“But I will sacrifice to You with the voice of thanksgiving. That which I have vowed I will pay. Salvation is from the Lord” (Jonah 2:9 NASB). Jonah was called by God the go share the gospel to the people in Nineveh. However, this assignment was not one that Jonah had in his planner. This trip was not on his agenda, so Jonah attempted to flee from the Lord by buying a ticket to a different city. However, the Lord,…
Sometimes we may be caught up in the trials of life and feel overwhelmed. When we become consumed by the pressures of life, it may be difficult to think of reasons to give God thanks. Even while in the midst of our tough seasons, the Bible teaches us to give thanks. One my toughest seasons came when my son was arrested. The tragedy of the situation felt like I lived in a nightmare and I couldn’t wake up. However, the…
After my son was sent to the state penitentiary, I read in Jeremiah 29 how the Lord allowed His people to be taken into captivity. The Lord allowed it because the people refused to humble themselves before the Lord and live according to His ways. My son admitted that his lifestyle was not pleasing to the Lord and the Lord allowed him to be taken into captivity in order to get his attention. In the early days of his incarceration,…
God desires for all of His children to live victorious lives. First John 5:4-5 reads, “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” (NKJV) When we believe in Jesus, we are born again of God. Then we must learn how to fight our battles from a position of victory in Christ. The Lord equipped…
A warning sign alerts us that there is danger ahead that we cannot see. Based on the type of warning sign, we either proceed with caution or turn around. Negative emotions may be a warning sign that we have a heart issue that needs to be resolved with the Lord. Unresolved heart issues will lead to hindrances in our walk with the Lord. Sometime back, I came across a Facebook post with a news media link that two juveniles were…
My husband and I read through the Bible each year following a one-year Bible reading plan. Presently, we are in the book of Ezekiel. Ezekiel means “God is strong” and if you read this book, you will understand why Ezekiel needed to be strong! The content in Ezekiel unfolds like a graphic movie. And if someone today were to share the visions he wrote about, we might ask, “What are you smoking?” But the words of Ezekiel are the Word…
Shortly after my son’s arrest, I learned that he needed to know that he had family on the outside who loved and supported him while he’s inside. Every person has an innate desire to be loved and accepted—including inmates. Just because they live behind razor wire and concrete walls doesn’t mean that their hearts turned to stone. All people desire to accepted into a community. Everyone wants a family. In prison, inmates may find new families in the form of…
Do you realize that God gives us sufficient grace to make it through each day? I remember how this revelation came to me years ago when my husband was away from home for an extended period of time for work. I had to pick up the slack around the home. We had two young boys and I worked full time outside the home. Interestingly enough, problems did not wait until my husband came home. Life continued in his absence. We…
Just weeks after our son’s arrest, a colleague told me, “Shonda, be sure you put your hope in God because man will fail you.” That sounded like good advice and I really intended to practice it. As the investigation continued, we hired an attorney and we learned more about the situation. The attorney shared information with us that gave us hope. In hindsight, I can honestly say I put my hope in the attorney and the justice system instead of…
We’re all sojourners, just passing through this phase of life. James described our lives as being like a mist that appears for a moment, but then it’s gone (James 4:14). Life on earth is temporary. One day sometime after my son’s incarceration, it hit me—if my life here is temporary, why do I dwell on myself too much on this life? I’m not talking about neglecting myself, but moving out of self-pity into focusing on God’s promises. I began to…