Behind the Hymn: The Banner of the Cross
The Banner of the Cross was written by Daniel W. Whittle. Daniel Whittle served in the Civil War, obtaining the rank of major. He was known as Major Whittle the remainder of his life. After…
Happy 4th of July!!!
Happy 4th of July!!! “The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender, or submission.” President John F. Kennedy…
Faithful Heroes: John Newton
As we prepare to celebrate the 4th of July tomorrow, I thought it would be fitting to study a faithful hero who was both a slave and a slave trader, before he gained freedom in…
Does the Past Define You?
Often it is easy to allow our past to define us. Could you easily say, “I was a victim…alcoholic…drug addict…enabler…rebel…” So, often it is easy to define ourselves by what we used to be. However,…
Behind the Patriotic Song: Some Gave All
The fourth of July is in just a few days, so I thought we would enjoy a Patriotic favorite. Some Gave All was written by Billy Ray Cyrus and debuted on his 1992 album of…
Guest Post: Holding on to Hope by Kathy Howard
“I wonder where heaven is,” Dad sighed. Then after a brief pause, “What do you think it’s like?” Dad and I sat on his patio in the cool of the morning, watching the birds as…
Daughters in the Bible: daughter of Jephthah, Remained Faithful
The daughter of Jephthah is a heartbreaking story, but is also a testament to true faith and true love. Let’s set the background. Jephthah is described as a “mighty warrior”. He is the son of…
Daughters in the Bible: Tamar, Was Left Defenseless
Tamar was the daughter of King David and Maacah and the sister of Absalom. She had a half-brother, who is prominent in what happens to her named, Amnon, who was David’s first born and the…
Treasure the Moments
Today is my grandmother’s 94th birthday. Watching her grow older and frailer has not been easy on us to watch. With the loss of hearing, caring on a conversation is even difficult. Yet, she is…
Faithful Heroes: Marie Monsen, a life of devotion
Marie Monsen was born in 1878 in Sandviken, Norway. She committed as a young woman to going to China and arrived for a 30-year mission there on September 1, 1901. Her first years there are…
Turning a Negative into a Positive
After years of being degraded and put down, it is difficult to turn turn our thought process around. However, we can change our thought process. We can take a negative and turn it into a…
Behind the Song: We Are One in the Bond of Love
We are one in the bond of love is another popular chorus that originated in the early 1970s. The song is known both as We Are One in the Bond of Love and Bond…
Guest Post: Unity in the Caregiving Family by Kathy Howard
Like many siblings, my brother Gary and I fought a lot growing up. Nothing too serious, mostly squabbles over things like who crossed the imaginary line down the middle of the backseat of the car.…
Daughters in the Bible: Michal & Merab, Pawns in the kings game
King Saul reveled in his power and enjoyed wielding it over others. He used his daughters as bargaining chips. The name of his older daughter was Merab, and that of the younger was Michal. {1…
Patience in the Change
I have been honest about my struggles to lose weight. It is not easy and while I have lost about fifteen pounds it is very frustrating when I have so much further to go. At…
Faithful Heroes: Betty Olsen, unselfish even in persecution
Often we think of heroes of the faith as living a long time ago, but there are many examples of heroes of the faith living in recent times. One of these is Betty Ann Olsen.…
Blinded to the Truth
I recently heard Dr. Charles Stanley say “Satan always blinds you and says you will be fine without showing you the consequences.” I thought about how this related to an abusive relationship. The abuse began…