BEAUTY

Photo provided by Deborah Bagby Bouchard

Favour is deceitful, and beauty is vain:

but a woman that feareth the LORD,

she shall be praised.

Proverbs 31:30

THROUGH THE FIRE

Photo by Kassidy Mitchell

Yesterday as I was deep into preparing for a FDA Inspection; 

I received a text from my sister.  I was expecting this 

text to be about my uncle who is in the hospital, 

but this text was something different.   My niece had 

gone to a ballgame and received a call that her home

was on fire.  She rushed home only to find that there 

was little left standing.  The fire had consumed

the entire house, her car and an older pickup truck

parked close by.  

As she watched the fire fighters move throughout

the evening, tears began to flow.  She realized she

had just lost everything to this wicked blaze.  

She had some treasured items in the home 

that now lay in a few feet of rubbish smoldering 

in the evenings darkness.   

I am sure as her mind scanned the 

rubbish from a distance, she could 

only think of the memories being consumed.  

The photo's, the keepsakes, the special blankets, 

jewelry boxes and so much more that once she

could behold are gone.  

The tears began to flow as she realized she

didn't have the ring on her hand that her 

precious grandmother who had passed away

had left for her.  More tears began to come

as she had to let go of that one thing she 

cherished so dearly. 

The rubbish settled, the fire fighters went 

home but the house was still a heap of rubbish.  

When all was cooled down and safe, she began 

to walk through the rubbish.  She realized there 

was nothing left; everything totally gone.

She walked through and could tell where the 

kitchen used to be, into the living room, and

then into the bedroom.  Her bed had steel on 

it so she could tell where the head of the bed 

was and then the foot of the bed.  She knew

her dresser was only a few feet from the 

bottom of  the bed.  One, two, three feet

or so she stepped off.  The dresser should 

be right here, but there was nothing.  As she

bent down to dig through the rubbish, there

was one small item she found; the 

beautiful diamond ring her grandmother 

had given her.  

Tears began to flow as she held it in her 

hands.  Deep breaths and more tears as 

she realized she had her diamond right 

there in her hands.  Through all the flames, 

the heat and the destruction, the ring had

made it through the whole ravaging 

episode of the evening.  

As my sister told me about this, my tears

also began to flow.  She had found her 

precious treasure.  

Do you realize that we are much like this

diamond?  We are God's treasure.  We go

through the storms of life and sometimes 

our bodies go through much pain and 

torment.  Many times we feel there is 

nothing left but rubbish, just ashes of 

 worthlessness.  

Suddenly the Lord steps in and picks us 

up out of the rubbish and makes our 

lives shine out into the world, that they 

may see, that through the fire, through

the flood, through the stresses of life, 

we still shine.  

We may not look like we did before the 

storm but when he picks us up and dusts

away the rubbish, he holds us close to

his heart, and he says, "I have found my

treasure and oh, how I love thee." 

But now thus saith the LORD that 

created thee, O Jacob, and he that 

formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: 

for I have redeemed thee, I have 

called thee by thy name; thou art 

mine. When thou passest through 

the waters, I will be with thee; and 

through the rivers, they shall not 

overflow thee: when thou walkest 

through the fire, thou shalt not be 

burned; neither shall the flame 

kindle upon thee   For I am the 

LORD thy God, the Holy One 

of Israel, thy Saviour: I gave 

Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia 

and Seba for thee.  Since thou 

wast precious in my sight, thou 

hast been honourable, and I have 

loved thee: therefore will I give 

men for thee, and people for thy life.

Isaiah 43:1-4

...TURN MANY TO RIGHTEOUSNESS AS THE STARS FOREVER MORE

Photo provided by Lash Banks

And at that time shall Michael stand 

up,the great prince which standeth for 

the children of thy people: and there 

shall be a time of trouble, such as 

never was since there was a nation 

even to that same time: and at that 

time thy people shall be delivered, 

every one that shall be found written 

in the book.  And many of them that 

sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, 

some to everlasting life, and some to 

shame and everlasting contempt.

And they that be wise shall shine as the 

brightness of the firmament; and they 

that turn many to righteousness as the 

stars for ever and ever.  But thou, O 

Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the 

book, even to the time of the end: 

many shall run to and fro, and 

knowledge shall be increased.

Then I Daniel looked, and, behold, 

there stood other two, the one on this 

side of the bank of the river, and the 

other on that side of the bank of 

the river.  And one said to the man 

clothed in linen, which was upon 

the waters of the river, How long 

shall it be to the end of these wonders?  

And I heard the man clothed in 

linen, which was upon the waters of 

the river, when he held up his right 

hand and his left hand unto heaven, 

and sware by him that liveth for ever 

that it shall be for a time, times, and an 

half; and when he shall have accomplished 

to scatter the power of the holy people, 

all these things shall be finished.

And I heard, but I understood not: then 

said I, O my Lord, what shall be the 

end of these things?  And he said, Go thy 

way, Daniel: for the words are closed up 

and sealed till the time of the end.

Many shall be purified, and made white, 

and tried; but the wicked shall do wickedly: 

and none of the wicked shall understand; 

but the wise shall understand.

And from the time that the daily sacrifice 

shall be taken away, and the abomination 

that maketh desolate set up, there 

shall be a thousand two hundred and 

ninety days.  Blessed is he that waiteth, 

and cometh to the thousand three hundred 

and five and thirty days.  But go thou thy way 

till the end be: for thou shalt rest, and stand 

in thy lot at the end of the days.

Daniel 12 

YOU DON'T KNOW THE HALF OF IT

Devotion by Steve Long
Visit Steve's blog for more postings - Reflecting the Light

It has never yet been clearly established as to whether this Queen of Sheba came from a location in Arabia or Ethiopia. Both places have traditions concerning their ancient queen and King Solomon. It might even be possible that this great Monarch was the queen of both locations.

Regardless, the Bible tells us that:

When the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him with hard questions. She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels that bore spices, very much gold, and precious stones; and when she came to Solomon, she spoke with him about all that was in her heart. So Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing so difficult for the king that he could not explain it to her. And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, the food on his table, the seating of his servants, the service of his waiters and their apparel, his cupbearers, and his entryway by which he went up to the house of the LORD, there was no more spirit in her. Then she said to the king: "It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. However I did not believe the words until I came and saw with my own eyes; and indeed the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame of which I heard. (1 Kings 10.1-7)

We can see from the biblical text that the Queen of Sheba was already very wealthy. She had brought to Solomon loads of amazing gifts – huge amounts of gold, precious stones, spices, and rare wood from Lebanon. She was a very wealthy lady!

But when she saw all that Solomon had – the palace, the food, his servants, the Temple of Jehovah he had built; not to mention his unsurpassed wisdom – her spirit was absolutely drained.

There was no question he could not answer, no wealth he did not already own, no authority he could not command, no comparison to anything she had ever seen.

Usually when one hears rumors, they often become exaggerated legends, grossly overstated assertions only partially true, but with Solomon, “the half was not told” her. His wisdom and prosperity exceeded his fame.

King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all she desired, whatever she asked, besides what Solomon had given her according to the royal generosity. (1 Kings 10.13)

That’s the way it is when you come to Jesus. He exceeds all expectations and we have not yet seen him in all of his glory.

I can say about him that “the half was not told me” and I’m still learning more about his grace, goodness, compassion, love and tender mercies.

One day we will see him as he is in all of his glory and say: “I didn’t know the half of it.”

If you have considered becoming a Christian, think no longer. Jesus is more than you could ever imagine. We already know he is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We know he is Savior, Creator, Sovereign, and that he holds all things together to name only a few. What more could ever exceed what we already know about him. Wait and see. You’ll be surprised as you get to know him. Tell him your heart’s desire. Soon you will find that he IS your heart’s desire.

WHO WAS THAT MASKED MAN?

A Devotion by Steve Long

Who was that Masked Man?

In the old black and white television show, “The Lone Ranger”, a man, formerly a Texas Ranger, would go from place to place with his faithful friend, Tonto, helping people overcome run-ins with outlaws.

He wore a mask to protect his anonymity. Once the problem was solved and the bad guys were put away he would command his horse with “Hy-O Silver, away!” and ride off into the sunset.

Soon after he had left town someone would say; “Who was that masked man?” The answer was always, “Why, that’s the Lone Ranger.”

The bible mentions an occasion in which Jesus was talking to a religious man about the command: “Love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,' and 'your neighbor as yourself.'"

In an effort to find a loophole in those two commands, the man, well versed in the Holy Writings, asked this question, "And who is my neighbor?"

This prompted Jesus to tell this story[i] about a man who had true compassion. Though he wasn’t a masked man, he too was anonymous, for no one but God knows his name to this day. Here’s the story:

A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, who stripped him of his clothing, wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a certain priest came down that road. And when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite, when he arrived at the place, came and looked, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was. And when he saw him, he had compassion. So he went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; and he set him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. On the next day, when he departed, he took out two denarii (valuable coins)[ii], gave them to the innkeeper, and said to him, 'Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, when I come again, I will repay you.' So which of these three do you think was neighbor to him who fell among the thieves?"

And he said, "He who showed mercy on him."

Then Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."

Here are some observations about this “good Samaritan.”

He would have been the most unlikely to succeed in being a prospect to help this “certain man” who was probably Jewish. The problem was that the Jews and Samaritans were always at outs with each other.[iii] It is strange that two very religious men would have left the afflicted man die because they had no compassion and didn’t want to be tainted by touching him. Both the Levite and the Priest “passed him by,” They thought they had “better things to do” but not the Samaritan man. The Samaritan was probably not as well versed in the religion of the Old Testament but paid more attention to its teachings than they.

 *He was compassionate. This is always where helping others always starts. It starts when our heart becomes burdened by the plight of another. Without a compassionate heart we will always be more interested in getting where we’re going and keeping our own hands clean than we are in helping someone who is hurting.


*He was present. The first man “saw” him but passed by on the other side of the road. The second man actually “came and looked” but also passed by on the other side of the road. But the Samaritan actually “came where he was.” Ezekiel put it like this: “I sat where they sat.”[iv] The Samaritan didn’t just stop and gawk, but “went to him.”

*He got his hands dirty. Helping others in a crisis is not white collar work even if you might be a white collar worker. If we really want to make a difference in people’s lives then we’ll have to get down and dirty with them sometimes. He was willing to bear the man up with all of his strength and set him upon his beast. While the afflicted man rode the Samaritan’s animal, the Samaritan would have to walk the rest of the way to the nearest Inn.

* He provided for the man's healing. He poured medicine on his wounds, bandaged him, and took him to an inn to nurture him.

* He paid for his care. Jesus said, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” The Samaritan truly showed how much he cared by the price he was willing to pay. He paid the innkeeper two days wages for the cost of lodging and told him he would pay any other costs which might incur.
This man was destitute after being robbed and could pay absolutely nothing. He was at the mercy of this good Samaritan but the Samaritan came through with all that was needed.

* He promised to come back. He said, “…when I return.” We don’t know if it was already in his plans to come back through that way or not. He does not say when he would return but he promised that he would do so. Having seen this man’s character and his compassion, we can be sure that he did come back just as he said he would.

* He followed through in every detail. He did not leave unfinished meeting any need of this injured and deprived man. He brought everything to completion. There was no need left unattended to, no detail left unnoticed, no sacrifice left unmade, no cost left unpaid, no distance left untravelled, and no promise left unfulfilled.

There is much we can learn from this story about having compassion on others who have experienced disasters in their lives. We have seen many of these kinds of people in the last couple of weeks in the Gulf Coastal areas of Texas and Louisiana. Thank God, there are still plenty of Good Samaritans out there. Many of them never planned to do what they’ve done for others in the last several days but when crunch time came they rose up to the occasion to help those in need. These are individuals who never asked “Who is my neighbor.” They already knew that the people they were looking at, regardless of nationality, skin color or background were indeed their neighbors.

But we still haven’t answered the question of who the real mystery man is. Who is there who really always does the loving thing – even for those whom others would say, “They’re not worth it?”

The answer: Jesus Christ.

He left heaven and came to this cold, dark, murky, sinful world to where we live.

He had compassion for me and for you in our desperate condition – those of us who were “sinners, poor and needy, weak and wounded sick and sore.” We were “thirsty,” “weary, heavy laden, lost and ruined by the fall”[v] but he came to our rescue.

He provided for our healing. We were sickened and near death because of our sin against God. Jesus came and poured in the wine of his blood and the oil of the Holy Spirit into our lives so that we might be healed.

He paid what we could never pay ourselves. We owed an insurmountable debt to God but he covered the cost through his death on the cross.

He promised he would return, saying: “I will come again and receive you to myself; that where I am, there you may be also.”[vi]

He completed his work. “He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.” Just before he died on the cross he uttered; “It is finished.”[vii] He did not fail to perform one little bit of everything that was required for our redemption.

[i] Luke 10.25-37

[ii] Denarii is the plural form of the word Denarius, a Roman coin which contained approximately 1/8 ounces of silver. It may not sound like very much to you or me but it was originally the price of 10 donkeys (later 16). In the bible (Matthew 20.2), it was the amount paid to a common laborer for a day’s work.

[iii] John 4.9
[iv] Ezekiel 3.15
[v] I Will Arise and Go to Jesus – song written by William Walker
[vi] John 14.3
[vii] Hebrews 7.25

YOUR LABOR IS NOT IN VAIN!

Photo by Lash Banks

This being labor day and having the 

day off from my regular job, I decided 

to work on my ministry video.  

Hours into this project I was becoming 

weary, as it needs done, and then perfected,

perfected, and perfected some more. 

Just about the time you think you have

it absolutely perfect; you see something

in it that needs changed and you start

all over. 

I had spent probably twenty or more

hours on this project and set it aside

due to not being able to get it exactly 

how I wanted it.  

Spending four hours on it today, I 

began to question, "Is this project

really worth it?"  Is what I am 

doing in this ministry really 

worth spending these long

grueling hours?

My phone gets a text message.  

I pick the phone up and the 

Lord has answered my 

question for me.  

I have been encouraging

a young lady for about six 

months.  I had given her a 

book, and she read it but

I wasn't sure it had made

a lasting impact on her life. 

The text I received was a 

photo from her church 

and it said she  had attended 

church yesterday and accepted 

Jesus Christ as her Saviour.

Tears instantly came to my

eyes and the scripture flowed

out. 

Therefore, my beloved brethren, 

be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always 

abounding in the work of the Lord, 

forasmuch as ye know that your labour 

is not in vain in the Lord.

I Corinthians 15:58

What a blessed Labor Day gift I received today!

BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD!

Photo provided by  Pennie Beth Saum 

Be still, and know that I am God: I will be 

exalted among the heathen, I will be 

exalted in the earth.

Psalm 46:10

Such simple words and yet so hard to 

achieve!  Do you ever wonder why 

it is difficult to understand this 

statement and to apply it to our

life?  It's much like a raging river.

Our emotions build up momentum;

just as the raging river.  

In order to stop these waters 

from busting over the top of the 

rocks is to build a dam.  If 

a dam isn't built, the waters 

will still keep raging.  

In order to stop the emotions

we must build a wall of faith!

Faith will block the raging

emotions, faith will force

the emotions of others 

from pouring defeat on 

us.  Faith is the wall that 

can change your life. 

In Corinthians it says we

walk by faith, in Romans 

it says we live by faith,

in Hebrews we see 

our victory comes

through faith 

(For we walk by 

faith, not by sight:)

II Corinthians 5:7

...as it is written, The just 

shall live by faith.

Romans 1:17

Faith subdued kingdoms, wrought 

righteousness, obtained promises, 

stopped the mouths of lions,

Quenched the violence of fire, 

escaped the edge of the sword, 

out of weakness were made strong, 

waxed valiant in fight, turned to 

flight the armies of the aliens.

Hebrews 11:33-34

What keeps you from building that 

dam to your own emotions and 

worldly ways?  I know for myself,

it's worry, defeat and frustration. 

Wouldn't it be far better to see the 

victory in our lives, than to roll 

with the turbulence bringing 

us down and filling us with 

discouragement. 

Wherefore seeing we also are compassed 

about with so great a cloud of witnesses, 

let us lay aside every weight, 

and the sin which doth so easily beset us, 

and let us run with patience the race 

that is set before us, Looking unto 

Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; 

who for the joy that was set before him 

endured the cross, despising the shame, 

and is set down at the right hand of the 

throne of God.

Hebrews 12:1-2