Flaming Arrows

There once was a woman who lived a quiet life. A good life with her husband and son in a city called “Nain.” One day her husband died and she was left alone with her only son. She mourned her husband for a long time and then got back around to the business of her life. It wasn’t the same though. Before “the day” she had comfort, companionship, and abundance. After that it was her and her son trying to make ends meet. There wasn’t a lot of work for women in those days and so h

Would you take a few minutes out of your day and write a letter for me? If you are reading my blogs and shared them with others, or are reading this for the first time, I need your assistance. I meet the Parole Board the first week of October. I realize the heinous nature of my crime, the harm I have done to others, and the necessity for justice. I was arrested 41 years ago when I was nineteen. I am (by the grace of God) a different person today. If you believe that and that

I was recently turned down for Community Corrections. It was my fourth time to apply. I meet the Parole Board again in October. After being incarcerated for going on 41 years you would think that I would be so close to getting out of here that my expectations would be very high. The problem is, I have been turned down so many times that is hard to still have hope. I have to look beyond my circumstances and rely on the power and ability of God. If I don't, the downward spiral

I heard this several weeks ago and lately the Lord has been bringing it to memory. More than once. In the middle of the night. So, who was Copernicus? Well, he was one of those revolutionary scientists in the 14 and 15 hundreds that changed the way people think about things. You know the type. They come up with radical ideas like electricity (Edison), the telephone (Bell), the computer, internet, cars, and on and on. Copernicus was one of the great thinkers around 1500 A.D. A

I sat here this morning and watched the moon disappear. Well, actually it just went into the shadow of the Earth in a total eclipse. It was kind of cool. It also got me to thinking. We believe in a really great God. He created such an intricate and spectacular universe that events like an eclipse happen without cataclysmic results. Oh, we blame a lot of stuff on them, and there are some natural things that occur, but the world is still here in all of its majestic glory. God c

I was watching a preacher on TV and he was talking about us getting so caught up in what we know that we do not look for God. We don't look for Him to speak. We don't look for Him to heal. We do not expect Him to comfort. Most of the time we expect God NOT to keep His promises rather than hope and be disappointed. In Zechariah 9:11-12 it says: "As for you also, because of the blood of my covenant with you, I will set your prisoners free from the waterless pit. Return to your

I was in church tonight and was asked to help serve the Lord's Supper elements. Throughout the service there was great worship and fellowship. I was really expecting God to show up and show off. We celebrate the Lord's Supper on the fifth Sunday. That is usually every quarter. This makes it often enough not to forget but not too often that it becomes a routine. It is very often a time of reverence and grace. Tonight something happened that struck a chord with my spirit. We ha

"But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His son, born of a woman, born under the Law, to redeem those who were under the Law, so that we might receive the adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent His Spirit into our hearts, crying 'Abba.'" (Galatians 4:4-6 ESV) God has a habit of showing up 'at just the right time' even though it is not the time we would like. I mean, it would have been great (from a human perspective) for God to show up prior

In my own life, I have a hard time with the things that go on between my ears. So, in order to avoid crazy thinking, I avoid a lot of things like what I watch or listen to, who I choose to hang out with, and what I read. My cell-mate thinks I have him on a "PG-13" restriction with my television. The truth is I am so weak I do not want the images or conversations running around in my mind for months (or years) and coming out of my mouth at the wrong time. I am also reminded th

I wake up pretty early in the morning. We have a 5 a.m., standing, fully dressed, ID in hand count time. Every morning. At a quarter till I turn the coffee pot on and get my Word out. I have a few devotionals that I read and a pretty good chunk of Scripture. Then I pray. One thing I enjoy is putting the curtain up and watching the sun reflect off the mountains as the day starts. Every work day I get to watch something else. Coming through one of the passes is a switch back ro