Word, Thought, and Deed

For Us Marthas The Word : Galatians 6:2 Carry each other's burdens and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ The Thought I want to be like my neighbor. She has such a helpful spirit. Whenever she hears of someone who is going through a rough spell of some sort, she springs into action finding ways to help. She'll rally us and get us moving too. I am always thrilled to be supportive. Still, I couldn't help but to often wonder..."Why didn't I think of that?" Then there's my cousin, Jan. She is known for sending a random greeting card to brighten your day. And it does. When I would go to the mailbox and find a card she'd sent with an unexpected, heart-warming message, it would make my day every time. The said part is that it took me forever to catch on and send her a little something to brighten her day. Why? Was I selfish? I think I was. It wasn't blatant or intentional. It was a quiet sense of thoughtlessness. It just did not oc

Word: Proverbs 4:23 Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. Thought:       According to WebMD, your pulse (heart rate) is the amount of times your heart beats in 1 minute. To me, a pulse is like a song.  It's steady and rhythmic.  It can be heard and felt. A pulse can be fast, moderate, or slow.  And each person's pulse is different. I guess I'm on hearts today because my father has recently had a serious complication with his heart. In fact, he will have to undergo a bypass. Prayers up.  Our situation made me think about the pulse of everyone's lives.  Everything is so off-beat right now. We can't seem to get back to the steady rhythm of life that we are accustomed to.  The globe is in a veritable cardiac arrest and we are all feeling the pangs.  But don't lose heart.  Don't let all the negativity that is going on around you darken your heart and put a damper on your spirit.  Protect your heart as best you can. You can do tha

Word , Thought , & Deed Nothing Can Separate Us From  A Mother's Love The Word : Romans 8:38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons,  neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. The Thought Today my children and I rounded up in the car for a drive to my parents' house. Upon our arrival we sanitized our hands, donned our masks, and positioned ourselves. I broke the threshold temporarily to carefully place gifts at the doorway, ring the doorbell, and return to my stance far away from the door. My mother opened the door and looked on us from a distance with a blend of joy and sadness in her eyes. She wanted what we wanted....to be able to let us in, to give hugs, and to spend time face to face with her family. For now, though, this was to be the extent of our celebration because our priority is

Word , Thought , & Deed Hate evil. Live. The Word: Proverbs 8:13 The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil.  The Thought In an earlier devotion, we focused on Proverbs 9:10 which teaches us that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, but what does that mean? Understanding scripture is not always easy. When you're tr ying to understand ideas in the Bible, look for related scriptures and create what I call if-then scripture 'equations’. They can help with making connections. An example of one can be found below that might help us understand Proverbs 8:13 (our current focus scripture) and Proverbs 9:10 (a previous focus scripture) more deeply.  (If) The fear of the Lord = The Beginning of Wisdom (Proverbs 9:10) (If) The fear of the Lord = Hatred of Evil  (Proverbs 8:13) (Then) The Beginning of Wisdom = Hatred of Evil When we look at these scriptures respectively, it seems safe to determine that when we hate evil our wisdom is beginning t

Word , Thought , & Deed Houses and Tents The Word Proverbs 14:11 The house of the wicked will be destroyed but the tent of the upright will flourish. The Thought         In America, there is a divide.  No, I'm not talking about generational, gender, or even the racial divide.  Although, we certainly have those issues.  The divide I'm talking about is even greater, especially right now and especially here in the good old U.S.A.  I'm talking about money, the love of money rather.  It is the root of all evil here in America, and it divides us in ways too deep to measure.       When we talk about a divide over money,  some of us have already put a face on each side of this separation.  I'm going to ask you to clean that slate because in all actuality we can find people of all kinds on both sides of this fence. Neither is this a division of haves verses have nots. It's more than that.  The way you get what you have is what determines which side

Word, Thought, & Deed Wisdom and The Word: It All Connects The Word: Joshua 1:8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein; for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.  (King James Version) The Thought           Reading the Bible is hard sometimes. You have probably experienced it. By some miracle you were actually able to set aside time to study. The Bible is sitting wide open on your lap and you are hanging on every word. You want badly to connect, but the message feels like the moon; distant and hard to see from from where you’re positioned. It’s okay. If you keep your eyes on the moon long enough, it eventually gives way to the sun. What I mean is understanding the Bible takes time and patience, but understanding surely comes. Keep in mind, too, that understanding the Bible will be like the cyc