Soul Sister Time

            The book of James tells us a lot about wisdom.  Who doesn’t want to be wise in the decisions they make?  What does it take to become wise?              Wisdom from heaven is far above our natural abilities.  James gives us a litmus test for wisdom that helps us determine how close or far away we are from what God knows is best.  But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness (James 3:17-18).             If you are trying to determine whether what your wisdom is coming from heaven, consider these eight qualities to your decision as a litmus test for wisdom.             Is your option pure?  God’s truth is pure truth and it always unifies.  Does the decision you are making have the potential to unify?  Pure truth does that.             Pure wisdom unifies so therefore it will lead to peace.  Is

            On a recent mission trip, I experienced a sad reality.  Our team was sent out into desperately poor neighborhoods where we knocked on doors and spread the Good News about God’s love for them and about a new church with a great pastor in town.  We entered into kind conversation.  Whether they believed that God really could love them or cared whether God loved them or not, they were always courteous.             I have never been turned down so many times when I offered a Bible.  You would think that at least they might take it and try to sell it or something.  Perhaps they said no for holy reasons; they saw it as special and they knew they were not going to read it so better to leave it for someone who would read it.  It was a strange experience to have so many people say no when asked if they wanted to have a Bible.             When I stop and think about it, how many of us have said no to the Bible today?  We have the very words of God written down in a handy col

            Most of us find it hard to feel the love of God when we face harsh realities of life.  Others walk with God so closely that they know harsh realities of this world are common to us all, and they seem to accept God’s love in spite of what they have to lose.  I’m not sure which case the Widow of Nain from Luke 7 was experiencing.              Already a widow on the day Jesus met her, she was burying her only son as well.  Tragedy upon tragedy—hers was a life well acquainted with sorrow. The whole town seemed to stop what they were doing to support this widow.  Their presence almost speaks to the character of the woman with whom they felt so much sorrow .  The crowd might have been stunned into silence; having no words, they were just there for this poor widow, doing what they could.  They were carrying her son’s body to his grave.  They were crying with her.  They were telling her to eat some soup and drink some water because she was most likely unable to make those same

I’ve been on a journey for the last 17 months that has highlighted God’s perfect timing. Every time I’m told a schedule that is most probable there is a conflict about something I felt God led me to commit. All I have been able to do is tell God I am powerless to find a way out of the conflicting purposes.  Each time the unexpected happened.  It was almost laughable at this point.  My journey has been teaching me in a very poignant way the truth of what God tells us in Ephesians 2:10:  For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Literally, the only reasonable explanations for the way things have work together on my journey are that they have been prepared in advance. I’m beginning to expect the unexpected.  For example, in the past few years, God alone provided a way for two previously planned mission trips not to conflict with the other journey He has asked me to walk.  Both of these mission trips happened i