There have been times in my life when these two words would describe what I felt. I have been wounded deeply or feel like my world is crashing down around me. It’s a helpless feeling and I remember grasping for something to hold on to that will stop the tail spin that it feels like…

I have been to many sporting events to cheer for “my team” and gone away feeling horrible. A few years ago, I started to worry less about the loss of my favorite team because it really had very little impact on my life at home or my career. The ones affected directly are the ones…

This is a weird word, but I knew it meant the spoils of war. It sometimes mean an informal wealth. The valuable stuff that was located in the Temple of the Lord became loot for the king of Babylon when he captured the city. It was quite a windfall of goods. These were the utensils,…

Words have such great power to describe and direct. It is important for their meaning to be understood and grasped. If I don’t understand the language, then I certainly won’t understand the meaning of the words. I’ve learned that first hand. The Word of God is powerful in describing God Himself. Through out His Word,…

The new artist comes on the scene with a big hit song and their start starts rising to the top.  Their fame and fortune start growing. Then, all of a sudden, their popularity starts falling off and the second single doesn’t do so well and they plummet to a place where “one hit wonders” dwell.…

There are many times I’ve deserved the punishment I’ve received. Over the years I was disciplined by my parents, I deserved it. I deserved pretty much every traffic citation I go. There were other times I didn’t get what I deserved – I received Grace. Those are times I was especially grateful because I deserved…

Pride is that deep pleasure in something that I accomplished or my team accomplished together. It is also bad when a person thinks too highly of themselves or their accomplishments. I think pride is the polar opposite of humility and trust. Pride is trusting in me and my own power and strength. Humility is knowing…

I think it was God who instituted punishment. Punishment is “the infliction of a penalty as retribution for an offence”.  In other words, if I get caught speeding and have to pay a fine, which is my punishment. Punishment in my experience is mostly painful. I’ve been punished for stupid behavior in a myriad of…

I looked up the word balm in the dictionary and it speaks to an ointment for healing and restoring. It is something that has a comforting, soothing and restoring effect. There’s a balm for my skin and a balm for my soul. Evidently it was plentiful in Gilead. It was and still is a powerful…

There are times when my planning is “spot on” and gets me organized and I feel in control. There are other times when I feel like no matter how well I plan it could not go any worse. Sometimes the things that come our way in life are bigger than we could possibly plan for…