May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13
Daniel
3:16-18
Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego replied to him, “King Nebuchadnezzar, we do
not need to defend ourselves before you in this matter. If we are thrown
into the blazing furnace, the God we serve is able to deliver us from it,
and he will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he
does not, we want you to know, Your Majesty, that we will not serve your gods
or worship the image of gold you have set up.”
The thermometer in the car screamed 102 degrees.
In southwest
Ohio, the temperatures are registering in the high nineties. We’ve had storms
and electric out. My daughter’s family had no electric for almost twenty-four
hours. So what did we do? We gathered at the pool and stayed cool. I am
thankful we live in a place where I have the opportunity to swim with my kids
and grands. When we left, Sara’s car registered 102.
In all of my
almost 65 years, I’ve only had central air since we moved into the condo almost
eight years ago. Up to then, I dealt with the heat in whatever way I could. Let’s
just say, I’m not a summer person, especially in this heat. But I know as the
seasons do, this will pass and before long cooler weather will grace Ohio.
During this oppressive
heat, I’ve been reading the book of Daniel, and you can imagine my thoughts on
the fiery furnace. Without reservation those brave young men, Shadrack,
Meshach, and Abednego, did not fear the heat. They put their lives and hearts
in God’s hands. That’s called faith.
We have a
lot of negatives going on in our country and in the world. I can imagine the
Christians in Ukraine are holding on to their faith for dear life. I love this
line in Daniel: “the God we serve is able to deliver us from it, and he
will deliver us from Your Majesty’s hand. But even if he does
not, we want you to know... we will not
serve your gods or worship the image of gold you have set up.” These men
believed God would deliver them, but even if He didn’t, they continued to have
faith in the God they served even if He didn’t save them. They trusted God with
their lives and knew He held their future in His hands.
I wonder if
I have the faith they did. Can I keep the faith regardless of my circumstances?
I pray the answer is yes. I want faith like the men in Daniel. A faith without
doubt. I pray God strengthens my faith as I continue on my life’s path.
Have faith,
God will see you through.
Fiona is back with two delightful stories for beginning readers. On the train, the animals get to travel through the zoo on their way to meet the baby red panda. In school, the animals get to teach each other about something important to them. With humor and comradery Cowdrey and Wu have created books kids will enjoy. The illustrations are colorful and appealing.
Fiona's Train Ride by Richard Cowdrey with Donald Wu
Fiona wants to visit the new baby red panda, but it is so far! What better way to get around the zoo than the fun and fast zoo train. Young readers will enjoy learning more about Fiona and her friends in this Level One I Can Read about the little hippo that has captured hearts around the world with her inspiring story and plucky personality.
Fiona and a few of her animal friends attend zoo school for the very first time and find out just how fun it is to learn new things in the classroom. Young readers will enjoy learning more about Fiona and her friends in this Level One I Can Read about the little hippo that has captured hearts around the world with her inspiring story and plucky personality.
3 John 1:2-4
Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well
with you, even as your soul is getting along well. It gave me great joy
when some believers came and testified about your faithfulness to the
truth, telling how you continue to walk in it. I have no greater joy than
to hear that my children are walking in the truth.
"God does not depend on our abilities—He depends on our availability." -Jay Henry
As a camper at Butler Springs Christian Assembly in the
1970s, I heard many missionaries speak. Then in some of the churches I
attended, the same servants of God came to share their story. One I remember well,
Jay Henry, has moved full circle through many years of service. On Sunday, our
minister invited Jay to the stage. This wonderful, faithful servant shared that
he had stepped down and turned the mission work over to his son and grandson,
even though he will still be a part of it. He's blessed many lives in India for
Jesus as he has shown up and done the work. The quote I posted above, that Jay
shared, spoke to me.
Yes, God gifts each of us with abilities, but rather than
depend on the ability itself, God depends on His people to be available. I find
this in my writing. God may have blessed me with a gift for writing, but
without showing up and putting in the work, where would the writing be? If I
don't put my fingers on the keyboard and use the talent God gives me, the
talent will die and the audience He gave me won't be blessed.
The apostle John wrote a letter to one of his friends in his
third book. He thanked his friend, Gaius, for being faithful and sharing his
walk with other believers. A couple of things I love about this passage—John
tells Gaius he hopes his health is good, including his spiritual well-being. Faithfulness
to God results in a healthy soul because that faithfulness includes walking in
the truth, the second idea I love.
As I do my best to walk in God's truth and show up as a
faithful servant, I pray God blesses my availability with ability. Whatever ability God has given, whether speaking, encouraging, hospitality, or many others, show up and He'll provide.
Seek God first and be faithful.
Book Description:
When Leah Miller's entire Amish family was murdered ten years ago, the person
believed responsible took his own life. Since then, Leah left the Amish and
joined the police force. Now, after another Amish woman is found murdered with
the same MO, it becomes clear that the wrong man may have been blamed for her
family's deaths.
As Leah and the new police chief, Dalton Cooper, work long hours struggling to
fit the pieces together in order to catch the killer, they can't help but grow
closer. When secrets from both of their pasts begin to surface, an unexpected
connection between them is revealed. But this is only the beginning. Could it
be that the former police chief framed an innocent man to keep the biggest
secret of all buried? And what will it mean for Leah--and Dalton--when the full
truth comes to light?
USA Today bestselling author Mary Alford keeps you guessing as two
determined souls plumb the dark depths of the past in order to forge a brighter
future--together.
My Thoughts:
If you like the television show, Criminal Minds, you would enjoy Among the
Innocent. From my viewpoint, the book has too much graphic violence, and I
struggled with being in the protagonist's point of view because he is so
deranged, however, the story line is interesting and compelling, and the faith
thread is strong. I finished reading the story because I wanted to know what
happened to Leah and Dalton. The emotion Alford writes into her characters goes deep and the story line intense. If you enjoy feverishly suspenseful stories with
romance, this may be the book for you. I received a complimentary copy of this
book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.