Holy Father, I stumble into Your Presence with a wounded heart. Pierced to the core, my anguished heart evidences the heartbrokenness of betrayal. My suffering is magnified knowing this was someone I trusted, someone to whom I gave one of my most precious masterpieces. The more the story unfolds, the more I am shocked by the deceit and manipulation. How …
“Your home must be so beautiful.” My Taiwanese neighbor gushed these words with a smile. “You must have such a knack for decorating.” Flattered and a little confused, I invited her inside. After all, she had never actually been inside our apartment. “No,” Mrs. Li hesitated. “I’m busy at the moment, but I’d love to come by later in the …
By Mary Agnes Truex Minnich Deceit. Never before in my experience has the lure of sin proved more prevalent. Despite knowing Christ for some time now, I can still be duped by the lies that Satan whispers into my mind. The Biblical command to take every thought captive has become an urgent need in my life (2 Corinthians 10:5b). I …
I recognized the spirit of fear from my experiences in Asia. Massive and arrogant, he boldly swaggered through my mind’s eye, even while our little group prayed fervently for our world. As I watched, he suddenly began to shrink, smaller and smaller until he became microscopic in size. Suddenly, a single, diseased cell appeared in the scene, and this spirit …
In the dream, I was a little girl again scrubbing a stain on the linoleum. On hands and knees, I scoured the inky blot as an unseen figure stood over me. Forced at the task until the sickening discoloration disappeared, I kept my head down as my tears mingled with the blackness of the blot. Each time I awoke, I …
“Behold, (Saul was) hiding himself by the baggage” (1 Samuel 10:22). What is the future king doing crouched down in pile of the utensils and clothing? We know that it wasn’t because he was a shrimpy little guy. In fact, if we keep reading, we find out that he was a head and shoulder taller than anybody else in …
Several weeks ago, we started looking at prayer together. If you read the initial posting, you will remember that when I compiled selected prayer verses, I found them all to be about Truth. Now let’s do more than just talk about prayer. Let’s truly intercede for someone. Who do you know that needs a firm dose of Truth in …
Exiting the lacquerware workshop, I had a much greater appreciation for the art than upon arrival. When I’d entered, all I could see were bowls and boxes – some black, some red – all begging for purchase. But as I passed the showroom and entered into the studio rooms, I began to understand the time spent on each …
We felt our way onto the creaky boat as our eyes desperately adjusted to the inky blackness of night. Easing quietly onto the wooden slats that would be our bench for the next hour, I could only imagine the mountainous shoreline I’d seen earlier in the day. As the bank of the Li River was quickly swallowed by darkness, we wondered …
Remember the strong man’s courtyard? The strong man, who is the evil one, vigilantly guards his possessions (Luke 11:21). What we didn’t mention is that he is also holding prisoners. Some of these captives are those who do not know Truth. We were there once – without Christ…“natural men” (1 Corinthians 2:14). These can’t …
