That’s what I told my nephew-in-law at the graveside of his wife, my niece. And, I added that every person does this hard work a little differently. There are no shortcuts and it cannot be programmed to end at a specific time. He and his 14-yr-old daughter and all our family are mourning the death […]
Archive | Devotionals
Careless With Valuables? – I Peter 4:8
Maybe you read about the guy who lost his cello. Daniel Rothmuller came home very tired one night and absent-mindedly left his cello outside his home. This was no ordinary cello. Daniel is a cellist with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and this was a 1684 Stradivarius cello worth $3.5 million. What happened to this incredibly […]
Anger Mismanagement – Ephesians 4:26-27
Justin John Boudin is a 27-year-old in St. Paul, Minnesota, who lost his temper at a bus stop in August 2007. According to witnesses, he harassed a 59-year-old woman, yelling, “Why don’t you show me some respect?” When she took out her cell phone to call police, he punched her in the face. A 63-year-old […]
Small Decisions Become BIG – I Corinthians 16:13
Four guys decided to go fishing in the Gulf of Mexico off the west coast of Florida. One guy provided his boat. Someone chose the time to leave. Someone decided how far out to go. Someone decided to check the weather or not. Someone decided to stay a little longer when the wind came up. […]
Rescued To Rescue – Colossians 1:13-14
My daughter loves animals and her family loves animals. When I visit, there’s usually a new rodent or rabbit to meet. Few were bought; most were found and rescued. Especially cherished by Tiffany is her rescued cat, Hemingway, who looks and acts like the cartoon Garfield. Hemi, as he is called, was declawed early in […]
Going Home – John 14:1-3
“Home” is the word that, for many of us, brings to mind wonderful memories. If you were blessed with a good family of origin, your home was the key place where you learned about love and security, discipline, sharing, forgiving and many other crucial parts of life. When you leave home, whether for a short […]
Turn The Other What? – Matthew 5:10-12,38-48
One of our members wrote, “If you have any devotional messages about turning the other cheek, I would really appreciate it. I’m praying for the strength and guidance not to sink to the level of the person whose actions are hurting me and not to take a wrong course in reaction. I realized how much […]
Jesus In Us Or In Them? – Colossians 1, Matthew 25
One of the most wonderful messages of the New Testament to all believers is that Christ lives in us. What has been called the “participatory language” of the apostle Paul can be found throughout his letters. He told the Colossians about “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27). He prayed for the Ephesians […]
Anything’s Possible – Romans 5:3-5
Nick Santonastasso entered his drawing in a statewide contest in New Jersey on the theme of family values. His drawing showed a tree and above it were the words, “The roots of a family are…” Beneath the tree, the root system spelled out the final word of the message, “Love.” He won the contest and […]
Rejoicing in Prison – Philippians
I received so much positive response to my summary of the New Testament book of James that I decided to do the same for Philippians. Paul wrote it most likely from a prison in Rome, though some would argue Caesarea or Ephesus. The beginning of the Philippian church in Acts 16 includes a story about […]