Aug 28

Aug 28 You Can Do the Hard Stuff

Mitzie Avera

God's Presence, God's Promises, Spiritual Warfare, Strength

When I am going through hard things and the sun goes down on the day, everything

seems worse. The night comes and Satan steps in working in the darkness. He stirs up

fears and illuminates my failures. I reach for my Bible. The words that once jumped off

the page now run together. I get my phone and play “Don’t Stop Praying.” I close my

eyes and let each word sink in. I pray out loud to God to give me the strength to keep

the faith as I battle health problems and all the worries that come along with life.

Aug 27

Aug 27 A Squirrel in Traffic

Mitzie Avera

Direction, God's Will, God's Word

Our depth perception is so much greater than a squirrel’s and-thanks to the written

Word – we have instructions on how to safely navigate life’s challenges. Yes, there will

be times when we don’t know the path God is taking us on, but unlike the squirrel, we

can look up and focus on the navigator of our lives for direction.

Aug 26

Aug 26 Roses Will Bloom Again

Mitzie Avera

Compassion, God's Grace, Humility, Obedience in Action

Roses have always had a special spot in my heart. Their beauty can brighten any day.

How can something so beautiful have a thick stem of thorns, and petals so delicate they

fall off easily? I realized what my grandmother meant. Our Savior went to the cross with

a thorn crown, forgave our sins like petals on a rose falling off, and He came back more

beautiful than ever, bringing with Him the most precious gift to us – eternal life.

Aug 25

Aug 25 Friends and Fellowship: God’s Hands and Feet

Mitzie Avera

Friendship, Relationships

Find your inner circle friends through God’s help and you can be a blessing to each

other through the good and bad times. They are God’s messengers on earth and a

lifeline.

Aug 24

Aug 24 Forgiving Like Jesus Is Hard to Do

Mitzie Avera

Forgiveness

I am human. Jesus gave us holy forgiveness by dying on the cross for our sins. He also

modeled how forgiveness looks like in our lives.

Peter betrayed Jesus three times as Jesus had predicted at the last supper. Following

His resurrection, as Jesus talked with Peter, He asked him three times, “Do you love

me?” Not, “Why did you do it?”

Aug 21

Aug 21 When God Interrupts Your Life

Chris Adams

Challenge, Fear, God's Will

Jonah’s life was interrupted by God’s assignment to call Nineveh to repentance. How do

you respond to interruptions? I don’t always like them. Yet sometimes what we call an

interruption is actually divine intervention. We learn three key lessons from this.

Aug 20

Aug 20 Training for What Matters Most

Chris Adams

Discipleship, God's Word, Relationship with God, Sanctification, Spiritual Growth

Sometimes, I think we assume our spiritual development will happen automatically.

While growth can occur unexpectedly, most spiritual maturity comes from a desire to

know the Lord and His Word more deeply. We do not simply grow from spiritual

childhood into godliness without effort on our part—not for salvation, but certainly for

growth as a disciple of Jesus.

Aug 19

Aug 19 Paddling Past the Fear: When Following God Means Going Alone

Chris Adams

Courage, God's Will, Obedience

God whispered to my heart that sometimes, He needs us in the boat alone. Following

Him might mean parting ways with friends, family, or ministry partners who are heading

in a different direction. It isn’t easy; Christ-followers are often called to stand alone,

brave isolation, or even face persecution for the truth.

Aug 18

Aug 18 Free of Me

Chris Adams

Humility, Kindness, Love, Relationships, Serving

One way we become free of ourselves is through praise. True worship recognizes that

God’s character, not our preferences, is the center of worship. Miller writes, “There is a

key difference between the worship of God and superficial distractions. One is an

escape; the other is a return.” Rather than neglecting ourselves, she encourages us to

redirect our focus outward—to God and to others.

Aug 17

Aug 17 Treasures Along the Shore

Chris Adams

Relationship with God, Spiritual Growth, Spiritual training, Thankfulness

Every time I go to the beach, God uses the experience to teach me something about

who He is and how He works. In fact, He has been so faithful to do this that I now look

forward to each trip not only for the beauty and rest, but also for what He will teach

me—and perhaps allow me to share with others. I anticipate He will speak, and I come

ready to learn.

Aug 14

Aug 14 Swimming With a Snake

Stacy Graves

Sin, Spiritual Discipline

The Bible tells us to be on guard for all kinds of things. Satan’s schemes. False teachers. Pride. Apathy. Greed. Worldly ambition. Sinful desires.

We live in and around these things all the time. We may think they don’t really affect us. Then, one day, we turn around to find them closer than we think.

Aug 13

Aug 13 God-Wink: The Text

Stacy Graves

Adversity, Joy

Back in 2023, I knew a small piece of the joy. Today, I sit with the fullness of all God was doing. And I’m overwhelmed by His goodness.

Aug 12

Aug 12 God-Wink: The Oscar Mayer Wienermobile

Stacy Graves

I saw several God-winks during my cancer treatment. Perhaps the most unusual was the Wienermobile. It came after surgery and before radiation.

I did a U-turn when I saw the Wienermobile. I hadn’t seen it up close since my 20s. I felt an unexplainable joy at this silly truck that took me back to a carefree time in my life.