Scripture For The Day

  Scripture For The Day July 31, 2023 Shake Off Those Chains- Live Graciously While studying the Bible this morning, I immediately had a picture of Jacob Marley dragging his long chain around the room. He explains to Scrooge that the chain is due to all the cheating and hurting others that he had caused and that Scrooge’s chain would be even longer. One day The Lord will bind satan up for a thousand years. He will be tied down with a great chain for a thousand years and thrown into a bottomless pit. I can’t help but see a parallel between Jacob Marley and satan. I wonder if Charles Dickens had the same thought. How large will that chain be and was it made from the chains that every Christian once had before Jesus Christ set us free. That is food for thought that makes the holy bumps appear. I love the thought that the chains I once dragged around from place to place, from sin to sin, will one day be used to hold that dragon down. Child of God, the enemy has no control over you. Do...

Scripture For The Day  July 26, 2023 "Preparing For Our Wedding"  “As we grow in Christ, we become more and more beautiful to The One for Whom we’re preparing ourselves. We are preparing for our wedding day.” My husband and I were so young when we got married. We didn’t think so at the time.   But we definitely were. We just knew we were meant to be together. We discovered in each other a love that we never knew. And that love has continued to grow despite the bumps and bruises along the way. In a little over a month we will be celebrating our 39 th wedding anniversary. Wedding implies a fancy shindig.   But ours wasn’t like that.   No one expected it to last. No one really wanted it to happen. My grandmother sent money for me to buy a simple dress and shoes and a nice shirt for Tom. There was no fancy hair do. There were no decorations. There were no bridesmaids. There were no parties. Our rings came from a pawnshop. But it didn’t matter to us. All that ma...

Scripture For The Day    July 24, 2023 "Take Them To The Lord"  We have been created with a plethora of emotions. Some are good, some not so good. But without them, we would be mindless, emotionless, automatons, or even more frightening, sociopaths. I can go days without crying. And then there are days to which I can’t seem to stop crying. Yesterday felt like one of those days. Yesterday, my SS class discussed the importance of prayer. I had them write on blank pieces of paper something that they often worry over. I told them not to write their names on the paper and I joined in on the activity. We put our slips of worries in a box and after I shook it a few times, we each pulled one out. We didn’t share what the worries were. I just asked them “How does this worry compare to your worry?” One student said, “This worry is a lot darker than mine.” Another student said, “About the same as mine”. Softly, tears began to develop in my eyes and I told them that the worry I pul...

Scripture For The Day    July 21, 2023 "Why Worry When You Can Pray?"  Why Worry When You Can Pray? The title of a song that I taught Melissa when she was a little girl is on my heart this morning. My Junior SS class this upcoming Sunday will be studying about the uselessness and dangers of worry. “Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof" _ Matthew 6:34 The enemy drops seeds of doubt and questions in our hearts and minds every day. He wants us to be troubled and anxious to the point we lose our joy and our testimony for The Lord. Our SS lesson tells us that some of those questions that the enemy tempts us with are; What will I eat today? What will I wear? Do my parents love me? Will I fail if I try? Will I be safe? Will people like me? Will I get sick? Will I die? Will I have enough money? And you and I both know there are more questions not even listed that the ...

     Scripture For The Day  July 20, 2023 To Every Thing There is a Season  We can’t stop the changing of seasons. That’s far beyond our pay grade. But we can be thankful for each change by recognizing Who is in control. “To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die;… a time to plant, a time to reap…a time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance…” Ecclesiastes 3. Am I the only that sings these words like in the song Turn! Turn! Turn! By the Byrds? To everything there is a season, turn, turn, turn. Genesis 8:22 tells us that God promises that while the earth remains there will always be a time for planting and a time for harvest. There will always be cold and hot, summer and winter, day and night on Earth. But more than the physical changes with the seasons we also experience spiritual seasons. That’s why it can be so disheartening when fellow believers can ...

Scripture For The Day    July 18 th , 2023 "Just Go With The Flow"  Yesterday, after having to scold and discipline my grandson, he turned to me and said “Mamu, you worry about the silliest of things.” I paused for a second and quietly asked him “What would you suggest I do when you or your brother refuse to listen or mind?” He mischievously smiled and said, “Just, go with the flow.” I sat down beside him and I gently turned his face towards me. “Go with the flow doesn’t always work out for the best.  Ultimately, rules are there to protect us. For example, right now your little brother is too young to understand how dangerous things can be and if we don’t set boundaries and teach him right from wrong, he will hurt himself, possibly severely. Just this morning, the doctor told me some things I didn’t want to hear. But he knows best and I need to trust that he knows what’s best for me and listen to what he says.” He quietly listened as I continued. “God tells us in H...

Scripture For The Day    July 13, 2023 "Climb Up on His Lap"  Yesterday, our eldest grandson became unusually quiet. I had a feeling about what was on his mind. But I wanted him to know that he could come to me about anything. I pulled him into my lap and asked “What’s on your mind?” He quietly looked up and smiled but didn’t say anything. I told him, “You know you can tell me or ask me anything? Right?” ‘yes”. After a tiny bit more coaxing, he finally came out with it. What it was doesn’t matter. But I woke up thinking about that this morning. And I couldn’t help but think how The Lord must feel that way often with me. He knows my heart. He knows what’s on my mind. Yet, He still wants me to feel comfortable enough to come to Him, even if I think the answer will be no. I choose to have a heart full of praises. Because I am more Blessed than I can even describe. Despite the pains. Despite any struggles. I am Blessed. You are Blessed. Things could always be worse and ma...

Scripture For The Day   "Be Encouraged"  July 7, 2023 Yesterday morning, I asked the doctor; “Do you think I’m getting worse?” He paused, and said “Worse? (Hesitating with his words) Not necessarily. You’re just not very stable at the moment.” I thought about that for a second and I said “Well, if my husband was here, he would say that he always knew I was unstable” lol. The doctor snickered and went on to explain his reply. But that’s typical of me, I always try to joke everything off when I am struggling. I'm not a sit-on-the-sideline kind of person. I get up and go. I get up and do. and I am struggling at the moment. I woke up this morning thinking about stability and as I was speaking with The Lord, I went straight to His Word. The letter from James begins by introducing himself as a servant of God and Jesus Christ, his brother. He writes the letter to God’s people who are scattered all over the world…to us. We will have troubles. It’s a given. But James tells us that...

Scripture For The Day   July 5, 2023 "Be Alright"  I woke up this morning struggling. Before I even got out of bed, I began having a conversation with my Lord. The lyrics from the Danny Gokey song ‘Be Alright’ came rushing over my soul. Okay, Lord, okay. Everything’s gonna be alright. I hear You. There’s a part in the song in which a young man is praying to The Lord in Spanish. My grandson Hunter Jack is trying his best to learn this section. But in English, it goes something like this “Father, I confess to you with an open heart that everything is so uncertain in this desert that I am living in.  My vulnerability is exposed. I feel like my boat is so far from its port. Why does the sun no longer shine? Why are my nights so cold? Why do I feel like I'm missing something? Why does this gray road feel so long? I know You’re working even when I don’t feel it. I know You’re working even though I don’t see You.  I know I’m going to come out of this. I know I'm go...

Scripture For The Day    July 4, 2023 "Be Set Free!"  Today of all days is fitting for us to finish out our study on the women that God loved and used in the Bible. We are Set Free!  I hope and pray that this study has encouraged you to recognize your value and your worth in Christ. All of us were made by Him, through Him, and for Him. “And God said, Let US make man in OUR image, after OUR ‘likeness’… So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He Him; MALE AND FEMALE created He them.” Genesis 1:26-27. We are all created in God’s image. We may look different but our spirits are made the same and made for the same purpose. And when we accept Jesus Christ into our hearts, we are to be AS One. With hearts and minds that have the same purpose; Sharing The Gospel, Being True to His Word, and encouraging each other. No more condemnation. We have been set Free! We will disagree. That is human nature. But we can continue to love and show respect and to...

Scripture For The Day    July 3, 2023 "Just One Touch!"  Today, the lesson my grandsons and I will be studying is when Jesus brought back to life the daughter of Jairus. I find that fitting since today you and I will be studying about the woman that made her way through a crowd in order to touch the hem of Jesus’ garment.  This event took place while Jesus was on his way to Jairus’ house. Because of her disease, she was considered untouchable. People turned their noses up at her and walked the other way. For twelve years she had been suffering from this blood issue. She had spent every bit of money she had on doctors and treatments. But nothing and no one could help. In the eyes of the society that she lived in, this bleeding issue made her unclean.  But then one day, she heard about Jesus and His miracles. She gathered enough courage and told herself if she could just get close enough to touch the hem of His garment, she believed with everything within her ...