For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul? Mark 8:36 (ESV)
I stood behind one more servers table, peering into the eyes of a woman I d never met. But I knew our experience would forever change my effectiveness in ministry. It s not a proud moment when you discover, after many years of Christian service, you really weren t serving in the name of Jesus.
Up until a few days before that fateful night, I thought I was ministering the Gospel by merely serving people s physical needs. Then God began asking me if I was just hiding behind the soup ladle, or was I truly giving those I served the full measure of what I had been given?
My daybreak therapy is praying with a pen, recording trials and blessings of yesterday.
King David and I have spent many quiet dawns and silent nights in the Psalms he once composed in caves and pastures. David, the shepherd-king, has been a good mentor, guiding me through the tough times of life, leading me beside still places.
As a teenage scribe, I kept a diary, logging thoughts on my beloved of the week.
Now I write about my Beloved of my everyday in journals filled with naked thoughts on tear crinkled pages, and I emerge strong.
There are times my journal is nothing more than a tattered scrap, recklessly scribbled at a traffic light or jots on a napkin transcribed later to my bound treasured keepsake. Mostly, it s in the pause and ponder times when I come quietly before the Lord to write of His greatness. Then His voice fills the white space.
He loves to work in the dark.
“Even the darkness is not dark to You, And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You.” Psalm 139:12 (NASB)
I’ve spelunked America’s caves, and without artificial light, you can experience thick darkness. The kind that existed before God commanded light to shine. Because these elements are part of His toolbox, He maneuvers through darkness without difficulty. Just like light. While we fumble and stub toes, He’s busy answering our prayers and comforting us; performing the miraculous in our darkest moments.
As often happens under the right circumstances, people are known for igniting conflict. When the Hebrews were forming their new government following their freedom and “dry” water baptism through the Red Sea; problems arose with whose tribe would serve God directly in His tabernacle. The Lord’s solution was
I began working in television in Milwaukee in 1978. While I d never set out to do talk TV, I felt at home from the beginning, and being in the public eye gave me many opportunities to share my faith. Because it was fairly common knowledge in the community that I was a Christian, the publicity of going through a divorce was difficult. That winter, I went home at the end of each day to a cold, silent house. Emotionally depressed and grieved, I would then climb into bed with my hat, coat, and boots still on and sleep till morning.
I m not sure when that heavy veil of grief and emptiness began to lift. But sometime that spring, I became aware of the sweet smell of the wet earth beginning to thaw, the songs of promise that were being sung with such abandon from every nest and perch. I began to move on. I had no intention of dating and no interest in pursuing a new relationship. Though I loved children, I had accepted that there would be none in my first marriage. I was in my 30s, and the