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 […]
I had a party the other night. You should have been there. Really, it was spectacular–deflated balloons, tattered streamers, clumpy confetti, flat soda. It was probably the most extravagant pity party in the history of pity parties. I didn’t mention it was a pity party? Well, now you know. I was celebrating a late night […]
When was the last time you read Judges 7? If it’s been a while, or if you’ve never heard this well-known story, here’s the quick version. Context In the book of Judges, the Israelites have settled into the Promised Land, Canaan, while also settling into a cycle of typical human behavior: disobedience to God, captivity […]
Do you like the rain? Most people I talk to prefer sunny days over rainy ones, in both weather and life, where we associate sunshine with warmth, life, happiness, and prosperity and connect rain with sorrow, gloom, pain, or hardship. Of course we value sunshine. Of course we dislike or even hate the rain–the discomfort, […]
Thank you, Oksana, for sharing the rest of your story with us! (Two weeks ago we published Part 1, and last week we published Part 2.) What Scriptures spoke to you in your times of need? At that time of my wilderness, there were a lot of Scripture messages that helped me and God used […]
Thank you, Oksana, for sharing more of your story with us! (Click here to read Part 1.) What did God teach you in your valley of chronic illness? That time was very hard for me. I call it my wandering in the wilderness, because I truly loved God, and I truly wanted to serve Him, […]
Did you ever sing the children’s chorus “12 Men Went to Spy on Canaan”? “Twelve men went to spy in Canaan.Ten 🤚🤚 were bad 👎 and two 👆👆 were good 👍.What do you think they saw in Canaan?Ten 🤚🤚 were bad 👎 and two 👆👆 were good 👍.Some saw giants, tough and tall.Some saw grapes […]
We all know Ruth as the “face character” of the book that bears her name. After reading this book in my devotions, however–and watching the Sight and Sound production with Emily right after–I’d like to nominate Naomi as the “backbone character” of this story. It’s Naomi who starts the book, it’s Naomi who ends the […]
Thank you, Danielle, for sharing your story with us! Tell us about yourself! Hello, my name is Danielle, and I live in Flemington, New Jersey. I am currently a college student at Bob Jones University studying to be an Early Childhood teacher. While I don’t have a health condition, I do have a hand injury […]
Do you ever wish you could do more? I know I do. Specifically in ministry — reaching out to people, helping in church, mentoring, teaching, cooking, giving rides, and the list goes on. I wish I could do everything for everyone, but I’m limited, and on my bad days I find I can barely do […]
The Valley