February 8. John 1:1-18

February 8. John 1:1-18 Good morning! (Or perhaps it's afternoon by the time you are able to read this?) Here we are for week two, looking at John's beautiful book of recollections of his time with Jesus when He walked the earth. This first section is one of my favorite passages in the entire Bible. Whatever verse you chose today, I love it. They are all so rich and beautiful and so clearly set the tone for John's Gospel. They honor and glorify Jesus, Son of Man and Son of God, who was and is and is to come! John wastes no time in declaring Who Jesus is, does he? He starts by putting Jesus at the very beginning of all creation - already there […] Read more »

A Love for Older Folks

God’s Amazing Love Series Third of five reflections on the love of God Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you. —Isaiah 46:4 NIV My British grandmother was in her early nineties when we visited her in England. Her face was wrinkled, her hair was gray, and her thick glasses unnaturally enlarged her eyes. Yet, she was as bright and cheery and energetic as always, walking to the bus stop every few days to do her own grocery shopping in the little village of Cottingham. At first, in my ignorance, I only saw her as “old,” and […] Read more »

February 7. Acts 8:1-25

February 7. Acts 8:1-25 A blessed Lord's Day to you, friend! Hope you have been able to worship somehow with your church today, whether online or in person. You've completed your first week of study—a week we devoted to looking at some of the scriptures that highlighted John's life. Take a moment and ponder with me, tonight, via video ... what have we learned about John in this first week? Tomorrow, we will invest time in reading from John's Gospel. Today, let's talk about one more incident in John's life from the book of Acts. The initial euphoria and excitement of the early church is now being tested by intense persecution. In fact, most of the new believers have scattered and have brought the gospel […] Read more »

Week 2 Readings

Here are your Week 2 Readings. We'll be looking at key passages in the Gospel of John. Such rich reading!! Watch for a video on Sunday to introduce next week to us and print this off so you can tuck it in your Bible and be all set on Monday for your next reading assignments. Read more »

February 6. Acts 4:1-31

February 6. Acts 4:1-31 Happy Saturday! Just look at you on here reading this! You managed to find time, even on the weekend, to meet with the Lord. Well done! One of the HARDEST things about doing this study was I only had 28 days in which to share the highlights of John's story. There were so many passages I had to leave out. Ah well. I hope those who want more will continue into March, digging into more stories about John! For now, we've moved from life with Jesus with John physically, to life with the Holy Spirit within John spiritually. As I read through this passage, I was struck by the word bold. It's used several times as Luke describes an incident where […] Read more »

February 5. John 21:1-25

February 5. John 21:1-25 It's Friday, friends! That means it is time to make a good plan for meeting with God over the weekend. We usually have a different routine on Saturdays and Sundays and without intentional planning, quiet times with God can soooo easily be neglected. So ... make a plan. When will you meet with the Lord on Saturday? on Sunday? ... and then, share what God taught you today. Friday. Isn't it fascinating that we started out the week on Monday with a fishing story and here we are on Friday with another one? I actually didn't plan that, but I do love that these two stories bookend John's three years of walking with Jesus. I love that Jesus was the same […] Read more »

February 4. John 19:25 - John 20:9

February 4. John 19:25 - John 20:9 Good morning! I love reading your comments. Hope God spoke to you in a special way this morning. But no matter what—you met with Him and that was an offering from you to the One who loves you all by itself. As we read about Jesus' death and resurrection in these verses, it's hard to believe that John's life is just beginning. He will go on to live another fifty or sixty years or so after this huge life-changing event. John witnessed the most defining event in all of history. He was there. He loved Jesus and he stood by that cross and watched Jesus die. Oh the agony that must have been to his soul! And then, […] Read more »

February 3. Luke 9:51-56 and Mark 10:35-45

February 3. Luke 9:51-56 and Mark 10:35-45 Hello friend! How was your study time this morning? We'd love to read what God showed you if you have time to comment. We can all read the same passages and yet, because the Bible is living and active, we can glean different messages from His wonderful Word that apply to our lives each day. What did God teach you? These two passages are about totally different times and situations in the life of Jesus and His disciples, but they share this in common: James and John want to do something big and bold in each case. In the Luke passage, they offer to call down fire from Heaven on a Samaritan village. They don't suggest that Jesus […] Read more »

February 2. Mark 3:1-19

February 2. Mark 3:1-19 As we read this passage, it becomes obvious that Jesus' initial call on John and the others to follow Him was a first step in the process to their becoming His closest followers. They observed Jesus healing on the Sabbath. They watched Him heal. They saw the crowds pressing and swelling in their attempts to be near the Lord. They got to know what it would be like to follow Jesus and Jesus got to know them. Then, the time came for Jesus to select out of the many who followed the twelve who would be constant companions and who would, after His death and resurrection, found a church and faith that would still be vibrant and active all these thousands […] Read more »