Tag: #christianblog

JOYFUL EXPECTATION

 

It was the first thought, from a friend’s text message, that popped into my head when I awoke the next morning, after having received God-filled meaningful texts from him the day before.

He was referring to reading the next devotion in my book and seeing how God will make the message come alive for him. What a blessing to learn of the ripple effect of God’s goodness in our daily interactions. This man, a Deacon, ministers to the residents of a nursing home daily, sharing Scripture, along with a devotion from one of my books. He has taken time to share with me how different devotions have related to a current day event in his and his wife’s life. Those God moments continue to make me smile and be in awe of God’s orchestrations. Continue reading “JOYFUL EXPECTATION”

GOD’S PROMISES

And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.  –Romans 8:28  (NLT)

Does that verse sound familiar? It might, if you were paying close attention to last week’s reflection as it was a verse I shared. I recently watched a short video, which I find so powerful, that mentioned this verse. Truth be told, I keep listening to the video because it inspires and encourages me. I want to live this out daily in my life. Continue reading “GOD’S PROMISES”

A BEAUTIFUL BLESSING

Recently my mailbox contained an unexpected gift from a woman in Tennessee who I have never met in person. We connected through social media, and then she started reading my weekly reflections. We quickly became prayer warriors for each other, which has been a great blessing for us both. It seems at just the right time, one of us will email to say we are thinking of the other and lifting her in prayer. Prayer is a wonderful gift God has given us to share!

 

The note with the gift said she was doing art therapy with some rocks she was doodling with. “When I finished this one, I noticed it was in the shape of a heart and thought of you and God whispered…’that’s who I wanted you to paint it for!!’ Ain’t He so good?” Her note also mentioned I could use this heart rock as a paper weight when writing “your NEXT book.” Continue reading “A BEAUTIFUL BLESSING”

THE FINAL PILGRIMAGE DAY

Hello, my fellow pilgrims!  Are you excited to see where our adventures on day 8 of our Holy Land pilgrimage, our final day, will take us? I continue to pray the places and scriptures come alive so you personally experience the fifth gospel.  Try to take a few minutes to pause, think about, and answer the reflection questions you will find along the way. Enjoy these final sights of the Holy Land, my dear reader~

 

Our first stop today is to the Old City of Jerusalem which consists of four quarters: the Armenian, Jewish, Muslim, and Christian. Some of the most ancient structures in Jerusalem, the walls, or at least their outlines dating back to Biblical times, are in this area.

 

Location of the Four Quarters in Jerusalem’s Old City

 

The Christian Quarter is where the Holy Sepulchre that we visited two days ago is located. The Muslim Quarter is the largest and most populous of the Quarters. The Armenian Quarter is the smallest of the Quarters.

 

Walking through the Muslim Quarter

 

A major landmark in the Jewish Quarter is the Western Wall where we are now. It is the last remnant of the original retaining wall around the Second Temple, which was built over 2000 years ago. It is considered the holiest of places where the Jewish people can pray. Herod the Great had it built. The left section is where the men go to pray and the ladies go to the right. It was a unique experience to be standing and praying at such a sacred Jewish spot. Continue reading “THE FINAL PILGRIMAGE DAY”

RESURRECTION APPEARANCES

Hello, my fellow pilgrims!  Are you excited to see where our adventures on day 7 of our Holy Land pilgrimage will take us? I continue to pray the places and scriptures come alive so you personally experience the fifth gospel.  Try to take a few minutes to pause, think about, and answer the reflection questions you will find along the way. Enjoy today’s sights, my dear reader, as we will conclude our pilgrimage next week~

 

We ended last week with hearing Mary Magdalene, the first person who saw the Risen Christ, proclaim:

Come experience a couple more Risen Jesus sightings.

 

Our first stop today is to the Church of the Resurrection in Abu Ghosh, one of four possible sites believed to have been referenced in the Bible story of “On the Road to Emmaus.” The exact location became lost in the early Christian era and was made more difficult from conflicting distance calculations mentioned in Luke’s gospel. This is a 12th century, echo-like sounding church that has wall and ceiling paintings (frescoes) remaining from the Crusaders. Notice that there are no faces on the people in the paintings. The Muslims who took over the region had a strict rule of depicting no images of humans in their art. It was seen as a violation of the commandment to not make any graven images. Continue reading “RESURRECTION APPEARANCES”

LAST DAY IN GALILEE

Hello, my fellow pilgrims!  Are you excited to see where our adventures on day 5 of our Holy Land pilgrimage will take us?  I continue to pray the places and scriptures come alive so you personally experience the fifth gospel.  Try to take a few minutes to pause, think about, and answer the reflection questions you will find along the way. Enjoy today’s sights which will complete our time in Galilee, my dear reader~

 

Our first stop today is at the Mount of Beatitudes area. These first pictures are from the guesthouse in Galilee where we stayed. Walking the grounds you can also see the beautiful landscape of the area, the Sea of Galilee, and the Mount of Beatitudes church. Continue reading “LAST DAY IN GALILEE”

PUBLIC MINISTRY

Hello, my fellow pilgrims!  Are you excited to see where our adventures on day 4 of our Holy Land pilgrimage will take us?  I continue to pray the places and scriptures come alive so you personally experience the fifth gospel.  Try to take a few minutes to pause, think about, and answer the reflection questions you will find along the way. Enjoy today’s sights, my dear reader~

Below is the Holy Land map again so you can see the places we have visited. We started at Mount Arbel, not specified on this map, but it is located near Tiberias and the Sea of Galilee. We then traveled to Nazareth, to Bethlehem, to the Jordan River, to the Mount of Temptation, and to the Judean Desert. The desert spans from Jericho through Hebron and along the Dead Sea. Our pilgrimage today takes us to Cana, Capernaum, and a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee, which might be a little rough!

 

 

Cana, our first stop, is where Jesus performed His first miracle or sign, as St. John calls them, at a wedding feast. Continue reading “PUBLIC MINISTRY”

DESERT TIMES

Hello, my fellow pilgrims! Today is day 3 of our Holy Land pilgrimage. As we journey along, I continue to pray the places and scriptures come alive so you personally experience the fifth gospel. A gentle reminder to pause for a few minutes to think about and answer the reflection questions you will find along the way. Enjoy today’s sights, my dear reader~

 

Our first stop today takes us to the Jordan River, where Jesus’ public ministry began when he was 30 years old. Jesus was baptized by His cousin, John the Baptist, whose mission was to call people to repentance in preparation for Jesus’ coming. John baptized people in the Jordan River as they confessed their sins and repented. Continue reading “DESERT TIMES”

JESUS’ HUMBLE BEGINNINGS

Day 2 of our Holy Land pilgrimage has arrived. As we journey along, I hope the places and scriptures come alive so you personally experience the fifth gospel. A gentle reminder to pause for a few minutes to think about and answer the reflection questions you will find along the way. Enjoy today’s sights, my dear reader~

Here is a map of the Holy Land where you can locate some of the places we will visit on our pilgrimage: Nazareth, Bethlehem, Capernaum, Cana, Magdala, Tabgha, Bethsaida, the Sea of Galilee, the Jordan River, the Dead Sea, the Mediterranean Sea, Jerusalem, Mount of Temptation, Jericho, Masada and Tel-Aviv.

 

Photo courtesy of Jack Steffen under Creative Commons License (CC BY-NC 2.0)

 

While walking in the footsteps of Jesus, it is appropriate to visit the site where it all started. We begin our pilgrimage today in Nazareth, at the house where Mary, who would become the mother of Jesus, lived. Continue reading “JESUS’ HUMBLE BEGINNINGS”

MOUNT ARBEL

We embark on our Holy Land pilgrimage today! Are you relieved you don’t have to take the 9 ½ hour plane ride?  As we journey along, I hope the places and scriptures come alive so you personally experience the fifth gospel. I encourage you to pause for a few minutes to think about and answer the reflection questions you will find along the way. Enjoy the sights, my dear reader~

 

Mount Arbel, the first stop on our pilgrimage, is located in the Lower Galilee region and towers above the Sea of Galilee. I was fascinated to see the caves that are dug into the mountain, which were hideout places for the Jews who fought against the Greeks and Romans. Continue reading “MOUNT ARBEL”