"Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him." Mark 11:23 As a new Christian, many years ago, I was confused by Jesus' words in Mark 11:23. Was I to believe that if I wanted a physical mountain moved, all it would take is to believe it could be moved without doubting and God would do it ..read more

"He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,"  Colossians 1:13 Now that Easter Sunday, which we also call "Resurrection Sunday" is behind us, there may be a temptation to go on about life as usual.  The celebration is over.  ..read more

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A Joyful Cottage is on Easter break. I'll see you in two weeks! He is Risen!   ..read more

"I remember the days of old;I meditate on all Your doings;I muse on the work of Your hands." Psalm 143:5 When we are in the midst of a trial and peace seems far from us, it's a perfect time to stop what we're doing and mediate on the goodness of our Heavenly Father.  ..read more

  "Make His praise glorious." Psalm 66:2 What does it mean to make God's praise glorious? According to Pastor Steven Cole, "making His praise glorious does not mean getting pumped up by group enthusiasm or by music that has a catchy beat. Rather, it is the overflow of our hearts when we are captivated by God’s all-satisfying glory in Christ."   To be captivated means to be attracted and held. So perhaps when we are so attracted and held by God's beauty, holiness and fullness in Jesus Christ that nothing else will satisfy, that is when our hearts overflow with glorious praise.  ..read more

  "Why are you in despair, O my soul?  And why have you become disturbed within me?  Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him  For the help of His presence." Psalm 42:5 Have you ever felt so discouraged that you had to talk your soul into hoping in God? This is what David does in Psalm 42. He had seen the faithfulness of God in the past and had experienced great heights of joy. And yet, at the time of this writing, he is depressed.  ..read more

  "For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness  to everyone who believes,"  Romans 10:4 Two decades ago the Barna Research Group conducted a survey of professed Christians. At that time, "half of all adults (50%) argued that anyone who 'is generally good or does enough good things for others during their life will earn a place in Heaven.' Almost half of the non-evangelical born again Christians adopted this view, in spite of the fact that they have prayed for the forgiveness of their sins and asked Jesus Christ to be their savior – actions which they believe were the ba ..read more

"Jesus wept." John 11:35 While reading through the eleventh chapter of John, which gives the account of Jesus' raising Lazarus from the dead, I was especially struck by verses 33 - 35. Here John gives us a glimpse into the compassion of our Savior.  Mary, Martha and their companions were gathered together to mourn the death of their brother and friend Lazarus. Jesus clearly knew that in just a few short minutes Lazarus would be revived by a shout from Him, commanding his dear friend to come out of the tomb. Yet even knowing this, Jesus wept. And we should take special note of this. V ..read more

  https://www.heartlight.org/ "Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." (Ephesians 5:1 ESV) One of my favorite things to do is watch YouTube short videos of children doing cute things, especially little boys imitating their fathers. There's just something endearing about it, and I think it illustrates the confidence the child has that he is loved by his father, and which compels him to imitate what he does ..read more