Women of Promise

      Our family looks forward to the day each year when the Christmas music begins playing on the radio. We have typically started listening to a few Christmas carols before the radio station begins their 24/7 serenade, but once the radio begins, it is all Christmas music in our home!     One thing I love about Christmas carols is the story of the gospel is played, sung and heard everywhere! Parades, symphonies, secular music artists, and more will be performing these gospel messages and stores will broadcast them as you shop. Of course, there is a growing secular portfolio of music as well, but you will hear so many of the traditional Christmas carols every day of the Christmas season.  So many of them have a strong Scriptural basis and it is wonderful to hear God's Word proclaimed boldly in so many places during this time of the year.       O Come, O Come, Emmanuel is a such a beautiful example of the gospel in song. It has 7 verses, ...

  Image:  designbolts.com      This week we celebrate with the rest of America the Thanksgiving holiday.  We hear often of the "First Thanksgiving" with the Pilgrims and Squanto. Rightfully so.  Did you know that Thanksgiving did not become an official American holiday until 1863?  My children have been studying the Civil War recently and learning about one of the most Godly men to lead our nation, President Abraham Lincoln.  President Lincoln was the one to proclaim that the last Thursday in November become a national holiday.  In the midst of tragedy, war, and national conflict, he realized that our country desperately needed to pause to give thanks to our Creator.  If you have never read this Proclamation (as I had not until this past week), I urge you to take a minute to read it.  You can read it in its entirety here .      We hear frequently about the Biblical commands to give thanks, as well we should....

       Being thankful is more than a suggestion in the Word of God.  It is a direct command, given many times over. Last week we started looking at the book of Colossians and what it has to say to us about gratitude.       We looked at Colossians 2:7 briefly last week.  Today I'd like to pick up there again.  In the Christian Standard Bible, the phrase that instructs us to be thankful is translated, "Overflowing with thankfulness."  The picture is of a river overflowing its banks. What a force a flood can be!  When we are overflowing with anything, it cannot be held back.  We can't stop it.  Paul is instructing the believers at Colossi (and all believers since) to be so full of thanksgiving, or gratitude, that it overflows into everything that you do.       An interesting twist to a life of gratitude, is that a person overflowing with gratitude is also a giver. Just like a flooded river gives ...

       We are a full week into November, or the "Thanksgiving month!" It is always such a special time to be reminded of the blessings we have been given from the Lord. Scripture commands us to always be thankful -- but there are also examples (even commands!) for us to set aside days and seasons for times of remembrance of God's goodness.      I like to find ways to prepare my heart for special times, as much as I am able. Did you know that in every chapter of the little book of Colossians, there is at least one reference to thankfulness?  Let's look at a few of those verses today! Colossians 1: 3 We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,     As we pray for people in our lives, thanking God for them should be prominent in our conversation with the Lord. Paul goes on in the next few verses to outline exactly why he is thankful for the people of the church in Colossae.  We can be specific and foc...