Category Archives: Bible

Truth for Today #200

Friday August 21st

On Fridays my posts will include verses that stood out in my readings from the Bible during the week. One, two, three or maybe more. If you have a verse/verses that you read during the week and would like to share, leave it/them in the comments and I will add it/them to the post. Let’s continue to dig deep into God’s truth.

The verses that you share are appreciated and so encouraging, I’m thankful for them and for each of you.

1 Timothy 6:20

O Timothy, guard the deposit entrusted to you. Avoid the irreverent babble and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge, for by professing it some have swerved from the faith. Grace be with you.

1 Peter 1:8-9

Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Psalm 18:1

I love you, O LORD, my strength.

From Vera:

‭‭Psalm‬ ‭148‬:‭1‬-‭14‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his hosts! Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars! Praise him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens! Let them praise the name of the Lord! For he commanded and they were created. And he established them forever and ever; he gave a decree, and it shall not pass away. Praise the Lord from the earth, you great sea creatures and all deeps, fire and hail, snow and mist, stormy wind fulfilling his word! Mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars! Beasts and all livestock, creeping things and flying birds! Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth! Young men and maidens together, old men and children! Let them praise the name of the Lord, for his name alone is exalted; his majesty is above earth and heaven. He has raised up a horn for his people, praise for all his saints, for the people of Israel who are near to him. Praise the Lord!”

From Karen:

Psalm 118:24

This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

From Maristella:

Psalm 18:28

For it is you Who light my lamp,The Lord my God lightens my darkness.

From Rosie:

Psalm 46:2

Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;

 

Prayer

A quote about prayer from John MacArthur who was Greg and my first pastor after we were married in 1974. He got his promotion to heaven July 25th of 2025. Even though we moved far away from our first church and have been active members under other pastors since 1976, we’ve continued to learn and grow from Johnny Mac’s sermons (available at Grace to You) and his books.

“Far from being merely a wish list, godly prayer is fundamentally and inescapably an act of worship. It is an expression of our praise, our unworthiness, our desire to see God’s will fulfilled, and our utter dependence on Him for all our needs. Thus, every aspect of prayer is an act of worship. That includes the petitions we make, because when we properly make our requests known to God–without anxiety, through prayer and supplication, and with thanksgiving (Phil. 4:6)–we are acknowledging His sovereignty, confessing our own total reliance on His grace and power, and looking to Him as Lord, provider, and ruler of the universe–not some kind of celestial Santa. Even when we are making requests, proper prayer is pure worship.”

The stained glass window and photo from the cellars are from Dunfermline Abbey and Palace in Scotland. The window depicts Jesus on the Mount of Olives praying the night he was betrayed with some of his Disciples sleeping nearby.

The cellars afforded Josh, Laura, Greg and me our own mini praise and worship time to our Lord God singing Praise God from Whom all Blessings Flow.

Lord Jesus Christ, All Praise to Thee ~ Hymn

Lord Jesus Christ, All Praise to Thee

Lord Je­sus Christ, all praise to Thee,
That Thou wast pleased a man to be;
Our low es­tate Thou didst not scorn;
And an­gels sang to see Thee born.

The hea­ven­ly Fa­ther’s on­ly Son,
He left His right­ful glo­ri­ous throne;
The Lord through whom the worlds were made
Is in the hum­ble man­ger laid.

The bright­ness of the light di­vine
Doth now into our dark­ness shine;
It breaks up­on sin’s gloo­my night
And makes us child­ren of the light.

The Fat­her’s Son, for ev­er blest,
Becomes in His own world a guest,
To lead us from this vale of strife
Into the ev­er­last­ing life.

Words: Martin Luther, 1523.

Good Things

I started another thrift store puzzle and it’s a tough one.

I’m making slow but good progress.

Josh and Laura surprised me with this puzzle in the mail. They chose this one because our VBS theme this year was centered around Psalm 23. I’m looking forward to starting it soon. Thank you, Laura and Josh for your thoughtfulness!

On Thursday Addy and JJ were over in the afternoon so we made Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies with walnuts. They are at an age where all I have to do is watch while they mix and load the cookie sheets. They are experienced in the kitchen. We threw caution to the wind and enjoyed a little cookie dough, too.

The big news is that the skies were not smoky on Thursday because of our rain. That meant that soccer games were not cancelled and we could finally watch Addy and JJ play soccer. There games were on adjoining fields. It was a cool evening on the soccer fields.

The skies continue to be glorious and the air is good to breath. We are over the top grateful. It is exhilarating to say the least to have our clear skies again.

Have a great Saturday!

Truth for Today #199

Friday August 14th

On Fridays my posts will include verses that stood out in my readings from the Bible during the week. One, two, three or maybe more. If you have a verse/verses that you read during the week and would like to share, leave it/them in the comments and I will add it/them to the post. Let’s continue to dig deep into God’s truth.

The verses that you share are appreciated and so encouraging, I’m thankful for them and for each of you.

Psalm 9:1-2

I will give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart; I will recount all of your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.

Isaiah 45:8 (ESV)

“Shower, O heavens, from above,
and let the clouds rain down righteousness;
let the earth open, that salvation and righteousness may bear fruit;
let the earth cause them both to sprout;
I the Lord have created it.”
~
From Vera:
~
‭‭Psalm‬ ‭148‬:‭1‬-‭5‬ ‭ESV‬‬
~
“Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the heights! Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his hosts! Praise him, sun and moon, praise him, all you shining stars! Praise him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens! Let them praise the name of the Lord! For he commanded and they were created.” ‭‭

 

Truth for Today #198

Friday August 7th

On Fridays my posts will include verses that stood out in my readings from the Bible during the week. One, two, three or maybe more. If you have a verse/verses that you read during the week and would like to share, leave it/them in the comments and I will add it/them to the post. Let’s continue to dig deep into God’s truth.

The verses that you share are appreciated and so encouraging, I’m thankful for them and for each of you.

Hebrews 13:20-21

Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen.

From Maristella:

John 12:26

If anyone serves me, he must follow me; and where I am, there my servant will be also; if anyone serves me, the Father will honor him.

From Vera:

Isaiah‬ ‭12‬:‭2‬ ‭ESV‬‬

“Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation.” ‭‭

From Steve:

Psalm 18:32

the God who equipped me with strength and made my way blameless.

From Karen:

Isaiah 25:1

O Lord, thou art my God; I will exalt thee, I will praise thy name; for thou hast done wonderful things; thy counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.

VBS-2026

Welcome to Stillwater Farm.

There is a coloring contest before the week begins and if you win a ribbon you get a free t-shirt.

Children from age 3 to 6th grade fill the church each evening this week. We have over 75 volunteers helping things run smoothly. Our kitchen crew even feeds the workers and their families each evening.

By the end of the week the truth of Psalm 23 will have been heard and hopefully many will know that the Lord is their Savior and they will travel on the right path all the days of their lives following the one true Shepherd.

Truth for Today #197

Friday July 31st

On Fridays my posts will include verses that stood out in my readings from the Bible during the week. One, two, three or maybe more. If you have a verse/verses that you read during the week and would like to share, leave it/them in the comments and I will add it/them to the post. Let’s continue to dig deep into God’s truth.

The verses that you share are appreciated and so encouraging, I’m thankful for them and for each of you.

Hebrews 7:21b-25

…but this one was made priest with an oath by the one who said to him: The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, ‘You are a priest forever’. This makes Jesus the guarantor of a better covenant. The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever. Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.

1 John 3:24

Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God, and God in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.

From Leonard:

1 Thessalonians 4:3-5

“For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God;”

From Vera:

Jeremiah ‭32‬:‭1‬7 ESV

“‘Ah, Lord God! It is you who have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and by your outstretched arm! Nothing is too hard for you.” ‭‭

From Jan:

Hebrews 1:3 NLT

“The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven.”

From Maristella:

Matthew 5:16

In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father Who is in heaven.

From Karen:

Isaiah 12:2

Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust, and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my strength and my song; he also is become my salvation.

Have No Fear…

I saw this artwork at Hobby Lobby and I had to buy it and bring it home. I’ll post the hymn that this short text comes from soon. I’m sure a lot of you can sing along, especially the refrain.

Matthew 10:29-33

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father.  But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.

Visitors

On Saturday morning, this fella came up behind me while I was watering and gave me a scare. I was happy that he was a friendly fella. He wanted to come inside but we set him straight. After we gave him a drink, Greg walked him down the road a piece and he seemed to get his bearings and trotted off home.

On Sunday afternoon these two fabulous human visitors were expected and we were happy to see them pull up. We welcomed them inside. 🙂

It is always good to catch up in person with one of the Mennonite Girls Can Cook and their husbands.

We had dinner together and solved many world problems.

It was a short visit and we waved goodbye on Monday morning.

These were the skies we woke up to on Monday morning.

Psalm 19 always comes to my mind when I see a sunrise or sunset that colors the sky. “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.”

It was nice to have a short reprieve from smoky skies.

Today we have ash floating in from the latest fire in our county.

Lord, please keep our firefighters safe. Give them wisdom in how to approach all the fires burning. Help them to escape when they need to. Bring them home to their families safe and sound. And, please send us some rain without lightning. Amen.