Encroaching Light (Part 5)

When the angels had gone away from them into heaven, the shepherds began saying to one another, “Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us. So they came in a hurry and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the […]

Sunday praise

“You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and girded me with gladness, That my soul may sing praise to You and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever.” – Psalm 30:11-12 (NASB)

Encroaching Light (Part 4)

This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” – Luke 2:12, NASB A baby. How could a small helpless child, totally dependent on the care of others be a savior? Yet isn’t that a picture of yourself, helpless, needing others? In the eyes […]

Sunday praise

He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay, And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; Many will see and fear And will trust in the Lord. – Psalm […]

Encroaching Light (Part 2)

And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. – Luke 2:9, NASB You’re wandering in the field in the dark of night with the rest of flock. Cold and shivering in the damp grass, you hear the groans of […]

Sunday praise

Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why have you become disturbed within me Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him For the help of His presence. – Psalm 42:5 (NASB)

Building Up, Not Tearing Down

The human spirit can endure in sickness, but a crushed spirit who can bear? Proverbs 18:14 (NIV) How does a spirit get broken? Too often by the words and deeds of others. What we do to others can either build up their spirit or crush it. When the spirit of another is broken, it can […]

Compassion in Grief

When we suffer loss, the grief can be overwhelming. Jesus felt that same pain when he learned that his cousin John the Baptist was beheaded by Herod. “Now when Jesus heard about John, He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself (Matthew 14:13).” It’s hard to see God’s purpose in […]

Silencing the Joy Stealers

There are many things in this world that can take our joy away. Yet if we hold onto the joy we have in the Lord, no one can take that away from us. Our faith in Jesus gives us an eternal hope that surpasses the temporal hope of this world. It is a hope that […]