SINGING FOR JOY

  He gives power to the weak, and to those who have no might He increases strength. Isaiah 40:29 It was Day One of our recent mission trip to Mexico and I was raring to go! I’m a 60-year-old woman and somewhat overweight so I was determined to show everyone that I could still significantly contribute to our construction efforts. Our task for the  next several days was to work alongside members from the local church to dig deep holes in what is know as caliche: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caliche If you’ve ever tried digging in this incredibly hard, solid clay-dirt, you know exactly what we were up against. It’s not for the faint of heart! The end goal was a new church building, but we knew that our team was just a small part of the effort since we would only be working there for four days.  Anyway, on the first day I was quite proud of myself for working hard and shoveling a LOT of dirt for hours on end. The second day was a little harder as muscles I hadn’t used in a long time were

  Nevertheless Josiah …did not heed the words of Necho from the mouth of God. So he came to fight in the Valley of Megiddo. 2 Chronicles 35:22 Josiah was one of the few Old Testament kings described as a godly king and he did much good for his people, the Israelites. Sadly, he still made mistakes, and a big one cost him his life. We find the story in 2 Chronicles Chapter 35. God warned Josiah through an enemy, Necho, not to fight against Necho’s invading army. But Josiah was apparently unwilling to listen to any words coming from the mouth of an adversary and thus he failed to heed the warning from God. As a result, he died from an arrow wound. God is sovereign and can speak to us in whatever way He chooses. Many of us know the familiar story of how he warned another man, Balaam, through his donkey (Numbers 22:21-39)! However God chooses to warn us, may we be ready hear and receive, even if His message comes through an unlikely source such as a beast of burden, adversity, or an

  There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another? James 4:12 On a recent mission trip to Mexico, I observed two of the neighbors’ dogs. Both were non-descript, medium-sized, tannish-brown mutts, and adorable. They were outside in the front yard on a beautiful spring day. Though I watched through the wrought iron front gate of my hosts’ home and through the chain link fence of the canine duo, the distress of one of the pups was obvious. He wore a “cone of shame,” likely as protection from licking or biting the site of some recent surgery. The other dog happily played with a well-worn soccer ball right in front of him, seeming to laugh at the anguished affliction of his counterpart.  How often are we oblivious to the silent suffering to those around us, or simply ignore their plight because we’re too busy to truly care? Or worse, how often do we judge them, without truly understanding what they have been through and continue to suffer? Lord, forg

  But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (Matthew 6:33) This verse is familiar to most of us. Familiarity with God’s Word is good; trusting it enough to act on it and live it is better. Just this week I had the joy and encouragement of watching two dear friends walk by faith. One friend had a sudden and catastrophic shift in her world; her husband went into a coma after a routine surgery. By God’s grace he is still alive and improving. What was so inspiring to me, and I know to many others in our local congregation, is that when this man’s very life was still hanging in the balance, both his wife and daughter came to church. They knew that was the best place for them: worshipping God and hearing His lifegiving Word with fellow believers. My other friend was getting married at noon. There was some discussion in our little morning women’s prayer group on whether she would be joining us that day, given the momentous occasio