In Tender Mercies (one of my all time favorites!) God uses a young widow to love “Mac,” a recovering alcoholic, into the Kingdom. Her son, “Sonny” and “Mac” are baptized one Sunday. On the way home, they reflect. Sonny: “Well, we’ve done it, Mac. We’re baptized.” Mac: “Yeah, we are.” Sonny: “Everybody said I was going to feel like a changed person. I guess I do feel a little different. But I don’t feel a whole lot different. Do you?” Mac: “Not yet.” Sonny: “You don’t look any different.” (Sonny sits up to look at himself in the rearview mirror.) “Do you think I look any different?” Mac: “Not yet.” Rankin Wilbourne said he knew after receiving Jesus, that Jesus promised rivers of living water would flow out of his heart, but it seemed more like a trickle than a […]

TRULY, I BELIEVE TOGETHER WE CAN MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND THIS YEAR. IF YOU’VE BEEN HERE BEFORE, WELCOME BACK! IF YOU ARE NEW, WELCOME! (Newcomers — go to Dee’s homepage, click Bible Study Blog on the top, and then look for this picture, click on it, and it will give you easy directions to participate.) THOUGH IT IS TRUE NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS TEND TO BE BROKEN, I THINK THAT IS BECAUSE WE ATTACK THE SYMPTOM AND NOT THE ROOT. We resolve to spend less, eat less, get less angry. Or, we resolve to be more like Jesus and give more grace, be more other-centered, live more simply… But we seem to break all those resolutions. MY BOOK OF THE YEAR FOR 2016 IS: FOR THE NEXT TWO MONTHS I WILL CONCENTRATE ON SOME OF THE LIFE-CHANGING INSIGHTS FROM SCRIPTURE THAT […]

MERRY CHRISTMAS MY DEAR SISTERS! I MADE A SPECIAL GREETING FOR YOU, TO TRY, IN MY SMALL WAY, TO TELL YOU WHAT YOU MEAN TO ME! WE ARE GOING TO PONDER EACH DAY THIS WEEK, AS MARY DID, AS THE SHEPHERDS DID, AS THE WISEMEN DID… WHAT IT ALL MEANS THAT HE’S HERE! This song from Francesca Battistelli touches me so deeply. Here the lyrics and the you-tube version to begin your Christmas Day! Hold on now, I gotta take a deep breath I don`t know what to say when I look in your eyes You made the world before I was born Here I am holding you in my arms tonight Noel, Noel, Jesus our Emmanuel You`re here, i`m holding You so near I`m staring into the face of my Saviour, King and Creator You could`ve left us on […]

I’m memorizing Luci Shaw’s poem: “Made Flesh.” She reflects on what Jesus surrendered — for us. How the Light was eclipsed in amniotic gloom. How the Word was stern sentenced to be nine months dumb. How the Almighty submitted to a woman’s birth pangs. And then she parallels how, because of this, she surrenders to the crush and cry of birth. AND THAT IS THE SECRET TO REAL LIFE. THAT FULFILLS THE REASON HE CAME.     HE CAME TO RESCUE US FROM THE PENALTY OF SIN AND HE CAME TO RESCUE US FROM THE POWER OF SIN. THE FIRST IS INSTANTANEOUS, WHEN WE TRUST, THE SECOND REQUIRES SUBMITTING TO BIRTH PANGS. THERE IS A SECRET WOVEN THROUGH ISAIAH, SONG OF SONGS, & TRULY, THE WHOLE NEW TESTAMENT THAT WE KNOW, BUT HAS IT BEEN QUICKENED IN US? EVERY YEAR […]

WHEN LUCY STEPPED THROUGH THE WARDROBE TO NARNIA SHE FOUND ANOTHER WORLD. A WORLD THOSE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE DOOR FOUND HARD TO BELIEVE. YET, IT WAS TRUE. AND ONE DAY, WE WHO ARE IN HIM, WILL STEP INTO THE WONDERLAND ISAIAH 11 DESCRIBES. EXACTLY WHEN THIS WILL HAPPEN IS DEBATED AMONG THEOLOGIANS, WILL IT BE DURING THE 1000 YEAR REIGN REVELATION DESCRIBES? IS IT HEAVEN? WHAT MATTERS IS THAT IT IS GOING TO HAPPEN, AND BELIEVERS WILL “STEP THROUGH THE WARDROBE” INTO ANOTHER WORLD. A TIME IS COMING WHEN EDEN WILL BE RESTORED. NO MORE WILL SINS AND SORROWS GROW, NOR THORNS INFEST THE GROUND. FOR HE COMES TO MAKE HIS BLESSINGS KNOWN FAR AS THE CURSE IS FOUND. HE WILL BE OUR KING AND THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD SHALL REST UPON HIM. HE WILL REDEEM […]

Though there are flashes of light in the first eight chapters of Isaiah, most of it is gloom and doom for God’s disobedient people. But when we arrive at Isaiah 9, the light is almost blinding, the promise almost too good to be true, and yet, it was true. It did happen, just as Isaiah said it would. And everyone who has received Jesus knows it is true, for God’s Spirit bears witness with his spirit, and he rejoices, “as with the joy of the harvest.” (Isaiah 9:3) I was one who surrendered to Christ reluctantly, because I became convinced He was who He claimed to be. The fear of the Lord brought me to my knees. But then! Oh! He took the blinders from eyes I didn’t know I was wearing. But I knew it when they were gone! […]

Advent 2016 has arrived, and how we need it! We will look at passages from Isaiah this Advent, and I am thrilled that this is how the Lord is leading. There so many parallels to where we are today. In America we’ve just been through the basest election season in my lifetime, and perhaps in history. There was time when Lincoln and Douglas referred to one another as “my honorable opponent.” But in 2016, all civility vanished. Both sides poured out vile words, harsh ads, and personal attacks.  Facebook was filled with tasteless posts, even from believers, that revealed a festering oozing wound, like the wound God saw in His people in the days of Isaiah. (Isaiah 1:5) Our Canadian and European sisters have written that they have preceded us in a cultural downward spiral. Believers from poor nations are […]

I AM A WEAK WOMAN. WHEN MY HUSBAND WAS DYING, I WANTED TO DIE WITH HIM, BUT HE PRAYED FOR GOD TO TURN MY MOURNING INTO DANCING. AND, AMAZINGLY, GOD HAS! I LEARNED THE POWER OF THANKSGIVING, THE POWER OF PRAISE, AND THE POWER OF SPEAKING INSTEAD OF LISTENING TO MY SOUL. THIS IS ONE REASON, I BELIEVE, GOD COMMANDS PRAISE. IT IS FOR US! WE LEARN WHAT JEHOSHAPHAT OF OLD LEARNED! PRAISE DEFEATS OUR ENEMIES! Thank you for your encouragement and prayers concerning this blog. What I am sensing is to continue, for we all are so blessed by the fellowship here. The lessons will be shorter and after Advent I may go bi-weekly. We are so blessed by women of depth here, and I would miss you — but I also know we all have other commitments. So, […]

HOW EXCITING IT HAS BEEN TO SEE YOU CATCH THE WIND OF THE SPIRIT IN EVANGELISM. INSTEAD OF A CANNED APPROACH YOU HAVE BEEN ALERT TO THOSE WHOM HE PUTS IN YOUR PATH BEING HIS HEART, HIS EYES, HIS EARS, LOVING AND LISTENING, AND SENSING THE WIND OF HIS SPIRIT! SO MANY STORIES: NILA IN HER BED AND BREAKFAST SUSAN AS A NURSE AT THE HOSPITAL JACKIE TALKING TO THE OWNERS OF PETS LIZ BEFRIENDING A NEIGHBOR AT THE MAILBOX REBECCA LOVING HER SONS’ FRIENDS LAURA INVITING HER NEIGHBORS FOR TEA AND SO MANY MORE! YOU ALSO WERE LIKE IRON SHARPENING IRON WITH LINKS TO ENCOURAGE US. A COUPLE I LOVED:  MARY E. GAVE THIS SO YOU CAN FIND OUT WHO YOUR NEIGHBORS ARE AND BEGIN TO PRAY: http://pray4everyhome.com/pray/ AND REBECCA FOUND THIS CLIP FROM AN ATHEIST WHO WAS SO […]

LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT A SIMPLE TESTIMONY OUR DAUGHTER BETH SHARED. STEVE AND I ADOPTED BETH FROM THAILAND WHEN SHE WAS TWELVE   When Beth was nineteen, her college speech teacher called me and said, “Beth told her story today and it was a speech no one will ever forget.” Beth brought a tape recorder (remember tape recorders?) with a song from Point of Grace called “Who Am I?” (Today you may be more familiar with Casting Crown’s recording.) Beth would share a sentence or two and then go over and play a little of this song. She kept doing this until the end. Here is the Point of Grace song:     Beth began: “When I was a baby my parents cut off my arm and threw me away to die. But I didn’t die. Somebody heard me […]

I SCARED YOU LAST WEEK! WHEN I ASKED YOU TO PREPARE YOUR TESTIMONY, MANY OF YOU FELT LIKE THIS: A FEW OF YOU THOUGHT IF YOU HAD A DRAMATIC PAUL TESTIMONY, THEN MAYBE YOU COULD DO IT. BUT LIKE TIMOTHY, YOU CAME TO KNOW THE LORD AS A LITTLE CHILD YOU CAN’T EVEN REMEMBER LIFE WITHOUT CHRIST. I’M TRULY SORRY FOR SENDING YOU DOWN THE DIVING BOARD WITH SO LITTLE PREPARATION! YOU’VE CAUSED ME TO REPENT AND RETHINK. I’VE ASKED FOR WISDOM AND I DO BELIEVE THE LORD HAS MET ME. IT DOESN’T HAVE TO BE SO SCARY. IT IS VERY POSSIBLE TO MOVE FROM FEAR TO EXCITEMENT AND VICTORY   WITH A LITTLE BETTER PREPARATION! WHETHER YOU ARE A TIMOTHY OR A PAUL OR A COMBINATION OF THE TWO, THERE ARE A FEW SIMPLE THINGS WE ALL CAN DO […]

THE MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR CAN ALSO BE THE MOST FERTILE TIME OF THE YEAR FOR SPIRITUAL BEGINNINGS. IF YOU HAVE MISSED THIS, CONSIDER SEIZING THE SEASON THIS YEAR. NOW IS THE TIME TO PLAN. YESTERDAY THIS WAS MY LITTLE VILLAGE, BUT SHE WILL SOON BE CLOTHED IN WHITE. YESTERDAY I WALKED THE TRAILS OF FALLING LEAVES WITH MY GRAND-DAUGHTERS BUT SOON WE WILL BE CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING THESE TRAILS. NOW IS THE TIME TO GET READY TO SEIZE THE MOST FERTILE TIME OF THE YEAR AFTER THIS POLITICAL SEASON, PEOPLE MAY BE ESPECIALLY HUNGRY FOR HOPE. MANY PEOPLE WHO WOULD SHUN AN INVITE TO A GOOD FRIDAY SERVICE WILL GLADLY COME TO YOUR HOME FOR A CHRISTMAS TEA. WOULD YOU PRAY NOW ABOUT HOSTING A TEA IN YOUR HOME? YOU MIGHT PARTNER WITH A SISTER IN CHRIST. THEN […]

HOW WONDERFUL IT IS WHEN YOU FEEL THE WIND OF THE SPIRIT MOVING SOMETIMES THE BREEZE COMES UP SO QUICKLY YOU CAN SCARCELY BELIEVE IT! I remember when my neighbor Gladys visited our Bible study. She was so quiet that I stopped by the next day with banana bread, thanking her for coming, telling her I hoped she’d come again, praying she might open up. She asked me to stay for tea (a good sign!) and over steaming cups of orange spiced tea, I queried, “You were so quiet at study — what you were feeling and thinking?” “Honesty, I felt kind of stupid — the other women seem to get it, but Dee, when I read the Bible, I feel like it is written in a foreign language.” She was an intelligent woman, so I was quite sure what […]

WE MUST BE AWARE OF THE ENEMY’S SNARES WHAT SATAN FEARS THE MOST IS LOVE, THE BIRTHMARK OF A CHRISTIAN. GOD IS LOVE, AND AS HIS CHILDREN, WE MUST REFLECT THAT LOVE, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE DISAGREE. NOTHING CAN BUILD A WALL FASTER THAN QUARRELS. OUR ENEMY KNOWS THAT, SO WHEN A SUBJECT OF CONTROVERSY COMES UP HE IS FEEDING THE FIRE HE IS FEEDING OUR PRIDE SO THAT WE WILL BUILD A WALL BETWEEN US AND THE ONE WE LONG TO WIN TO CHRIST.  I HAVE LEARNED THE HARD WAY IN THIS REGARD. AS A YOUNG CHRISTIAN, AFTER COMING ON SO STRONG WHEN I DISAGREED, A WALL CAME UP BETWEEN ME AND ONE I LOVED. I HAD TO GO AND HUMBLE MYSELF, ASKING TEARFULLY FOR FORGIVENESS FOR NOT REALLY LISTENING TO HER. I TOLD HER, “I SEE IT WAS MY […]

SOME OF MY FAVORITE PEOPLE ARE THOSE WHO HAVE LEARNED HOW TO BE THE HOST IN CONVERSATION. THEY ARE OTHER-CENTERED. THEY LISTEN TO UNDERSTAND, NOT TO REPLY. THEY HAVE MASTERED THE RARE ART OF LISTENING. WE MUST BECOME “WOMEN OF UNDERSTANDING” WHO KNOW HOW TO DRAW OUT THE DEEP WATERS OF ANOTHER’S SOUL. The purposes of a man’s heart is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out. Proverbs 20:5  WE NEED EARS TO HEAR WHAT IS KEEPING THEM FROM JESUS. SO OFTEN THE ART OF LISTENING GOES HAND IN HAND WITH THE ART OF HOSPITALITY. JESUS DIDN’T HAVE A HOME, BUT STILL, HE PRACTICED HOSPITALITY. HE MADE A BREAKFAST ON THE BEACH AND INVITED PETER TO JOIN HIM. HE TOLD ZACCHEAUS, “I’M COMING TO YOUR HOUSE TODAY.” HE BROKE BREAD WITH THE TWO ON THE […]