Genesis 20 is a curious repeat of the experience of Abram and Sarai in Egypt with Abram telling people Sarai was his sister and not his wife. Instead of Pharaoh confronting Abram about why he said Sarai was his sister, Abimelek confronts Abraham. God had appeared to Abimelek in a dream. Then God said to…

I’m not going to lie. I’m afraid of the darkness of sin. Reading Genesis 19 a weight of darkness settled onto me and it took bringing it to God and waiting patiently for His light to lift me up. The sins that led to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, the sins of the incest…

In mythology there is the story of Sisyphus who was punished by having to roll a boulder up a hill for eternity only to have it roll back down on him as he neared the top. In the morning after I have studied a Chapter of the Bible, and read my devotionals, I spend the…

I was just reading William Barclay’s The Gospel of Luke commentary about Jesus healing the ten men with leprosy. Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called…

In reading Genesis 17 this morning, God came to Abram when he was 99 years old and told him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless. Then I will make my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.” v. 1-2. Have you ever thought what it would…

In reading Genesis 16 we encounter all too human actions and reactions. We meet a woman, an Egyptian slave, named Hagar. She belonged to Sarai. She was given to Abram by Sarai so that Hagar could bear a child for Abram that would be considered Sarai’s, apparently a common practice of that time. I can’t…

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is found in Genesis 15:6 Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness. This morning in our Prayer Group we were led in a discussion of Sabbath rest. The discussion followed our praise reports which were uplifting and our prayer requests which were…

There are so many ways to feel connected to God in a personal way….being in nature, reading devotional books that give hope and glimpses of how God works in others lives, having conversation with God as you ask questions, prayer. The Bible is by no means the only way to grow closer to God but…

In Genesis 13 we see Abram leaving Egypt with his wife, his possessions which were great; and Lot his nephew with Lot’s possessions. The land couldn’t sustain Abram’s and Lot’s herds together so Abram gave Lot the first choice of which direction he wanted. Lot looked around and saw that the whole plain of the…

I woke up this morning with snatches of this old hymn playing in my mind. I haven’t heard it in years yet it was right there speaking to my heart. There are some mornings when I feel especially thankful for God and I feel His Presence so keenly. Thankfulness. Thankfulness opens our eyes and our…