Over the past three weeks, we’ve studied Jeremiah’s personal lament over Jerusalem’s destruction and Israel’s captivity, his intentional journey from hopeless to hopeful, and his humble introspection and call to repentance. This week we look at the rest of Jeremiah’s lament and some general considerations for us in chronic illness. Note: I studied this section […]
After looking at Jeremiah’s personal lament and his journey from hopeless to hopeful, both of which provide great encouragement for those of us in chronic illness, we come to a part of the chapter that continues the God-focused, hope-giving theme while introducing a more somber note of introspection. Part 3: Verses 31-42 KAPH 31 For […]
Last week we introduced Lamentations 3 and read Jeremiah’s personal lament in verses 1-18. Today we’ll see a significant shift in tone as we look at the next section of the chapter. Part 2: Verses 19-30 From 1:1 to 3:18, Jeremiah has described “hopelessness,” but verses 19-39 focus on the hope that we have in […]
The Sunday before Thanksgiving, my pastor preached a powerful sermon on thankfulness. This sermon changed how I look at several aspects of thankfulness and challenged me to be a more thankful daughter of God. With my pastor’s permission, I’m sharing his main points and both our notes with you in the hopes that what God […]
I know we said we were taking a break this month (and we are), but God gave me this blessing unexpectedly, and I wanted to share it with you in time for the holiday. Happy Thanksgiving! The Girl Who Was Going to Spain I stood between two headstones, hands in my coat pockets, shivering in […]
Nothing better illustrates the nature of life than the seasons of nature: seasons for growth, seasons for harvest, seasons for work, and seasons for rest. To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1 In May we announced a season of rest (at least from The Valley) for us as Emily got […]
A couple of months ago, the pastor of my church preached a sermon from II Corinthians 4:7-18 that really encouraged me in my chronic illness struggles. With his permission, I’m sharing his outline and both our notes in hopes the message will encourage you too. The message was titled “Humbly Ministering for His Glory.” I. […]
Thank you, Janeen, for sharing your story with us! Tell us about yourself! Hi, there! I’m just an ordinary woman who serves an extraordinary God! I’m almost 64 yrs old, married to Ray for almost 40 years. Together we’ve raised 9 children and 1 in heaven, and enjoy our 5, soon-to- be 6 grandchildren. I […]
Click here to read last week’s post. Recap: 1. You are not the main character, God is. 2. God has a plan, it’s for good, and it will be accomplished in your life. 3. God wants to use your suffering Another theme that shows up often on this blog is God’s redemption of our pain […]
Have you ever listened to a sermon that fit in all the right places where you needed that exact encouragement, perspective, or conviction (or all three), as if God custom built the message to your current situation? That’s how I felt when I listened to a Youtube sermon on the life of Joseph, preached by […]
The Valley