Words from the Cross: a Word of Salvation

/
Words from the Cross: a Word of Salvation

Truly I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise. Luke 23:43

Jesus seems to have a special love for lost people ... This makes me think of the criminals executed with Our Lord Christ. They certainly were the lost sheep, ...the lost coins, ...the lost sons...and Jesus came to seek them.

For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost. Luke 19:10

They obviously had been running away from God...who knows what kind of crimes they had committed!  The Bible just calls them "criminals" [thieves, malefactors KJV].  Maybe God didn't come into their thinking...but that's the point.  They had gone their own way.

Read More

Words from the Cross: a Word of Forgiveness

/
Words from the Cross: a Word of Forgiveness

Christ’a first saying from the Cross ushers us into our basic need as fallen humanity. Listen in and reflect on the amazing love and grace of our forgiving Lord …

Alexander Pope (1688-1744), English poet, once said,To err is human; to forgive, divine.

So true...but we humans more readily echo what someone else has said,

To err is human, but to get even? THAT is divine.

We struggle so, with forgiving our offenders! Perhaps that's why we are amazed and awestruck to realize that Jesus' first words from the Cross were ones of forgiveness.

Read More

The Wave -- Abandoning to God

/
The Wave -- Abandoning to God

I read an article recently about the revival going on in KY and how it has spread around the world. The author used the word “wave” and how we need to catch the “wave.”

It made me think of this entry from Penny Mandeville’s and my manuscript, Glory in Disguise: Experiencing God in our Every Day. This is the wave that is always available to us.

Read More

The Prayer of Relinquishment -- Part 1

/
The Prayer of Relinquishment -- Part 1

Years ago, I was captivated by A Man Called Peter, the story of Peter Marshall, the former chaplain to the Senate, as told by his wife, Catherine Marshall.  But it was Catherine herself that really drew my attention.  She had experiences with God that made me long for more than what my "camp" of Christianity had systematized.  So I began to read everything I could find about that fascinating woman.  And I searched for her writings, which at that time were few and far between...or so I thought. Though I couldn't seem to find much (that was before internet), I started to piece writings together and grew to love how she responded to the Spirit of God.

Read More

Dust to Glory...a fresh reflection on Ash Wednesday

/
Dust to Glory...a fresh reflection on Ash Wednesday

Enjoy this preview of one of our devotions in our manuscript, Glory in Disguise: Experiencing God in Our Every Day by Jan Loyd & Penny Mandeville.

Dust to Glory: Honoring a Sanctuary

… for you are dust,
    and to dust you shall return.
Genesis 3:19 ESV

These words, spoken every Ash Wednesday in many Christian churches, has taken on a new meaning for me since my 91 year old mom passed away.

Read More

A Love Song to Jesus

/
A Love Song to Jesus

When my husband John and I were seniors at the University of Arizona, the Carpenters were at the top of the music charts.   We embraced them as our group who sang our songs as we were "a-courting."  Their mellow sound and rich melodies fed our romantic feelings toward each other and toward life in general. At our wedding, we danced to, you may have guessed it, "We've Only Just Begun." Lyrics like "White lace and promises, a kiss for luck and we're on our way" made it the perfect song to start out a new marriage...or so we thought.

But as the years have rolled by and reality and maturity have set in, so has the realization that the romantic expectations of youth are so unrealistic and can only truly be fulfilled by an Almighty God.

Read More

Valentines Day -- Loving and Being Loved

/
Valentines Day -- Loving and Being Loved

Several years ago on Valentines Day, I ran to Kroger to pick up a few things.  As I got out of my car in the parking lot and walked across the lot to enter the store, I saw a man leaving, carrying a beautiful bouquet of fresh flowers!   For some reason, it moved me to tears. Here was a middle-aged, short, stocky guy ... not romantic looking or attractive in any way.  And yet, I realized he was incredibly blessed because he LOVES someone.

Maybe she's a wife, a sweetheart, a daughter, a mother ... no matter, he has SOMEONE to love.

Read More

My Friend Leads: He's the Lord of the Dance

/
My Friend Leads: He's the Lord of the Dance

My Friend Jesus is the Lord of the Dance. Many years ago He took my hand, when I was just a small child and invited me into His dance.

And so moment by moment, day by day, we dance together through my life. At times I may stumble, but He has me in His strong but kind and gentle grip. And so we keep on dancing together.

I would never change partners…I couldn’t, because He would never let me go. I am His and He is mine. We are friends and dance partners.

Read More

Receiving My WORD in my Loneliness -- FRIEND!

/
Receiving My WORD in my Loneliness -- FRIEND!

In the early morning hours of this New Year, in the throes of my loneliness, I received the WORD that has been simmering deep in my soul, warming my heart for days, weeks — no months, even years —- FRIEND!

I am a friend of God, but more importantly…HE is MY Friend!

I had been so convinced my word for this year was “Light/Revelation.” But then I remembered that this warming thought of Friendship with God was grabbing me everywhere and at all times. His Whispers have followed me for years:

Read More

Receiving Your WORD for 2023

/
Receiving Your WORD for 2023

Here we are again, friends. Another year has past, and for many it’s a time for the infamous “New Year’s Resolutions.” But several years ago I turned away from that initially hopeful, but later, dreaded “setting yourself up for failure,” tradition to a new thing altogether.

Resolutions are no temptation to me anymore. I’ve given up trying to change myself by my own self-effort. The indwelling Christ is my “Game-changer” and my “Life-changer.” And a few years ago, He brought a lovely “new thing” to my attention … the idea of a word for my year.

Read More

Jesus, Joy of the Highest Heaven (A Children's Carol)

/
Jesus, Joy of the Highest Heaven (A Children's Carol)

There's a song that's been going through my mind and heart these Advent days.  I even find myself bursting into a line of lyric here and there. The thoughts I love most in it are truths that have become more and more precious to me as I reflect Advent after Advent -- that our Emmanuel came to earth from heaven, not just to pay for our sins (as crucial as that is), but also to give us His divine eternal LIFE...deity indwelling our humanity.  We can become children of Almighty God!!!

Read More

Darkness to Light: Disappointment to Hope

/

And those who were sitting in the land and shadow of death,
Upon them a Light dawned.
Matthew 4:16 NASB

I love this verse…it makes me think of Jesus the Son of God, the Light of my world … not just at Christmas, but every day of my life.

And this Christmas, the darkness could flood in for me. John and I have COVID during this most anticipated time of the year. All kinds of missed celebrations and holiday concerts and most of all, extended times with our “treasured ones.”

Read More