Congratulations, Holly!! You have won the “Know Your Bible” book. Check your inbox for information on mailing.

One more giveaway this month!! Check for it later today and make sure to enter and share with your friends!

So many voices in the world and only One that matters. But do we know the One?

The more I read Scripture the more I realize that the apostles and those of the early church knew a lot about the law and Scriptures they had. They could quote from so many different parts of Old Testament law and prophets that it is amazing. Now granted, some of the Pharisees and such added some things and completely missed the heart of Scripture (and therefore missed Jesus), but they knew their Scripture.

As I sit and read my few chapters a day and attempt to help my children memorize Scripture, I realize that I know parts and pieces of what is truly the greatest story ever told. I struggle to memorize and rarely dig as deep as I should when reading.

I need to seek Him more, be hungry for the Word, and desire to have a more intimate relationship with Him. I need to know His voice.

With so many voices in the world, it can be so easy to get distracted or detoured. Finding truth in the midst of lies becomes almost impossible and loving others because we see them as God does is all but hopeless.

We need to know the Voice. We need to become so intimate with the One who called us that we know any voice that is not His and we can hear Him in the craziness that is around us.

Many years ago my mother used to sit in the hallway outside our bedrooms at night and sing hymns to my sister, my brother and I as we fell asleep. Great memory, right?

As we got older though, we became involved in the youth group at our church. On Sunday mornings we would run a little late to worship service. Finding my parents in the middle of 600 or so other people was a little difficult to say the least. My siblings and I learned a trick. We would simply wait till they sang a hymn and then we would be able to pick my mother out in the crowd because of her voice.   

God is just like that. If we spend time with Him and get to know His voice, we will be able to pick Him out in this crazy world as well and follow the One Voice that matters.

So to help us along, I would love to giveaway a little book called “Know Your Bible.” It is a great little resource to understand the foundation of each book of the Bible and hopefully challenge us to get into Scripture more, seeking to see God at work and know Him better.

How to you enter? Well, leave a comment sharing what resources you use to study your Bible or how you choose what to study. Easy as pie. Can’t wait to hear! Deadline to enter is Tuesday, April 23 at midnight.

Another winner – Melissa, you have won the giveaway! You have been sent an email requesting your mailing address so I can send it to you. Thank you all for entering!

Also – look for a new giveaway here on the blog tomorrow. Can’t wait to see what else y’all have to share!

I have thought about and talked about legacy a lot these days. I think we all wonder how people will remember us. Did we love? Did we share? Did we help?

I think we also get overwhelmed sometimes and wonder how we can make a difference when there is so much need around us.

I pray about this frequently. How do I determine what to do? How do I make sure my heart and my focus is in the right place? Who am I following?

Legacy – I know a few people who have left an indelible impact on my life – not because they had multiple degrees or lots of money or any “special” gift, but because they had learned how to love and to follow.

My heart these days is to see what God is doing around me and how He wants me to be involved. He has made us all different but He has a place for all of us. It takes all of us doing what He called us to do to make the complete and beautiful picture of the painting God has designed. It is awesome when it all comes together.

In talks I have done recently, I have asked people to share one word that they would like people to use to define the legacy they leave and then to tie it to a Scripture that God has placed on their heart or one that has been a favorite that God has used for years.

So for this week’s giveaway I am asking that of you. What is the one word you would use to describe the legacy you would like to leave and what verse has God brought to you recently or through a lifetime that ties in? please share! I can’t wait to hear!

Mine? Adventure – John 10:10 “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I (Jesus) have come that they may have LIFE, and have it to the FULL.”

The prize? Max Lucado’s book “Outlive Your Life.”

Deadline to enter is Tuesday, April 16 at midnight. Can’t wait to see what legacy you plan to leave!

And the winner is…Christine W.!! Yeah – check your inbox for information, Christine!

Make sure to tune in tomorrow for our next giveaway! It’s a month of giveaways and I am glad you are along for the ride! Do you think I put in enough exclamation points ?

This has been my thought lately as I have read through the book of John.

John, being one of the Gospels, tells us the story of Jesus ministry on Earth. He was there on so many occasions from the first of Jesus ministry to standing at the foot of the cross. John loved Jesus.

It was John that Jesus spoke to when He said “Here is your mother” (John 19:27) as He hung on the cross. From that time on, the Scripture says that John took Mary into his home.  John was with Jesus – heart and soul – through Jesus entire earthly ministry, but he continued to believe and worship Jesus after His ascension into heaven. John loved Jesus.

Throughout the book, John also refers to himself as the “disciple whom Jesus loved.” This is the part that has stuck out to me lately. John loved Jesus, but he also knew that Jesus loved Him. Through all that time he spent with Jesus, he knew the love and care Jesus had for him and also knew that Jesus death on the cross was the ultimate display of love. As John stood at the foot of the cross, we can only imagine how he must have felt.

I know Jesus died for me, but standing there watching Jesus do so would have been much different than reading about it. To see the anguish and pain and at the same time see the love and hope – it was an amazing day for sure.

But John was different, remember he spoke of himself as the disciple whom Jesus loved. Jesus did love John – more than He loved the other disciples? more than He loved me? No, not more than anybody else. But John understood something that I have yet to fully comprehend. As John watched Jesus earthly ministry and stood at the foot of the cross, he knew that Jesus would have done it all just for him. John had watched Jesus heal many both of physical problems and spiritual sin. He knew how tired Jesus would get from ministering to people, and yet loved them enough to keep going. He saw Jesus’ compassion and grace in the lives of many, but he knew the love that Jesus had for him and witnessed first-hand just how far that love would go.

John felt so loved by Jesus, that although he knew differently, he felt like Jesus favorite. Hanging out with Jesus will do that to you. Reading through history in our Scripture, we see a picture that God painted just for us. The story of redemption from the time of creation. He had a plan to save me all along – even if I was the only one – and has been orchestrating it since before time began. All for me.

As we look at the cross of Easter, and the grace and salvation that follows, we come to feel like Jesus’ favorite too. He did it all to save the world, but He would have done it even if it had been just for me. Today, I feel like His favorite too.