Psalm 25:12-22 There are many benefits that come to those who fear the Lord. This passage lists only a few of them. What does it mean to fear the Lord? The fear of the Lord is an awesome respect that causes us to honor and worship the Lord with all of our being. When we fear the Lord, we will desire to walk in His ways. The good news is that all those who fear the Lord will be taught the ways of God. read more

Psalm 25:1-11 Yesterday's reading talked about lifting up our heads and hearts to the Lord. We discovered that the spirit of man represents the holy of holies in the temple of God. We are now the temple of the Holy Spirit. The soul (mind, will and emotions) of man represents the inner court of our temple. The body represents the outer court of the temple, and the gates to that temple are our five senses. When Jesus died on the cross and gave His spirit into the hands of the Father, the veil of the temple was rent in two. The mercy seat of God now became available to not only the high priest, but to all who would believe and receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior. read more

Psalm 24:1-10 This psalm has special meaning to me because it is one of the psalms I memorized when I was in grammar school. The first thing we did each morning in school was pray the Lord's Prayer together, read a psalm and work on memorizing it, pledge allegiance to the flag and sing the national anthem. Can you imagine the stir this would cause in public schools today if this was done? It is illogical that God and country have been removed from our children's education when education has its roots in Christianity. The first schools that existed in our country were church schools. How I pray that one day we will be able to once again have freedom of speech that includes praying aloud in public schools. Until that time we as parents can teach our children the importance of honor for country and the value of the Word of God. We need to exhort our children to memorize Scriptures because the Word that is hidden in children's hearts at a young age will be with them always. I actually paid my boys to learn Proverbs. They were given $1 for every verse in Proverbs they memorized. When our Russian son took this on as a challenge, he just about broke me. read more

Matthew 18:23-19:12 In this passage in Matthew, Jesus tells the story of the servant who had been forgiven all his debt by his master, but this servant was unwilling to forgive another the debt he was owed. The conclusion to this story is the following statement: "And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him. So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto ye, if you from ye hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses" (Matt. 18:34-35, KJV). read more

Matthew 18:1-22 It has been my privilege over my fifty-plus years as a Christian to always have a prayer partner. There are so many advantages in having a prayer partner. This passage in Matthew gives two very important reasons for us to pray with others. Jesus tells us, "Again I say unto you, that if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them" (Matt. 18:19-20, KJV). read more

Psalm 22:1-18 Some of the most traumatic feelings a person can experience is being abandoned. Abandonment rocks our emotions with feelings of insecurity, fear, doubt, loneliness, failure, rejection, grief, sorrow and unworthiness, just to name a few. I've never experienced abandonment, but I know people who have. I know a fifty-year-old man who is still being healed emotionally of the abandonment he experienced as a young boy. Both his mother and father were alcoholics, and they would leave their two young boys on the beach alone at night while they partied at the bars. Later this man's father killed his mother. Imagine the trauma of abandonment he felt. read more

Genesis 50:1-Exodus 2:10 Throughout our lives circumstances and situations occur that we just do not understand. For example, I have been praying this week for two dear saints of the Lord who have been stricken with cancer. They both love the Lord with all of their hearts, and yet they are facing a severe test of faith. Why would God allow such a thing to occur? I often see how we blame God for our troubles, but we have to remember the "trouble maker" is not God. The "trouble maker" is Satan, and his plan is to destroy us. God's plan is to give us life and give it to us more abundantly. My husband had two heart attacks, and during that time, he held on to the scripture in Jeremiah 29:11: "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end" (KJV). read more