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My Beginnings in Grace

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History Proves Otherwise

“God won’t give you any more than you can handle.” You’ve likely heard this often. I know I have. I’ve heard folks say, “You don’t want your children to suffer, do you? Neither does God.” Many believe there is scriptural promise that believers will not suffer. It may surprise you…

Hope

It is April as I write. There were recently a few warm days and a lovely spring rain. I looked out the window this morning and was shocked by the lushness of the landscape. I was amazed by the beauty of it all. It nearly took my breath away. My…

The Gift

My mom loved life. She loved to laugh. She loved being a mom. She took joy in the more simple things – beautiful birds, giggling children, autumn leaves, ice cream, toffee anything, football, a good bridge game, and babies of any species. She was conscientious and hard-working, yet happy-go-lucky, never…

1) Beginnings

I was totally unaware of the fact that we were desperately poor. I guess that’s because our family fit right in with everyone else in our small Nebraska farming community. We were all poor. We all lived the same lifestyle. And we were all happy. In those things that mattered,…

2) Light of Truth

Those of you who grew up in the South or the Midwest likely spent each Sunday in church. I was no exception. My parents taught Sunday school. My dad sang in the choir. My sisters and I wore our best dresses, clean and freshly pressed. Our hair was in curls,…

3) Failing the Test

After a two-year stint with the Federal Government in Washington, D.C., I transferred to that agency’s Phoenix office. I found a small apartment and tried desperately to bloom in the desert. Blooming is difficult when living alone. I missed the fellowship of the on-fire youth group of small-town Nebraska, and…

4) Rescue

I was barely holding on to my government job. Of course, pain and depression were hindrances, but I was also discouraged by the lack of advancement opportunity. After all, it was unlikely that a knight in shining armor would sweep this hurting princess off her feet in her old age.…

5) Strings

It wasn’t long after the Lord used Ellen to draw me back into relationship with Him (see “Rescue”) that I realized I wasn’t well. Sound teaching from the pulpit revealed to me that I had a heart condition. My focus on self and my view of God as a cosmic…

6) Discovering Grace

In an in-depth study of Philippians, I was totally drawn to the apostle named Paul. I identified with him. While still named Saul, he had an undeniable encounter with Jesus Christ and was transformed dramatically, not so unlike my teen-years experience. In cross-referencing Scripture, I learned that Paul discusses his…

7) Prison

The study of Paul’s ministry is a study of heavenly focus. Paul’s eternal focus and his joy in serving the promised Messiah enabled him to sing in prison. Prisons in Paul’s day were dark, cold, wet, and rodent-infested. Paul and Silas had been imprisoned without cause and, as Roman citizens,…