Women of Promise

  Genesis 16:13 “Then she called the name of the LORD who spoke to her, You-Are-the- God-Who-Sees: “Have I also here seen Him who sees me?” NKJV Throughout the Bible there are many women, named and unnamed, who can impact our lives  today – Sarah, Abraham’s wife who although she doubted, rejoiced over Isaac, the promised  child; Mary, the young woman chosen to be our Savior’s mother; Deborah, a wise and just judge  over Israel; and the unnamed Proverbs 31 woman – our ultimate example. These ladies are all  worthy of emulation, and while not perfect, imitation. There are two Old Testament women that  have come to mean a great deal to me over the years since my salvation in 1991. The first is  Hagar, a maidservant and the second is Hannah, a beloved wife. Let’s look at Hagar first. Hagar was the maidservant that Sarah used to “help God” give Abraham a son. She was a  pawn in a scheme to “hurry” God along by bearing the son that Sarah couldn’t. Hagar...

    Recently I was thinking of a song my dad loved to sing.  Dad loved the Psalms and had a dream to see all 150 of them put to music in a form that anyone could sing.  He wrote music to five of them himself.  The lyrics to this particular song is a paraphrase of Psalm 23, written by Isaac Watts who wrote many hymns in the 1800s.  It was put to an old Southern folk hymn melody and is a simple, beautiful melody that runs through your mind for a long time once you hear it.  If you would like to listen to it, here is one  version of it:   My Shepherd Will Supply My Need .  Here are the lyrics:  My Shepherd will supply my need: Jehovah is His Name; In pastures fresh He makes me feed, Beside the living stream. He brings my wandering spirit back When I forsake His ways, And leads me, for His mercy's sake, In paths of truth and grace. When I walk through the shades of death His presence is my stay; One word of His supporting grace Dri...

            January 21 was "Sanctity of Human Life Sunday" across many churches. But often the whole month of January is devoted to this topic. I am revisiting some thoughts that I shared a few years ago on this important issue that Christian shy away from far too often.        It hurts my heart that our young children even hear about such atrocities as abortion and euthanasia. As my husband and I  attempt to answer candidly, yet age appropriately, our primary focus has been to show our children that all human life, from conception to rightful death is precious in the eyes of God.       Unfortunately, even Christians are influenced by the world's views on this matter.  On the matter of the sanctity of life, Christians should be on the frontline of the battle.   Increasingly, we are at best complacent and non-committal.  Often this is simply from a lack of a Biblical world-view.  Whe...

       Most of us have chosen a Bible-reading plan for the new year.  Maybe you plan to read through the Bible this year, or in two years. It may be chronologically, or one of many different Bible-reading plans that are freely available to you from a variety different sources. That is a wonderful first step to learning about the God we are blessed to serve! But is there more to studying the Word of God than just reading?     Yes! We must allow our hearts, minds and lives to be changed by this Word that we are reading, or it is relegated to just another good piece of literature on our bookshelf. I recently watched a reel on Instagram.  It quoted a Jewish man who stated that the Bible he studied guided his life down to his eating habits. He stated he didn't want to study a Bible that was not applicable to every area of his life -- this was his way of rejecting Jesus. This was convicting to me.  The whole Bible IS applicable to our lives, but I ...

       Forgive me as I share again from 2 years ago. May the faithfulness of our Savior bring us all to our knees in thanksgiving and worship this Christmas season. Merry Christmas!  This beautiful season has been full of beautiful reminders of what Jesus's birth means to the people of God.  I have been blessed as I have meditated on the wonder of God giving His Only Son to be born in full humanity to a humble, blessed virgin girl.  The plan of redemption was set in motion with this glorious event.  This simple, poorly-written little piece is just a bit of the swirl of thoughts going through my mind this Christmas season.  Our Faithful Father, full of grace and love is worthy of our praise and thanksgiving, at Christmas and always! Merry Christmas! Promise Fulfilled To Adam and Eve In shame and guilt hidden, Grace was extended; A promise was given. The penalty: death. No sin enters heaven To rescue man's plight A promise was given. To Abram's...

            One of the reasons that the Christmas season is so beautiful is the reminder of the faithfulness of God. Hundreds of years before Jesus was born, God promised that He would come. Jesus came, just as promised -- in the exact way that was foretold so many years before. We can trust God to always keep His promises. He is faithful and true.      As I reflected on this in amazement this morning, God brought the following song to mind. This is part of a collection of hymns dating back to the ancient church.  It is thought to be the oldest hymn that we have record of. The author, Marcus Aurelius Prudentious Clemens (there's a name for ya!) lived in the 4th century after Christ, and was a lawyer and a judge. He began writing poetry at the age of 57. (I love random facts.) This lovely hymn points to this truth that Jesus perfectly fulfilled the prophecy of God, particularly the 3rd stanza: Of The Father's Love Begotten Of the Fat...

  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....