Soul Sister Time

              Advent draws our thoughts towards the beyond-good-news that God shared with the world over 2000 years ago.  God’s news spread throughout the whole world and continues to encircle the globe.  This news began broadcasting long before our modern media communication tools.  Similar to the way the good news spread in the vicinity of Bethlehem on the eve of His birth, this particular news has best been shared through word of mouth from individuals whose lives have been personally transformed after encountering Jesus.  After the angels, sent from heaven, startled the shepherds by announcing the birth of Jesus, the people of God have taken it from there.  The church can’t stop sharing the reality of what it means that our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ came to our world to be one of us.  He did this so that God could restore any who will put faith in Jesus Christ to become one with Him....

              It’s Thanksgiving in America.  I’m thankful for Thanksgiving.  I’m thankful that the pilgrims and the Indians joined together to celebrate Thankfulness in the new community that was forming.  They demonstrated a moment in history that is worth repeating and celebrating.               History reveals that supporting one another’s mutual good was not maintained in the years that followed this celebration.  Mutual thankfulness gave way to distrust, greed and war. The outcome was years passing without an annual celebration of thankfulness.  I wonder if we can learn from history how thankfulness and mutual care for one another in America can produce a good result for all who come to the table.                 Thanksgiving 2016 happens in a year ...

              I don’t think you can progress spiritually until you resolve the question of whether God is good.  The goodness of God will make all the difference in your devoted love for God.  What keeps us from believing in the goodness of God?  After all He sent His Only Son to die on a cross to enable humans to become reconciled to Him in spite of our innate sinful condition.  How could He express the extremity of His love more?                God created this world with goodness in mind.  Each and every day of creation He looked at what He made and declared it good.  Inherent in all of creation is an unrelenting goodness.  In the most horrid of experiences there is potential to see good, if you learn how to look for it.               This Sunday...

              Every person reading this devotion has personally experienced anxiety.  Anxiety is a common result of living in a sinful world.  God knows that all people face anxiety.  He assumes anxiety is a part of our human condition.  There is a lot of anxiety in America this week regarding our 2016 election.               I love how Peter addresses anxiety.  We see his vocation as a fisherman displayed in the way he describes what to do with the emotion of anxiety with which we all find ourselves constricted.  He uses an old fisherman’s term—casting.  He tells us: Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:7).  This statement is made at the conclusion of some other advice he gives to all Christians about submitting to others, being humble, trusting God’s mighty hand—basically the selfless...

     Election seasons are always divisive for our country, but this election seems to be pitting Christians against Christians.  Should all Christians vote the same way?  Is there just one answer like on a college exam?  I am praying that all Christians will vote.  Is that a good prayer?  Should all Christians vote?  Are you sinning if you do not vote?  Are you sinning if you vote prochoice?  Are you sinning if you vote for someone who has moral failures?  Can you vote if you refuse to vote for someone who moral issues? The place I go to find answers to these questions is the Scriptures.  Our election invites us to deeper spirituality.  We have to fight the natural urges to allow the media and heated discussions and accusations to disturb our souls.  The best way to have peace about voting is to pray through your vote and read God’s word for His personal answer.  That is where I go to make my decision....

              Do you ever wonder why we pray?  Do we think we can tell God how to run the world better?  Is the God of the universe in need of our advice?                Obviously, God is not in need of advice from us mere mortals.  Still, He invites us to pray.  He tells us to nag Him in prayer!  He says he is attentive to our prayers.  Jesus recommends that we pray persistently, like our life depends on it.                Earlier this spring, it surprised me when I recognized that I had buried my spiritual gift of prayer.  I do pray every day, throughout the day, and every evening.  My prayers had become mostly about connecting to God—which is a good reason to pray.  I also focused on covering my family and ministry prayer.  Ho...

              As Christians we need to remember that the One we can trust is always our good God.  He alone cares for us.  He alone provides for us in a worn and weary land.  Why is it so hard for us to stay in touch with this truth we all know?               We live a world that is distant from the very presence of God.  When God created the world, He created it in a way that His presence would be a daily highlight of our lives.  In Genesis 1-2 we understand how not only was the world perfectly suited to give Adam and Eve everything they needed physically in the garden God planted but it also gave them everything they needed to have purpose and meaning.  The meaning of life increased as they cultivated the garden and enjoyed the pleasures of the world. They had everything they needed in a perfect relationship where their di...