Morning Prayer: 7/29/22

Thank You, Father, that You never leave nor forsake me. Your mercies are new every morning and Your compassions fail not. You know my every breath and are mindful of my every step. You count the hairs of my head and know where each is – not one missing from Your care.

My heartbeat is constant before You, my thoughts reaching to You. You are faithful, and I can trust You who care for me watchfully and care about me affectionately. The comprehension of You is a breath, a heartbeat away. I think of You and there You are: in a heartbeat, You touch me with assurance of Your loving care.

Thank You for loving me; for always drawing near to me as I draw near to You, faithfully making Yourself and Your Presence known, knowable, and evident. Here am I, O God. Make Your faithful essence flow through me as light to a dark and weary world. In Jesus, amen.

Morning Prayer: 7/26/22

Thank You, Father God, that I can seek You and lay my cause before You, knowing You, who are faithful, will accomplish all that concerns me. Thank You that You fight for me and mine. Grant me to glorify and praise You rather than to worry and fret.

Gratitude and praise of You are weapons of war that bring down strongholds. Instead of fretting and worrying, help me glorify You, lifting You on high, fully enthroned in my life and in the situations and circumstances I lay at Your feet.

No evil can stand before You. If You are lifted up, strongholds topple at the mention of Your name, and You draw all humankind to Yourself. This I trust with grateful heart that You are working all things for good to us who love You and are called according to Your purpose. In Christ and for Your glory, amen.

God is Faithful

“One of the greatest lessons I ever learned was that in order to seek God consistently, you need His assistance. The truth is we have an adversary. There exists a being that does not want us to succeed or to grow deeper in God.” Jovita Sheppard

I know many parents who are in deep grief over choices made and hardship suffered by their kids and grandkids in these days. I know that, for me, I have wondered what on earth happened; what I did wrong: such thoughts leading me to feeling like a failure as a parent.

None of us are perfect, and I certainly had my childhood baggage to get rid of as I learned more godly parenting skills. As Christians, we all realize our own issues and growing pains as followers of Christ and as parents, and we all hope and long to give our kids godly resources that help them live life stronger and better. When they don’t succeed at seeking and trusting God, we grieve and feel the failure. So, the other day, crying out to God again, He came clearly to my mind with this clear understanding:

“You were not a bad mother. You prayed to Me for your children and grandchildren from before they were birthed, giving them to Me. You spoke of Me to them and took them to My Word. You got them into church, and you instructed them in My ways. You continue to encourage them to seek Me. You live your faith before them and love them with My love. You have trusted My lead and followed Me as a parent. Trust me now.

“Stop beating yourself up and keep doing what I taught you to do: loving, praying, encouraging, instructing at every opportunity. They need you to be an ally and support. Don’t allow the enemy of your soul to take you into a defeated spirit where you cannot do these things with confidence in Me.

“I got you through all you experienced in life, using it to get you where you are and make you who you are. I will do exceedingly abundantly in their lives as well. You keep trusting them to Me and My glory will be known.”

Maybe you, like me, were not raised in church or taught about God and His ways. Perhaps, like me, you had to learn godly parenting through on the job training. Keep doing what God taught you to do, knowing He will not fail His good purpose and plan. He will bring good out of the mess we see.

Perhaps you have only recently become a Christian. It is not too late. Seek God and lay your cause at His feet. Trust Him to instruct you. Keep praying for those you love and live the faith you have boldly and unapologetically. Watch with earnest expectation and hope to see what God will do.

May God bless you and yours in these strategic days.

Morning Prayer: 7/25/22

More of You, Lord. We need more of You if we are to thrive in these days.

You put us in this age and this place of habitation for a purpose. We need more of You to lead us to our destiny in Christ. And in these days of enemy attack through partial truth, confusion, flat out lies, and relevant-truth sayers, we need You to differentiate the subtle lines that trip us up and lead us astray.

We need You to control our thoughts and direct our tongues to speech that meets false understanding head on out of Your great love. Without You, we can do nothing. With more of You day by day, we can do all things through Christ who gives us strength, for nothing shall be impossible with You.

Here am I, O God. Fill me up and spill me out for Your name’s sake. In Jesus, amen.

Morning Prayer: 7/23/22

Thank You, Father, for Your faithfulness to Yourself. You will not let Yourself down by failing one word of Your promises, proclamations and plans, for You cannot deny Yourself. And thank You for placing Your Holy Presence in me, proclaiming Your faithful alliance to me. We are wed in Holy Matrimony as one. You will not fail faithfulness to me, even when I fall from my faithfulness to You, for You cannot deny Yourself.

What a beautiful picture of a faithfulness that stands firm against temptation. Father, make all Your purposes, proclamations, and plans my own as well. Make this commitment to not fail myself, which would fail You, be my stance as well, so no temptation that fails Your purpose, proclamation, and plan will succeed in me. In Jesus, amen.

‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭2:13‬ ‭‬‬‭‭Genesis‬ ‭39:9‬ ‭‬‬

Morning Prayer: 7/22/22

Father, relational dynamics change. Many of those changes – good, bad, or indifferent – produce a type of death, bringing a grievous loss of some part of life as we know it, requiring us to await the sprouting seeds of new life. Relationship can be in jeopardy of dying at this point when the death of what once was is caused by a betrayal, a broken promise, deep hurt, etc.. Thank You for the times You led me to stick it out, wait on You, and see the glorious sprouting of renewal that brought personal growth, stronger love, increased commitment, deeper understanding, and relational longevity.

Father, I have learned that all such relational issues, even the good of such changes as the birth or marriage of a child, can bring a loss we must grieve if we are to let go the old and prepare for new things. These good things change the dynamics of life that causes loss on one end of a great gain on the other. How we deal with the loss will either break us, or make us stronger. Help us to realize our grieving hearts, and grieve well as we watch with earnest expectation and hope for new things to come. If we can’t let go of the past, we miss out on the present and jeopardize the future. Help us trust You more so we successfully transition through life. In Jesus, amen.

The Fear of The Lord

“The Lord favors those who fear Him, Those who wait for His lovingkindness.”
‭‭Psalms‬ ‭147:11‬ ‭‬‬

I read this and ask God, “Do I fear You as I should? What does fearing You mean?”

How would you define “fear of the Lord”? I don’t quake before Him. Hebrews says I can come boldly before the throne of grace. He is my Father. I enjoy His presence. There is not a quaking fear there.

I look around at things going on in the world and quake at the fate of all involved in it when God moves against it. Do I quake enough to reach out a warning hand ready to pull them out of their pit of destruction? Is my fear of the Lord the righteous fear He calls for, expects, and is worthy of receiving? A fear that acknowledges His worthiness, respects His authority, and recognizes His justice and His right as the true Supreme Justice?

Holy Spirit, You come teaching me of sin, righteousness, and judgement. Is the understanding of these truths and humility it brings that causes my heart to crumble before Him “the fear of the Lord”? If this is it, I am there.

Father, I acknowledge Your worthiness, respect Your authority, and recognize Your right and responsibility to delve out justice. I quake at the thought of an eternity without You, Your love, Your mercy, Your grace, Your presence. Father, I need You and I cry out for those wallowing in the pit of a world set against You.

Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner in need of Your merciful grace. Let this “fear of the Lord” cause me to recognize the difference between the path of sin, the path of righteousness, and the consequences that come with Your judgment. I bow to You, my Daddy-King Jehovah in the name of my Beloved Savior, Jesus Christ, our Jehovah-Tsidkenu. Amen.

Morning Prayer: 7/17/22

‭‭1 John‬ ‭4:15-18‬ ‭‬‬

Father, the devotional author this morning prays, “I pray for my sisters who are faced with insecurities. We know that security is a basic need of women. For us to feel loved, we have to feel secure. But satan has a way of picking and poking at us where it hurts the most. …” Then she asks the question, “What are you most insecure about? Is it your looks? Your job? Being a wife or mother? Make a list of all your insecurities.”

Fear of lost opportunities is my security issue. Father, I know You led me to many, eternally productive opportunities and blessed me greatly to be part of Your Kingdom work, but in these days I look at several relationships that seem to be lesser and wonder what I missed.

Father, remove from me concerns from a past I can’t change and show me where to go from here so I don’t miss today by fretting over yesterdays.

Recognizing our insecurities, even listing them is one thing, but don’t let us stop with a list to fret over. Reveal the path ahead to freedom from these snares, for me and for my sisters and brothers in Christ. In Jesus, amen.

Quote from the devotional Clothed in Grace: You Are Loved.

Morning Prayer: 7/16/22

Ephesians‬ ‭5:22-33‬ ‭‬‬

Father, thank You for my love relationship with Johnny. Thank You that he loves me in deep, abiding ways that satisfies my need. Help me, by Your grace, to respect him in ways that satisfy his needs. Help me…
R – Respond properly to him, Rejoice over his successes, and Recognize the good You’ve placed in him.
E – Edify that good, Encourage his strengths, and Exemplify him, following his lead and acting in tandem with him.
S – Set my heart to Satisfy his needs and desires as aligns with Your will and way, Satiate his needs above and beyond his expectations, Supplement him by being the helpmeet he needs as he needs help.
P – Set my heart to Protect his reputation by speaking highly of him, Promoting his good, and Proving him worthy of respect.
E – May I cooperate with You as You Establish him as a leader among men, Enhancing his strengths where I am able, working with You to Expand his borders of influence, and doing all I can to help Equip him for success.
C – Help my focus to Commune with him – listening fully with hearing ears and open heart, being careful to Communicate righteousness, truth, and love to him. May I practice Continence in my actions and reactions, adding strength to his own self-control and self-restraint, and lift my Countenance toward him in ways that lift his toward You.
T – make me faithful to Toast his successes and righteous effort, Tout his good, and be always available to help Tote his load, partnering with him throughout life.
In Jesus, amen.

Morning Prayer: 7/15/22

“…Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.”
‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭4:25-27, 29-32‬ ‭‬‬

Speaking truth in righteousness and with love, rightly using my tongue as honors You, is a constant topic for me with You, Lord. You tell my heart that my tongue is the pen of the Ready Writer. I trust You to accomplish that in evident, undeniable ways, and that each word You send through this tongue will reach ready hearers.

You have helped me break the cycle of gossip so greatly. You have taught me to keep hurts to myself so that I don’t inadvertently hurt the reputation of someone I profess to love. You’ve blessed me with trustworthy prayer partners who hold me to account and who love on those we pray for despite my pain. They know as I do that there are three sides to every relationship issue: “my perception”, “their perception”, and truth usually somewhere between the two. They encourage understanding truth, seeking restoration, and trusting You who know the truth of the matter.

Thank You for praying, accountability partners and friends. Thank You for grace and forgiveness. Thank You for love that prevails, does right despite wrong, refuses to hold a grudge: love that never fails. Thank You for helping me grow and change. I love You. Amen.

‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭20:19‬ ‭‬‬ ‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭12:20‬ ‭‬‬

Morning Prayer: 7/14/22

“Be happy [in your faith] and rejoice and be glad-hearted continually (always); Be unceasing in prayer [praying perseveringly]; Thank [God] in everything [no matter what the circumstances may be, be thankful and give thanks], for this is the will of God for you [who are] in Christ Jesus [the Revealer and Mediator of that will].”
‭‭1 Thessalonians‬ ‭5:16-18‬ ‭AMPC‬‬
https://bible.com/bible/8/1th.5.16-18.AMPC

Father God, thank You for teaching me the joy of a grateful heart. Thank you for instructing me to know that no one can take that joy from me, and that, even in grievous circumstances, the joy of a thankful heart flourishes, for that heart knows You. That heart believes the truth about You and Your faithfulness at all times. That heart trusts Your Word, believes Your promises, accepts Your ways, walks with You in earnest expectation and hope, knowing that You always work for the good of the one whose heart loves You and who is living a life that follows You with heart desire to fulfill Your purpose.

We can always give thanks from a truly grateful heart because You are the source and cause of our gratitude. It is You we give thanks for as we remember You in every circumstance, rejoicing over the potential and assurance of experiencing You in this life, through the troubling and the good. You never leave nor forsake us. You are for us and not against us. Even in hardship and tribulation, You grow us strong as we trust in You, making us ready for the fulfillment of Your purpose and plan, as You bring us to completion, made ready and adequately prepared for our Bridegroom and King. Thank You that You are always the one we can be grateful for in every circumstance.

Thank You, Lord Jesus, for loving us all the way to the cross, and for showing us the way to take up our cross of obedience to God at all cost, and to daily follow You with every step committed to the Father’s will and way. Thank You for taking all sin onto Your shoulders and experiencing the turning back of God’s rejection for us, so we who believe and receive Your gift of eternal grace never have to know that fate. And thank You, Father, for loving us and desiring this Parent-child relationship so much that You gave Your only begotten Son to accomplish it. May we forever keep our eyes on You with grateful heart. In Jesus, amen.

Morning Prayer: 7/13/22

Torn and tattered, but still smiling.

What a beautiful mess. Thank You, Father, for the half inch of rain that allowed me to turn the sprinklers off last night. And even for the moisture from all that tiny hail that filled the lawn and crunched under my feet in last night’s video. What joy it is to step out into the beauty after the storm.

Thank You for the beauty after the storm and the picture of life carrying on that it gives. Thank You that out of destruction, much can be salvaged, and out of damage, strength reveals itself as restoration begins. Thank You for signs of Your protective cover.

Thank You that we can exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope. And hope does not disappoint, because Your love has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. Thank You for Your faithfulness. I love You, Lord, and look forward to the future with You as we watch for the beauty You bring out of ashes.

‭‭Romans‬ ‭5:3-5‬‬‬
Last night’s video.

Morning Prayer: 7/12/22

Thank You that Your compassions fail not, and You, Abba-Father, lovingly discipline those You claim as a son or daughter. Your discipline proves our relationship with You as Father. I am grateful that You faithfully discipline me and I watch for Your loving hand that guides me on paths of righteousness for Your Name’s sake.

Father, it is true. You already know everything about us, so we can come to You humbly with each sin in our lives without fear of shocking You who already know, and we can earnestly seek Your forgiveness and grace knowing it is already there for us through Jesus Christ our Lord. He is The Way, The Truth, and The Life made for us by You who make a way where there is no way. You are faithful, so we need not fear.

However, I want more of You, so I ask for courage to truly humble myself and let You search me, O God, and know my heart. Try me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any evil, hurtful way in me and lead me in Your still more excellent ways. I know when I sincerely seek You to create in me a clean heart, You will shock me with the findings and amaze me with Your mercies made new every morning. In Jesus, make it so in me, I pray. Amen.

Glorify God in Your Body

“… Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take away the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? May it never be! Or do you not know that the one who joins himself to a prostitute is one body with her? For He says, “The two shall become one flesh.” But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him. Flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body. …” ~ 1 Corinthians 6:12-20

Many take the portion of this passage that relates to sexual sin, meant as an example of what immortality looks like in our relationship with God, and apply it’s text only to that. The immoral person that sins against their own body includes those who sin against the sexual purity God expects us to practice, but this passage is so much deeper than relations between one man and one woman. Our union with God is a marriage covenant, and any sin against God is a sin against that union. It hurts our body – our Spirit union.

Immorality: The character of being immoral; transgression of the moral law; immoral thought or action; wickedness; dissoluteness; licentiousness.

The immoral person is not moral; they are inconsistent with rectitude, purity, or good morals; they work contrary to conscience or the divine law, forgetting and neglecting union with God. These are wicked; unjust; dishonest; vicious; licentious. When we profess unity with God through Christ, yet behave immorally, we do harm to our own body, ripping at the core of that union.

Looking at this full passage, what does it say?

“All things are lawful for me, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.”

There are many things in life that we can choose, do, or have within the borders of God’s Law, dictated by His moral compass, but not everything will profit us in our relationship with God. For example, we can have money. Being rich in this life is not sin. Having a storehouse of goods to see us through difficult times is not sin. But letting that treasure trove of God’s supply rule us, the trove becoming the end means, is sin. It gets between us and our God, becoming our greatest trust, our mistress, and robbing God of our affection and commitment. This is an immorality. It hurts our relationship with God and sins against our oneness with Him.

We are to be good stewards of all God blesses us to have. Rightly using the provision God blesses us to have, clinging to Him and trusting Him with and for that supply, sharing with those who have need as God leads, reveals good stewardship that God blesses with more supply, so we have plenty for our own need, and a surplus to help those in any need. Such collaboration with God, following His lead, feeds our union, making us strong in Him.

“Food is for the stomach and the stomach is for food, but God will do away with both of them. Yet the body is not for immorality, but for the Lord, and the Lord is for the body.”

Our relationship with God is eternal. It is our lasting treasure. He is our exceedingly great reward. Anything that works against that truth puts a wall up in our relationship with God, just as “even looking at another woman (or man) to lust after” them puts a wall between us and our mate, robbing them of affections that rightly belong to them alone. It hurts our union with God, breaking trust, just as it does our mate in marriage. It is immoral.

“Now God has not only raised the Lord, but will also raise us up through His power. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ? Shall I then take away the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? May it never be! Or do you not know that the one who joins himself to a prostitute is one body with her? For He says, “The two shall become one flesh.” But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him. Flee immorality. Every other sin that a man commits is outside the body, but the immoral man sins against his own body.”

Anything in life that separates us from God, robbing Him of our affection, commitment, loyalty, etc., no matter how good or innocent that thing may be, becomes a prostitute when it comes between us and God. It breaks trust. It is giving self to another in a way that rightly belongs only to God.

“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.”

Morning Prayer: 7/7/22

Father, my greatest desire is to honor You with my all. My “job” feels home bound and often mundane. Help me remember You in each day and every task. It is You who sees me. May I be found doing my best work in these day. Find me faithful, O God. To You be the glory. In Jesus, amen.

Morning Prayer: 7/6/22

Father, help my words and actions toward my kids and grands truly lift them to higher ground and help them know and trust You. Flow through me to truly love each one in righteousness and truth with Your everlasting love. Defeat the enemy who seeks to still, kill, and destroy family relationships. Grant wisdom to know when to speak or step in to take action, and when to hush, be still, know, and pray. In Jesus, amen.

Morning Prayer: 7/5/22

Father, thank You for instructing me in how to honor a parent who did not behave honorably in her parenting. Thank you for empowering forgiveness, granting love for her in Your name, and instructing me to live in such a way as honors You, making her look good as a parent. And thank You for helping me smile and not correct those who brag on how great she must have been. I thank You for helping me understand her own childhood pain and the struggle it caused her, snd her mental issues from that. And thank You for healing me daily. Forgive me my own failures as my childhood effected my way of parenting. Bless my children to be free and not carry familial issues to the next generations. May each generation experience greater deliverance and freedom from these generational issues. In Jesus, amen.

Morning Prayer: 7/3/22

Suitable: Appropriate to a purpose or an occasion. Capable of suiting; fitting; accordant; proper; becoming; agreeable; adapted. Having sufficient or the required properties for a certain purpose or task; appropriate to a certain occasion.

Father, thank You for my relationship with Johnny. Thank You for suiting us to each other for Your good purpose. We truly are suited to one another. Thank You for the work of grace You’ve done in each of us throughout our lives as one. Thank You for continuing that work of grace day by day. May we be Your instruments, revealing the unity, oneness, love, and grace You desire we have with You, as one thing marriage is purposed to accomplish is to provide a picture of all our relationship with You should be. Make us one as Father, Son, and Holy Presence are One. In Jesus, amen.

Dreamers of Dreams

“Now when they had gone, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up! Take the Child and His mother and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is going to search for the Child to destroy Him.” …But when Herod died, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, and said, “Get up, take the Child and His mother, and go into the land of Israel; for those who sought the Child’s life are dead.” …But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea in place of his father Herod, he was afraid to go there. Then after being warned by God in a dream, he left for the regions of Galilee, and came and lived in a city called Nazareth. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophets: “He shall be called a Nazarene.””Matthew 2:13, 19-20, 22-23

In biblical days, God often used dreams to make the path clear for those following Him. I believe God, who is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and whose Word tells us of His use of dreams and visions in the latter days, still uses dreams to instruct, direct, and warn us.

Not all dreams are significant. Most are brought on by the days events and concerns, or the pizza that didn’t set well. From my experience there is a distinct sense of value on dreams worthy of focus. When that sense of importance comes with vivid recall of details in the dream, it is important to seek God for discernment.

There are people in life that are gifted with the ability to interpret dreams and visions. Some believe interpretation of dreams can be taught. I believe it is a gift from God that cannot be taught, but is given only through the work of His Spirit.

I’ve had many experiences of dreams from God, both my own, and the interpretation of the dreams of others. Like with the prophet, the dream and its interpretation prove to be from God when it is fulfilled in life. God never lies, and what He says always comes to pass.

When you have a dream you sense is significant, don’t just ignore it. Hand it over to God and ask Him to instruct you concerning it. He may give the interpretation to you. He may lead you to an interpreter of dreams. But God is faithful to respond to a seeking heart that is set to believe, receive, and walk out His will.

Morning Prayer: 7/2/22

The robbing of the Temple and everything being carried away to Babylon is heart breaking. The rebellion and hardened heart of God’s people is difficult to fathom. Even those who love and follow You can have blinded eyes and be dense in faith. Such hard hearted refusal of all Your glory is a robbing of Your temple, which You lovingly make to dwell in us. Father, reveal to me any area of my life that is hardened against You. Take out the heart of stone and grant me a heart of flesh, pliable, adapted, and yielded to You. In Jesus, amen.

‭‭2 Kings‬ ‭25:8-21‬ ‭‬‬

Morning Prayer: 7/1/22

Father, by Your grace I stand and thrive most days. But my plate is full. Right now, anything else trying to get on my plate feels like a tsunami. It just overwhelms me and I struggle to enter Your rest. I am very tired. Thank You for the yoke of Christ. Help me cooperate with Your lead and trust the load to You. Help me rest my plate on Your wagon and trust You to fill it with good that brings You glory. And when I am overwhelmed, grant me peace with faith to trust You in the storm. In Jesus, amen.

Journey to Redemption

“The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah…. Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob. Jacob was the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah. ….” Matthew 1:1-17

The lineage of Jesus is a picture of the redemptive power of God, how God takes those who commit great evil and works good out of it, and how good and evil alike ultimately work the will of God into this world experience. Looking at the kings of Israel is a roller coaster ride between good and evil. For me, as I read the names of all theses who struggled in this life and yet were included in the bringing of the Christ to us, it gives assurance to God’s ability to use even me. Just looking at the five women mentioned in Jesus’s family lineup is such a beautiful picture of redemption.

Tamar – the daughter-in-law of Judah who tricked Judah into fulfilling the law of birthing a child to carry on the name of the deceased don, who was her husband. She played the harlot in tricking Judah into lying with her so she could conceive and birth one of the fathers of Jesus. Despite the trickery she felt forced to practice in order to receive her due, Tamar was counted more righteous than Judah who refused his last son to her out of fear. Through her story we see deception, trickery, fear, faith, hope, and restoration.

Rahab – a harlot in Jericho who helped the spies of Israel escape and was protected on the day the walls fell and God’s people took possession of that land. She and her family were saved, and she was taken as a wife by Salmon, rewarded by God as one added to the line of Christ. Through her story we see harlotry, mercy, and redemption.

Ruth – the Moabitis daughter-in-law of Naomi. After the death of Naomi’s husband and two sons, Ruth refused to leave Naomi’s side and committed herself to follow Naomi and her God, no matter where that led her. It led her through commitment, faithfulness, and redemption to the pages of the history of Israel and its coming King.

Bathsheba – wife of Uriah, taken in adultery by King David who tried to hide the sin leading to pregnancy, even having Uriah killed in his attempts. But the prophet of God knew. The child born was taken in sickness, leading David to repent his sin. God’s grace to David and Bathsheba brought Solomon to life. We see lust, adultery, deception, murder, repentance, comfort, grace, and redemption.

Mary – believed to be of teenage years, was a virgin, considered a woman in her time frame, betrothed to Joseph. Found with child before the consummation of their marriage vows, no one believed her story of miraculous conception by the work of God’s Holy Spirit. If found out, she was destined to death by stoning for out of wedlock relations; the growing fetus considered proof of indiscretion. But God.

Angelic messengers, sent by God, prepare the couple for their journey of faith. Gabriel lets Mary know of her chosen estate, which she willing accepts by faith, despite the danger to her life. An angel in a dream brings Joseph into the loop of understanding the calling of God on them. And our Savior was born. Mary’s and Joseph’s story is a one of faith, humility, courage, hope, intrigue, anticipation, and, yes, redemption, as God protects mom and Babe, seeing Jesus safely to His destiny as redeemer of the world.

Redemption is throughout the history that brought the time of Christ to the earth. Now we have a part in His story. Jesus paid the price of sin that separates us from God, giving us a way to Him anew. His life, death, burial, resurrection, and ascension removed power from sin’s death, granting all humans opportunity to choose life – relationship with God for all eternity. All sin is paid for, but each person must choose to believe and receive the gift of Christ for themselves. The only sin that continues to separate us from the Father is refusal to believe and receive the truth of Jesus, the redeemer. By grace through faith we are saved. And once we choose Him, we become part of His redemptive story. What are you writing on His pages with your life?