James opens his letter, helping us see that God wants to bless us with growth and maturity when we encounter trials. “The trying of your faith works patience.” Now, as we reach verse 12, we see once again that God wants to bless us through our trials, this time with future rewards. “…when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to […]
Read More →Category: Bible memorization
Thirty Days in James 1, Day 10: Endurance
Trials test our faith. Our response to them shows whether we actually believe and trust God, or if we only say that we do. They help us see what we really believe. But God is not like one of those teachers who makes a test as difficult as possible to see how many people will fail it. He’s not giving us a test to see if we pass or fail. […]
Read More →New Study on James 1 Starts November 1!
I have a very vivid memory of stepping into the shower — my alone-space where maybe I could think two coherent thoughts in a row — in total despair over some end-of-my-rope issue with some under-age-five child. He (or possibly she, I don’t remember which child it was, but I can make a pretty good guess) was clearly resistant to any approach we had tried while addressing his (or her) […]
Read More →Thirty Days in Psalm 91 for Busy Mamas, Day 28: From the Trenches
I want to share someone else’s words with you today, because they so beautifully picture what Psalm 91 is all about. Amy, after waiting in suspense for over two months for a diagnosis, now knows that she has stage 2 Hodgkins Lymphoma. She went in for her first chemo treatment this past week. Amy and her husband have been a source of love and encouragement to me and my family […]
Read More →Thirty Days in Psalm 91 for Busy Mamas, Day 22: Really?
We’ve come to the hard parts of Psalm 91. What do we do with verses like this one? “A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.” And what about verse 10? “No evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent.” They are wonderful words, but how do we reconcile them with the reality […]
Read More →Thirty Days in Psalm 91 for Busy Mamas, Day 11: Psalms Are for Singing
While we’re busy marking words, making lists, and looking for parallelism and imagery, we don’t want to forget that Psalm 91 was written to be sung, not just read and studied. As we sing the Psalms, we are singing God’s words back to Him. We’re praying, building each other up, expressing our joys and our sorrows, and reminding ourselves of God’s faithfulness. Here are a few musical versions of Psalm 91 to […]
Read More →Thirty Days in Psalm 91 for Busy Mamas, Day 8: Memorize
Psalm 91 is a psalm we need to have stamped on our hearts. We’re going to aim at memorizing the entire psalm, starting today. Don’t let the thought of memorizing sixteen verses intimidate you. Think of memorizing as just another level of studying the psalm. The Psalms, because they are poetry, are easier to memorize than some portions of Scripture. I think you’ll be surprised, too, at how easily you’ll memorize the […]
Read More →