Ever gotten one of those really bad paper cuts? I heard someone complaining about one just recently – and I got to thinking about all the stuff we gripe about without even realizing it. Our jobs and our relationships, our parents, our children, our churches, our homes, our appearances.
...continue reading this devotion.There is a fable about a stork on the bank of an Indian river. One day he was busily hunting for slugs and snails when an exquisitely beautiful swan dropped down beside him. The stork was taken aback by her beauty. “Where did you come from?” he asked. “From heaven, far above the mountains,” said the swan…
...continue reading this devotion.Ever use that phrase on your kids? “Come on, will you grow up already?!”
...continue reading this devotion.Maybe it’s because we live in the desert and our bodies crave salt to maintain a certain level of hydration or something, but lately we’ve become big fans of salt around here. Not a day goes by that our daughter, Elianna doesn’t ask for “salt in my hand please”, lol. “What in the world does salt have to do with grace and truth?”, you ask. Well, I’ll tell you.
...continue reading this devotion.We’re preparing to celebrate our 7th Thanksgiving here in Israel, and as you may or may not know, the majority of Israelis have never heard of this holiday. So it’s always an adventure on the day we go out hunting for a turkey and all the other Thanksgiving foods which Americans are normally accustomed to. You see, most Israelis have never contemplated the idea of cooking a turkey whole, (not that the little Israeli ovens could even fit one if they had).
...continue reading this devotion.Biblical scholars have often complained that the word חֶסֶד in the Hebrew Bible is difficult to translate into English, because it really has no precise equivalent in our language. English versions usually try to represent it with such words as “loving-kindness,” “mercy,” “steadfast love,” and sometimes “loyalty,” but the full meaning of the word cannot be conveyed without an explanation, such as the one given in the article below. This article, by Norman H. Snaith, is reproduced from A Theological Word Book of the Bible, edited by Alan Richardson (New York: MacMillan, 1951), pp. 136-7.
...continue reading this devotion.Jonathan Whitfield was preaching to coal miners in England. He asked one man, “What do you believe?” “Well, I believe the same as the church.” “And what does the church believe?” “Well, they believe the same as me.” Seeing he was getting nowhere, Whitfield said, “And what is it that you both believe?” “Well, I suppose the same thing.”
...continue reading this devotion.