by Steve Williams | Jul 16, 2021 | Devotions
A tip of the hat to Anna, who pointed me to this post by Jacob Waldron. ======= Church is hard. Church is hard for the person walking through the doors for the first time, afraid of judgement. Church is hard for the pastor’s family, under the microscope of an entire...
by Steve Williams | Jul 15, 2021 | Devotions
My buddy Tucker collects eagle figurines. Some are carved, some are cast. He’s easily got a few dozen of them in a display case, and others throughout his home. It’s kinda his thing. Eagles often represent freedom, and he’s come through a lot of bondage in his...
by Halli Riskus | Jul 14, 2021 | Devotions
Has beauty ever made you cry? Has it ever pointed you to the heart intention of our God? The older I get, the more often this happens. In most cases, it’s the overwhelming beauty of nature. This week, the overpowering beauty was in the first intention of a creature...
by Steve Williams | Jul 13, 2021 | Devotions
Luna, a particularly curious sheep, was found on her ranch in Washington sporting a swollen head and neck. Once she was penned up and examined, the shepherds found what appeared to be a snake bite mark in the center of the swelling. It looked like two small, missing...
by Steve Williams | Jul 12, 2021 | Devotions
I was at the market when the self-checkout kiosk went into a stall and proceeded to tell me, “Help is on the way”. I had to laugh. Because that’s much nicer for the machine to say than, “You’re gonna be stuck here until the checker that has to monitor a dozen...
by Halli Riskus | Jul 9, 2021 | Devotions
Good Gifts “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.” James 1:17 Watching the sunrise over the mountains, a cup of coffee in my hands, the...
by Steve Williams | Jul 8, 2021 | Devotions
What does it take to be a worship leader? I’m of the opinion that it simply means somebody else is following your cues and your example. If you’re stuck in the idea that worship is what happens in church from the first downbeat to the final note of the last song, this...
by Steve Williams | Jul 7, 2021 | Devotions
In Joshua chapter 2 we read a story of intrigue. Two spies are sent to the city of Jericho. They decide to spend the night at a prostitute’s home. I have no idea why that seemed like a good idea, but there they were. According to the story, she was hiding the spies....
by Steve Williams | Jul 6, 2021 | Devotions
I hate gardening. Actually, it isn’t the gardening I hate. What’s not to like about watching seeds sprout and grow and produce food or flowers? It’s the prep work I hate. This morning at oh-dark-thirty I was in our back yard to pull out some kitchen-island-sized lilac...
by Steve Williams | Jul 5, 2021 | Devotions
“Follow the Leader” is a children’s game we’ve probably all seen or played at one time or another. One player, the Leader, begins moving around with actions the rest of the players must mimic. Anything the leader does, the others must follow. Those players who don’t,...
