Hard Things of Faith

It is one thing to believe in God, it is another thing altogether to know who God is.  Learning about the character of God has the potential to be a game-changer in our everyday life.  We are living in a time of great division and darkness that many people have never seen before.  The only thing of value that I have to share is my faith and my ever-growing understanding of who God is.  I hope in reading this and through the pages of scripture, you will find the One that is faithful and true.  He is my solid ground when the world around me seems to be falling apart.    A few months back, I was talking to a family member that had to leave her home church and she mentioned that she missed going to Bible study.  I was so excited that she wanted to be studying God’s word, I offered to help since she didn’t have a new church home yet.  When I asked her where she wanted to start, she said, “Genesis.”  Well, can I just tell you how less than excited I was at that?  I was hoping for something o

       Friends,  As things get darker and harder it is tempting to be consumed with what is happening and how we feel about it.  Whether you express how you feel publicly or keep it to your inner circle, it has been hard to watch what has been happening in our country and around the world.  It doesn't matter if you are like me and have a lot of emotion or you are the person who isn’t about the feelings, this is tough.     We are all so over Covid-19.  We are over having to wear the mask. (The division over the masks is a subject in and of itself!)  To say that we are weary of the social distancing would be a gross understatement.  As if this isn’t enough, we have had a presidential election that has shown our weakened state to every enemy we have. We have a racial division in our country with wounds so deep, I am not sure we will ever heal this side of Heaven.  Depression, abuse, addiction, these are things that just keep getting worse.   We just can’t seem to catch a break or even

  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old things have passed away; behold, all the things have become new.        A few months ago I woke up and before my feet even hit the floor, I was struggling with sinful thoughts.  I knew immediately that I need to go to the Lord in prayer and then get into scripture.  The Lord was faithful to meet me where I was and help me in my struggle.   Being so taken with the Lord’s willingness to meet me where I was that morning and help me, I shared this with a dear Sister-in Christ.  Her immediate response was “What do you mean you woke up with sinful thoughts.  You are a Christian, you shouldn’t struggle with sin like that.”  Then she recited the above scripture to me. I was definitely taken aback by her statement.    Now you must understand that this woman is a dear friend of mine who loves the Lord.  She had no idea that she was helping to perpetuate false teaching that has been used to cause great harm to many people.     The