Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9 While I was on my God reatreat I was sitting on the patio writing when I heard a large splash in the river. I turned to look towards the sound and saw a young eagle floating in the water. At first I thought it was injured because it was not flying away. After a couple of minutes it attempted to fly but it was as if a heavy weight was holding it back and pulling it under. It continued to float downstream and every few…

 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. Revelation 3:20 We’ve all experienced hearing a knock at the door or a familiar voice asking if anyone is home. With today’s technology, we can even see the person from the door camera whether we are home or miles away. Imagine seeing Jesus on your front porch, knocking and waiting for your reply. Do you recognize Him or His voice? Or is He a stranger to you? The promise in this verse is that if we invite Him in, He will…

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! 2 Corinthians 5:17 This week at the Grief Share group I was able to witness several people reflecting the love of Christ. These same people only months before were new to the class, broken and grieving. To see their transformation has indeed been a beautiful thing. One woman held the hand of a young girl as she cried. Patiently she listened and lovingly she spoke words of encouragement. Another gentleman spent a few minutes after class welcoming a new man who was there for the first time. He too listened as…

While I was writing the other day I looked at the calendar and knew I needed some Divine Encounters to write about, so I asked God for some and that He would open my eyes to see them. Some friends had invited us to go out to dinner with them at a new restaurant we both enjoy. During dinner the mother-in-law of the owner stopped by the table to say hello. We had met her on an earlier visit. Then she began to share about her faith. She shared stories of her family, God’s leading in her life, opposition she encounter by her husband and siblings concerning her faith and…

The other day as I was writing in my journal I thought about how serious I am. My mind is always thinking about work, schedules and so much more. Even when I watch TV I don’t laugh very much. In fact, I wroted in my journal, I don’t remember the last time I really laughed. I had ordered a book on Amazon to take on vacation which was scheduled to arrive a few days before I left. To my surprise, it arrived several days early on the exact day I wrote about laughing in my journal. The package was larger than I imagined because an additional book, a bookmark that…

Generation after generation stands in awe of your work; each one tells stories of your mighty acts. Your beauty and splendor have everyone talking; I compose songs on your wonders. – Psalm 145:4-5 I read a story of a Divine Encounter that touched my heart at God’s tenderness and detail. Dr. Beverly Rose is a woman who has a crippling muscular disease. She loves nature and hiking which made this story even more incredible. She has a wheelchair that was specially designed with large tires for trails. One day while scaling a trail with friends she was just about to the summit when the terrain became too steep for her…

God only fills empty hands, so we must empty ourselves, particularly of the sins of self that separate us from Him. – Dr. Beverly Rose I’ve been reading a book called, “So close, I can feel God’s breath,” by Dr. Beverly Rose. She shares her story of living with a debilitating muscle disease that is both painful and crippling. One day as she was experiencing severe pain and nausea she was calling out to God for healing. In her frustration she cried out bible verses about asking and receiving, but no healing came. She read a quote by P.T. Forsyth who believed, “We shall come one day to a heaven…

Divine Encounters happen because of why we are here. We are not only made for relationship with each other. We are also made for relationship with God. – Dr. Beverly Rose I was reading a story of a woman who desperately yearned to feel God’s touch in her life. She had experienced Divine Encounters before and wanted more of them. She asked herself, “What can I do to ensure an encounter with God? After all, if God is with us, what’s the problem? Her answer came from the Old Testament. The Israelites had just witnessed bolts of lightening and blasts of thunder from God on Mount Sinai. Yet soon after…

A dear friend and I had the opportunity to have lunch together this week. It was so nice to just sit and talk. After awhile she simply smiled and said she needed to share something with me. On her way to work, she listens to the news or sports. She has two favorite channels that she toggles through on her commute. For quite some time she has been struggling in her relationship with Christ and recently she has been questioning His presence in her life. While thinking about this, the radio station went quiet and then all of a sudden a Christian station was coming through her speakers and she…

A dear friend of mine was recently diagnosed with cancer. She was sharing the details with me about her upcoming surgery and we prayed together. I began to send my self a text message as a reminder of the date, when as I typed her name and the details, my phone auto corrected the info and added – went well. It was a beautiful confirmation that God had her and her situation firmly in His capable hands. It was a joy to show my friend the encouraging message. A week later, the afternoon of the surgery, we spoke on the phone and her first comments were, “It went well.” Thank…