May 18, 2024 READ: Exodus 31 (Focus vs. 1-11) “I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom . . . and with all kinds of skills.” Exodus 31:3 BACKGROUND “Your job for the international book expo,” my
May 15, 2024 READ: John 8 (Focus vs. 31-32, 36, 42-47) MEMORY VERSE “[Satan] is a liar and the father of lies.” John 8:44 BACKGROUND Adolf Hitler believed big lies were more powerful than small ones, and, tragically, he tested
May 14, 2024 READ: Ecclesiastes 8 (Focus vs.14-17) MEMORY VERSE “I commend the enjoyment of life, because there is nothing better for a person under the sun than to eat and drink and be glad.” Ecclesiastes 8:15 BACKGROUND Sweetly fragrant
May 13, 2024 READ: 2 Chronicles 18 (Focus vs. 9-16) MEMORY VERSE “As surely as the Lord lives, I can tell him only what my God says.” 2 Chronicles 18:13 BACKGROUND After the Paris Peace Conference that concluded World War
May 12, 2024 READ: 2 Timothy 1 (Focus vs.3-5) MEMORY VERSE “I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice.” 2 Timothy 1:5 BACKGROUND As teens, my sister and I
May 11, 2024 READ: 1 Samuel 28 (Focus vs. 3-10) MEMORY VERSE “All you need to say is simply “Yes” or “No”; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” Matthew 5:37 BACKGROUND As Gandalf the Grey confronted Saruman the
May 10, 2024 READ: Ephesians 2 (Focus vs. 1-10) MEMORY VERSE “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God.” Ephesians 2:8 BACKGROUND Many years ago, New York
“BLOOMING DESERTS” May 9, 2024 READ: Isaiah 35 (Focus vs. 1-7) MEMORY VERSE “The desert will bloom with flowers.” Isaiah 35:2 nirv BACKGROUND A century ago, lush forest covered roughly 40 percent of Ethiopia, but today it’s around 4 percent.
May 8, 2024 READ: 2 Kings 6 (Focus vs. 15-23) MEMORY VERSE “Elisha prayed, “Open his eyes, Lord, so that he may see.” 2 Kings 6:17 BACKGROUND Joy was concerned for her relative Sandy, who for years had struggled with
May 7, 2024 READ: Romans (Focus 12 vs. 4-8) MEMORY VERSE “We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us.” Romans 12:6 BACKGROUND Decades ago, I went to a college retreat where everyone was talking about
