexpected
Read: John 20:1-18 Jesus said to her, “Mary.” She turned and said to him in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” (which means Teacher). (v. 16) “Mom, come quick! You have to see this!” My children rushed in the back door. I was arm deep in dishwater, but the delight on their faces told me to stop what I was […]
When Delight Is Hard
Read: Psalm 13:1-6 But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. (v. 5) About one-third of the psalms in the Bible are psalms of lament, including Psalm 13. Old Testament progressor Rolf Jacobson calls Psalm 13 “a prayer for when the bottom drops out.” These psalms teach us that […]