Infertility - Mylee Restelle

Now, I know there are unforeseen, horrible, and despicable things that can happen to a precious teenage girl that are beyond her control, resulting in a teen pregnancy that is in NO WAY what I am referring to. My heart breaks for girls in situations like that. However, in my story, this was a "let's try it once to see what happens" kind of thing. I'm going to be completely honest with you: these ones always sting a little more than the others. To know that soon their arms will have a wonderful bundle of joy to love, while my arms remain empty, is gut-wrenching.

Love the Lord Thy God - Rebekah McCullough

How can I love the Lord with all my heart? We use this term loosely and without much thought. I believe God is asking us to love him with all our passion, all our feelings. There's things I'm pretty passionate about, my family (obviously), missions, politics, history, coffee.... Most of these things, just thinking about it, can bring me to great joy, anger, or tears. It's easy for me to get emotional and passionate about these things because I care about them so much. I've invested time, energy, and money into them. I think God is saying for us to love Him with all our emotions, our feelings, our passion. That will require time, energy, and frankly, money. (Mat 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.) Honestly, loving God with all our heart might be the easiest one for us ladies since we tend to be more emotional creatures by design. That leads to the next one.

Preparing Your Spirit - Kim McCoy

Preparing our spirit is a daily task. It’s just as important or even more important than preparing for our physical needs each day. We must be prepared both physically and spiritually to meet the pressures and demands that we face each day.

As Christians we know that this is true, and I’m sure that probably most, if not all that are reading this devotion, already practice this daily. Sometimes we need a little reminder, like I did, about a month ago when I came across this verse in Romans.

Don't Give Up! - Becky Lyons

Growing up in a Christian home, I was always in church, in Christian school, and in a church atmosphere, going to preaching conferences, church camp, Teen Convention, church teen activities, and going to Bible college...all the usual stuff...

Wrestling with God - Marcia Ludwick

Have you ever wrestled with God? I have. The first time I wrestled with God was on a Wednesday night, May 22, 1985. One year and 15 days before, my husband gloriously got saved. As soon as he prayed the sinners’ prayer, he turned to me and said, “Now it’s your turn.” What love, what compassion were in those words! As a new believer, my husband was concerned about my salvation. Oh how we need to be concerned about other lost souls.

A Teacher Named Grace - Niki Lott

Grace is a gift – not earned and not deserved. It is given to us because God is good, not because we are. For those who are reading this who have already received this grace, we realize that our salvation depends wholly upon it. For those who may have never understood or received the grace of God, I want you to know that God’s love, mercy, and grace are available to you because of the kindness and sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

Christian Life, Encouragement, God's Will, Love of God, Peace of GodAmy SappApril 12, 2021Love, Mercy, Grace, Teaches, Teaching, Teach, Salvation, Peace

Disciplined Thoughts - Erica Koske

Don’t Worry. Let God know about it. Did you notice Paul didn’t counsel us to discuss our problems to

our mom, sister, or even our husband? Bring it to God in prayer first. This would solve a majority of

problems and save us from making others the dumpster of our thoughts. I love Claudia Barba’s study on

worry in her book, Refresh your Heart. She explains, “Worry is not an emotion. It is a thought process- a

process that you can, and must control, because worry is sin.” There is a difference between worrying

and thinking through a problem. When difficulties arise, Claudia Barba explains that “disciplined thought

moves in a straight line through a tangle of difficulties to possible solutions. Worry is a swirling tornado

of thoughts centered on a fear. They repeat themselves over and over, making you dizzy but

accomplishing nothing else.” Learning to control our thoughts is vital. Remember that your mom, sister,

or friends can’t change the situation, but God can!

Learning from Covid - Barb Jackson

God is sovereign and I know He allowed my husband and me to have Covid. He had a plan and a purpose. I prayed and thanked God for giving us Covid and that I believed it was His will. I admit it was a stretch for me to thank Him for Covid, but I knew I was to thank Him for all things. The Bible says in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;” and Ephesians 5:20 “Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;” There is a song by Lynda Randle “God on the Mountain”. One of the verses says “You talk of faith, when you’re up on the mountain; But talk comes so easy, when life’s at its best; Now it’s down in the valleys, of trials and temptations; That’s where your faith, is really put to the test.”

Anxiety, Christian Life, Faith, Illness, Loneliness, Peace of God, Trials, Trusting GodAmy SappFebruary 1, 2021Comfort, Covid, Faith, Fear, Care, Love, Memorize, Meditate

Not Perfect, but Transformed! - Terri Howe

It started out as a fairly small project, we were going to replace our countertops, paint, and replace the flooring and we were going to do the work ourselves with some help from others where needed. The more we looked around and talked about what different rooms needed, our list of improvements began to grow! We found a contractor that said he could do the work and began our three-week project!

Let Go and Let God - Mindy Holeman

There are times in our lives when God purposely sends us trials that will ultimately change our lives and the way we think forever. These trials are not sent to be malicious but rather to grow our faith and increase our influence for Him.

Faith, God's Will, Life Changes, Peace of God, Trials, Trusting GodAmy SappNovember 16, 2020Trials, Fires, Oregon, Struggles, Trust, Home

Thankful Even in the Storm - Jen McMillan

I spent many days pouring out my heart to the Lord. We took the leap of faith to enter this adoption plan and I was hoping the understanding would come as to why he said no. Now I can look back at that storm and see how the Lord grew me. How He used this hard time to show me it was Him that I really needed, not that baby boy. He could be my joy, my comfort, and my strength. It changed my view to asking God what He is wanting to do through me instead of why He is doing this to me.

Faith, God's Will, Love of God, Peace of God, Trials, Trusting GodAmy SappNovember 2, 2020Adoption, Trials, Trusting, Faith, Love, Thankful

Surviving and Thriving - Heather Higgins

Do you ever feel like you are just merely “surviving”? Have you ever heard of the statement “survival of the fittest”? Although I am well aware of the statements origin, and I am in complete dis-agreement with the thought process behind its meaning, the statement has always intrigued me. Years ago I began taking the original meaning of the coined saying and have often used the expression but I added my own “twist” to it. I developed a spiritual application for myself.

Glory in my Infirmities - Courtney Bartels

This verse is my life verse, but sometimes our own life verses are hard for us to declare. Last summer the Lord had me carry two precious babies for a very, very short time. I didn't understand why, and it was extremely hard. Shortly after the Lord blessed us once again with a precious baby. I was so scared, I even went to the ER thinking I was going to lose yet another baby. It turned out to be some complications from the previous miscarriages that went away on their own, praise the Lord. But the whole pregnancy I was so nervous. When the time came the Lord gave us our sweet baby girl, the delivery went well but she didn't seem right. She ended up being rushed to the NICU

Children, Faith, Love of God, Peace of God, Prayer, Trials, Trusting GodAmy SappOctober 12, 2020Infirmities, Miscarriage, Babies, Promises, Love, Praying, Trials

Hope - Heather Roloson

There’s an “expected end” to loneliness. I had a friend ask me a while ago if it bothered me that all my friends were dating and I was not. Being honest, sometimes there is that insecurity that says there won’t be an end to this season in my life. Then I remember I have a promise from God. Does that mean I will get married? Not necessarily. But the “thing that I long for”? The things that every human being longs for? Belonging and mattering? Oh yes, my friend, it’s coming. If not in my own family, then in the work that God is preparing me to do.

Romeo & Juliet - Kelly Gray

Nature has a way of teaching us many lessons about life. One of my morning rituals is sitting on my back porch spending time with the Lord before my day gets started. This ritual always brings with it the combination of the beautiful East Texas morning, creation, and the love of God. Last week, I once again found myself on the back porch spending time with the Lord. However, this time two hummingbirds showed up to join me. I sat very still as I watched them hovering over the feeder.

ARE YOU SAFE? DO YOU FEEL SAFE? - Elaine Kaighen

Several years ago, my husband preached a message concerning “the name of the LORD”. He explained that the phrase, “the name of” was a way of saying “the character of”, or what that person is known for. It was not simply using that person’s name, but rather knowing that person’s character. This was eye-opening for me, and it transformed my life enabling me to repent of living a life filled with WORRY.

Anxiety, Children, Christian Life, God's Will, Life Changes, Peace of God, Trusting GodAmy SappAugust 10, 2020Safe, Shelter, Children, Trust, Safety

Sit Down, Take Your Shoes Off, Sit a Spell... - Penny Owens

Cut people a lot of slack. Why? Because they need it just like we do. God says in Psalms 86:15, But thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy and truth. People are our most important business because they are the most important thing to God’s heart. I have been humbled many times by the knowledge that the pain I feel because of other’s actions towards me is the same feeling of pain I give to God when I hurt or disappoint Him. When we genuinely love people, we will work hard to show the same compassion, grace, mercy, and longsuffering that Jesus showed toward us. Be kind Wow! Have you ever seen an age where people are so thoughtless, selfish, uncaring, rude, and down right mean to others? Sadly, we Christians have not exempted ourselves from these faults. We criticize, demean, post critical memes, and name call, all in the veneer of being “on the right side”

Walk in the Spirit - Lisa Gillespie

How can I stay right with God? Stay on the right path and going the right direction? How do I keep the decisions I made at camp or at any point? How do I continue growing and make a difference?

Bible Reading, Christian Life, Faith, Peace of God, Trusting GodAmy SappJuly 20, 2020Walking, Spirit, Humility, Godliness, Flesh, Spiritual, Faith

In the Silence, My Mother Heard God - Jennifer Dignan Morales (with Mistie Owens)

May is a wonderful month because it is when Mother’s Day is celebrated. I have utmost respect for my mother any time of the year, and always strive to honor her. However, during this month of May, I want to reflect on how she taught me the virtues of being a godly woman and mother. As Proverbs 31:26 says, “She openeth her mouth with wisdom; and in her tongue is the law of kindness”. This verse evokes warm thoughts of her. Mom is wise, sweet, loving and it shows in how she interacts with others.

The Gentle Savior - Briella Dignan

Gentleness has many definitions. One definition that I really love is, “Refusal to use harm to anyone.” How true is this of God. Our great, powerful God is so gentle. So many times, His gentleness is something that I have taken for granted. I love to see the powerful God. The God who created the world, the God who will destroy the wicked someday, the God who works miracles and changes lives. Yet, the God full of gentleness is the one who has made me great. Throughout the ages, people have worshiped false gods out of fear that their “god” would harm them if they did not do what he wanted. My God is not a God who wants to make my life miserable. In fact, He says in Matthew 11:29-30, “Take my yoke upon you and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” He is so gentle to us. He wants us to come to Him so He can help carry us through life.