Pause, Reflect, Act
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My name is Helen Lewis. I live in Alberta, Canada. My objective in doing this blog is to show how the decisions we make in our daily lives can affect our spiritual growth and change the lives of others. As a believing and practicing Christian for decades, I frequently pause to reflect on the love, grace, and mercy of God. Looking back over the years, I am amazed and humbled at how my faith in..
Pause, Reflect, Act
2y ago
Joshua 6:1 – 27
Shout to the Lord
The fall of the secured wall that fenced Jericho from outside attack could be rated in the top five of dramatic miracles in Scripture. The citizens of Jericho must have felt secure in their lockdown status. They were completely unaware that they were dealing with a God who can cause walls to fall down. He is a God of miracles.
Joshua’s leadership was on full display in this project. God revealed His objectives to deliver the city to him. Following the assurance, God laid out the plans that should be followed in order to achieve su ..read more
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2y ago
Luke 4:38 – 44
By His stripes we are healed
Within a few verses, Luke recorded a series of healing miracles performed by Jesus. These purposeful activities underlined the reason that He came into this world.
Since some people would have heard of Simon Peter, one of Jesus’ disciples, when Jesus healed his mother-in-law, they would have paid attention. What may have caught the reader’s interest is the way Jesus commanded the fever from which she was afflicted to depart from her. She was healed instantaneously, arose, and served Him, perhaps by providing a meal.
Jesus continued ..read more
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2y ago
John 2:1 – 11
Water into wine
In this commonplace event, Jesus, his mother, and his disciples were guests at a wedding in Cana of Galilee. John presents a brief sketch of the activities that is laden with significance.
Of importance is the role Jesus’ mother played at the wedding. She informed Him that the wedding party had run out of wine. Although Jesus rebuked her about trying to involve Him, she continued taking a leadership role. She advised the servers to follow His instructions (John 2: 4 – 5).
It is also of note that it was Jesus’ first miracle that He performed ..read more
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2y ago
John 4:46 – 54
Jesus heals
A nobleman’s knowledge of Jesus turning water into wine at a wedding seemed to have influenced his belief in miracles. The setting was Cana of Galilee. The nobleman travelled from Capernaum to see Jesus and desperately begged Him to heal his severely ill son.
Jesus appeared to believe that one reason the nobleman approached Him was based on the miracles he had seen: “Unless you people see signs and wonders,” Jesus told him, “you will never believe” (John 4:48). The nobleman did not take offense but persisted in his urgent plea for Jesus ..read more
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2y ago
Isaiah 36 and 37
Let your words be few
When the army of Sennacherib of Assyria came up to challenge Israel, King Hezekiah of Jerusalem was alarmed. Israel was well acquainted with the fighting reputation of the Assyrian army, and they were intent on destroying Jerusalem as their words stated.
One strategy they used was to intimidate by using words that goad and belittle. They mocked the Lord and taunted Israel stating that they should surrender before the fight started. They even castigated King Hezekiah with these words: “Do not let Hezekiah mislead you when he says, ‘The Lo ..read more
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2y ago
Mark 5:35 – 43
Jesus loves the little children
The death of a daughter could be an excruciating experience for any parent. Jairus, the ruler of the synagogue, came to Jesus requesting that He restores his daughter to life. The motivation is a father’s love for his daughter.
Jairus’ faith was commendable. Although his messengers discouraged him from bothering Jesus since his daughter had already died, he persisted. Jesus encouraged his belief in resurrection power. He stated: “Do not be afraid, only believe” (March 5:36).
Jesus set about raising the 12-year-o ..read more
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2y ago
2 Chronicles 9:1 – 12
A queen seeks wisdom
Many people are driven to find out the truth of something that was discovered in nature or something that was manufactured. This was the case with the Queen of Sheba. She travelled from what is believed to be Yemen to visit King Solomon in Jerusalem. Her objective was to bear eyewitness to what she had heard about his wisdom and wealth .
One of the Queen of Sheba’s main purpose was to engage Solomon in a question and answer session. She asked him many difficult questions perhaps to test his knowledge. She was pleased when ..read more
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2y ago
Exodus 2:1 – 10
God’s hand on Moses’ life
Facing the death of her baby son, Jochebed decided to take matters into her own hands to give her son a chance to live. A mother’s love influenced her creativity. It led her to a feasible solution to ensure that he lived.
For context, an edict was issued by the king of Egypt to the midwives to kill the male babies of the Hebrew women (Exodus 1:16). The reasoning behind this law was the officials’ fear of the explosive population growth of the Hebrews.
To thwart the authorities from murdering her son, Jochebed devised a plan. She hid h ..read more
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2y ago
Samuel 1 – 3
God wants us to listen to Him
In the Old Testament, God communicated with His people through an audible method. Samuel was one of those people with whom God spoke about accomplishing His work.
Samuel had an auspicious beginning. His mom, Hannah, was barren, but prayed to God for a child, which God granted. She followed through on the vow she uttered to dedicate Samuel to the service of the Lord. At a certain age, she allowed him to be under the tutor ledge of Eli, the high priest, in order for him to learn priestly functions.
Beginning as a child, Sam ..read more
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2y ago
John 6
Teacing at its best
When people walk away from the faith, there is usually soul searching amongst their family members, friends, and the church community. According to Lifeway Research in 2017, 66 percent of teens (16 – 19) left the church, but 2/3 of them later returned. The case of the disciples who walked with Jesus, but later abandoned their faith may be puzzling to some people.
The lack of understanding of Jesus’ teaching seems to be the reason for the departure of some of the disciples. Jesus taught his disciples that He was the bread of life. He said:  ..read more