…you are the light on the hill!

"Notionists"
     'The Way' from Kevin Pauley

For this reason also, since the day we heard of it, we have not ceased to pray for you and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father – Colossians 1:9-12a (NASB) I cannot tell you how many times I’ve…

Faith vs. Fickleness (3-8-11)
     'Today's Little Lift' from Jim Bullington

The men who saw Jesus perform the miracle of multiplying the loaves and fish said, “This is truly the Prophet who is to come into the world.” (John 6.14). They were to be commended for that statement, but the story does not end here. A crowd followed Him to Capernaum where they listened to Him for a while as He spoke of His relationship with the Father. We will note some of what He said as well as the reaction of the multitude. “And Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never…

The Touch of God Upon Our Life
     'Word from Scotland' from Sandy Shaw

There was a phrase which came to me again and again - "The Touch of God". – as we made our way through the book of Habakkuk. Habakkuk certainly knew the ‘Touch of God’ - which made me turn to some other Bible passages. When you look at the lives of various men of God, we see that they……

The Bride Price
     'Refreshment in Refuge' from Gina Burgess

Luke 15:8 Or what woman having ten drachmas, if she loses one drachma does not light a lamp and sweep the house, and look carefully until she finds it? 9 And finding it, she calls together the friends and neighbors, saying, Rejoice with me, for I have found the drachma which I lost. The drachmas, in Jesus time, was equivalent to the Roman denarii and was worth about 18 cents, so ten coins was worth about $2 or approximately ten days wages. James Merritt told his congregation back in March of 2002 that these ten coins this woman possessed were her engagement ring and…

Mission
     'Voice of Inspiration' from Andy Castro

John 17:18 The MESSAGE In the same way that you gave me a mission in the world, I give them a mission in the world.(Jesus) Mission: a. A special assignment given to a person or group b. A combat operation assigned to a person or military unit. It is clear. Jesus has given us an assignment, a mission or a call for our life. If you don't know what it is, it is time to find out. If we do not seek out and follow Gods plan, spiritually we slowly fade away into a slumber always living short of personal internal victories and never completing the will of God.…

Don't Let Your Heart Be Troubled
     ''Christ in You...'' from Dale Krebbs

Undoubtedly we live in a time of peril and danger of many kinds and originations. If one watches television news at all, many of these conditions are evident. Some have said that signs of danger are simple the result of better reporting, and are the result of a shrinking world. Everything is done faster and reported faster, which is true. Awareness is also evidence of more rapid change in almost every arena of our reality. Changes are accelerating at in increasing rate. There is greater alarm. There is greater turmoil. This, most thinking people would agree. Important times and…

The Power of our Tongues
     'Inspiration For You' from Randy Mitchell

I was sitting in a church auditorium recently, listening to a preacher talk about the power words have on us all, both written and spoken, and the great impact they convey to those around us. It was a well articulated speech, causing me to think about how large a role words play in our lives. Words are extremely powerful— carrying the strength to heal or wound, encourage or discourage, speak truth or deceive, praise or criticize. In fact, the Bible says that death and life are in the power of the tongue. Since that’s true, controlling what we say and how we say it…

Bible and Quote - April 5-9
     'Bible verse and quote' from Jan Couns

The wicked in his pride will hotly pursue the poor (helpless and needy)… Psalm 10:2a Pride is seldom delicate; it will please itself with very mean advantages. Samuel Johnson, English Poet, Critic and Writer. 1709-84 (David’s prayer) Let wicked men be caught in the plots which they have devised. Psalm 10:2b A praying saint performs far more havoc among the unseen forces of darkness than we have the slightest notion of. Oswald Chambers, 1874–1917 For the wicked boasts of his heart's desire. Psalm 10:3a Depravity longs for legal cultural acceptance…

"Life itself is Grace"
     'God's Words For US' from Cecelia Lester

“Life itself is Grace” My title is from a quote by Frederick Buechner from his book, Now and Then. It was quoted by Bob Benson, Sr. and Michael W. Benson in their devotional book, disciplines for the inner life. I recently injured myself in a nasty fall in our basement. In trying to wait until I could see my doctor or her staff, I was maintaining my practice of devotions in my mornings. On some mornings this was not exactly easy but I did make the time to do them. My devotional book for this year is the book by the Bensons. I found it through…

The Ministry of the Saints
     'Chip Shots from the Ruff of Life' from Tom Kelley

The ministry is not a profession. It is not a job. It is not a business. The ministry is either who a person is or it is nothing at all. The functions of ministry, the needs of ministry, the demands of ministry; all combine to say live the life or don't live the life. There is a choice. Every now and then something happens that makes this all come to light. There may be an elderly lady in a nursing home. The minister asks someone to go with him to visit the lady. The response? "Well, Preacher, I don't really enjoy going to nursing homes." Guess what? It's not on the…

Warfare Worldview
     ''Winging It' from Stan Smith

The problem of Theodicy is the problem of evil. If there is a Sovereign God, how can there be evil? Conversely, if there is evil, whether moral or just bad things happening, what does that say about God? Lots of people have taken lots of approaches to this from lots of angles. There is the, "See? Proof that your god doesn't exist" on one end and the "The existence of evil proves the existence of God and, oh, by the way, He intends it for His good purposes" on the other. Of course, most people are somewhere in between. It is my conviction that most people are…