Devotional Thoughts
Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
Psalms 119:105
No one is alone in the Refiner’s fire
Vision
Our vision is to be the place where the wounded receive more than an emotional bandage; to be a community where people come to be heard, to obtain compassionate support, and find help as they seek healing.
Our vision includes the ability to provide funding for respite care to cancer caregivers and revenue to support the ministry of The Crucibles.
Why Share Devotional Thoughts?
Many people are thinkers. They like to contemplate. King David often spoke about specifically meditating on God’s Word.
I am in the thinking, contemplating and meditating group where the mind is fully engaged. I enjoy thinking about the scriptures I read. As a young child I read and learned the words: “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” (Philippians 4:8)
That is why I created this devotional page—to share my meditation and learning from a particular text that day and give readers something to contemplate. I share them in the hope that those reading will do a study of their own to add to their understanding of the verse.
It always amazes me that as many times as I have read my Bible through, as many times as I have read specific chapters or verses, I continually find some more things. When that happens, I ask myself why I didn’t see that the other times I read it. I realize that sometimes I have just been doing surface reading—getting the story. Sometimes I have just been skimming to say I did my reading for the day—ritualistic reading.
However, when I am in my prayer closet alone with God and His Word, taking the time to do word studies, to compare one scripture with another verse or two and specifically asking God to tell me what He wants me to understand from those words that day, truthfully, sometimes I don’t immediately see anything. They are just words.
For example: “Jesus wept.” I read the verse and keep going from John 11:35 through the rest of the story of the sickness, death and resurrection of Lazarus. Quite a story. But in the middle of the story are those two words. Why? I mean, was that the only time Jesus ever wept? Was it so significant that John had to write it down so the world would know that on that day and in that moment the Son of God was seen crying?
As I think of that verse in the context of the story, the Holy Spirit takes me into deep thought about the reasons Jesus would be crying. Was it the death of His dear friend, the sadness of His dear friends and all of those who came to weep with them or is there something deeper? And in the middle of my puzzled thought, I ask the Holy Spirit to open my understanding and show me what these words are to mean to me today.
It is what I do with each scripture. How about you?
Come, let us reason together! Comment on my thoughts or add your own in the forum or in private message.
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Sometimes we get ourselves into things ~
and need a little help to get out.
