Monday, December 7, 2015

Tried With Fire


I learned a little bit about the ore refining process the other day and all the steps of heating and pounding it needs to go through to burn off all the impurities.  A lump of ore is valuable, and our first instinct may even be to "protect" it by keeping it the way it is.  But it's only by allowing it to pass through the fire that it can be purified and turned into something strong and useful.  When we see the impurities burning away, we might even be tempted to assume that the whole thing is useless, and throw the whole thing out rather than continue the painful refining process.  But if we will patiently keep at it, we will find something pure, strong, and valuable, "much more precious than of gold."

Sunday, November 29, 2015

Teach Thou Me


This one may seem like an odd choice, but I was reading in Job recently and this verse struck me. Now, Job's attitude when asking this may not have been totally correct; he seemed to be suggesting that God was judging him harshly and punishing him for some iniquity he didn't know about. However, with the right spirit, it can be very enlightening to ask God to help us to recognize our flaws and weaknesses so that we can improve and stop making the same mistakes.

Saturday, November 28, 2015

#TwitterCarol


Just a fun little idea I thought I'd try.  I wonder if we can actually finish any songs?  If you want, share this post to let people know what's going on. ;-)  Merry Christmas!

Sunday, November 22, 2015

Example


When striving to be righteous, don't forget to also be kind. Besides, they're kind of the same thing. :-)

Sunday, November 15, 2015

Rejoice



My Ponderize scripture for this week is short and simple. I had it picked out earlier in the week, but after the tragedies that occurred over the weekend, I thought about changing it. I wondered if it would really be appropriate to talk about rejoicing at a time of such mourning. However, I eventually decided to keep it.
Mourning and rejoicing are not mutually exclusive. When terrible things happen, it's important and healthy to take time to mourn, but we should also take time often to rejoice at the Lord's blessings. And besides, if a time ever comes when we cease to rejoice, then those who strive to sow terror will have gained a great victory.
So again, my condolences to those who are suffering at this time. God is aware of your suffering. But there is also much good in the world if we will look for it. So again I say, Rejoice!

Saturday, October 31, 2015

Want Blood


Based on a true story.  The Red Cross can be quite tenacious!