November | 2012 |

Teach Me Jesus Thursdays: More Activities for Advent (and a giveaway)

29. November 2012 · 25 comments · Categories: Christmas, Teach Me Jesus

A couple of weeks ago, I shared one of our family’s Advent traditions. If you missed that post, click here.

Today I wanted to share a few other ideas for “teaching Jesus” to our children during this Christmas season.

1. Names of Jesus Chain (by SpellOutLoud): In homeschool this month, we are studying the names of Jesus. Click here for a printable that includes each of the names. You print them out onto paper, making a chain with one name per loop of paper. Hang up the completed chain and each day during Advent, you discuss that name and remove a link from the chain.

2. Advent wreath: We also like to do the traditional Advent wreath during the season. This tradition has been celebrated since the ninth century. A wreath of greens encircles four candles. In the middle of the four candles is one white candle. Each Sunday of Advent a different candle is lit, with the final candle being lit on Christmas Eve. We use a devotional that provides passages of Scripture to read while lighting the candles. We use this one: Christ in Christmas: A Family Advent Celebration

3. Learn about Christmas songs: Pick a few of the traditional Christmas carols and discuss with your children what they mean. Perhaps learn about the people who wrote them and what motivated them to write the song. Listen to different versions of the song.

4. Christmas stories: Read a different Christmas book each day of Advent. We’ve been collecting them over the years and have a few favorites including: The Gift of the Christmas Cookie: Sharing the True Meaning of Jesus’ Birth, The Berenstain Bears and the Joy of Giving (Berenstain Bears/Living Lights), The Christmas Sweater: A Picture Book and A Charlie Brown Christmas (Peanuts). I keep a big basket in the living room filled with the books so my children can look at them throughout the season.

5. Gingerbread manger scene: Instead of the typical gingerbread house, make a manger scene out of gingerbread. We tried this last year and had fun with it. Marshmallows make great sheep, graham crackers make a nice manger, and toasted coconut works well as hay.

6. Attend a live nativity: This has been a tradition for our family since my oldest son was little. Various churches in the area host a live nativity where people act out the story of Christmas. Some churches will have it as a drive through and others as a walk through. It’s especially fun if they have a petting zoo. Another idea would be to have your children act out the story on their own.

7. Make ornaments: We make ornaments every year. Some years we’ve made candy cane ornaments and talked about what the candy cane represents (red as Jesus’ blood, the white as the purity we have because of Christ, it was by his stripes that we are healed, etc.). Another fun way to make ornaments is with Shrinky Dinks-remember those? Your child can write a favorite Christmas verse or draw a favorite symbol representing some part of the Christmas story onto the Shrinky Dink plastic. You cut it out in a shape that would work well for an ornament and punch a hole at the top. After baking, it shrinks down and hardens. A ribbon can be threaded through the hole, making it an ornament.

8. Paper nativity: Last year I came across this cute printable nativity that you color, cut out, and tape together so they can stand up. So cute! Click here for the printable.

And now, a giveaway! We are reading Tabitha’s Travels: A Family Story for Advent
during the Advent season and one reader will win a copy of this book. Just leave a comment below to be automatically entered. Random.org will select a winner on December 3 at 8:00pm EST.

Update: Maria is the winner of the book giveaway. Congratulations, Maria!

Do you have any ideas to share on ways to “teach Jesus” during the Christmas season? Please share!

Linking up with:

When Joy Seems Beyond Our Reach

25. November 2012 · 13 comments · Categories: Gratitude Community

We sat in a circle in my living room, myself and the girls in my small group. In the quiet of the evening, with the cool breeze blowing in through the open sliding glass doors, we talked about joy. We are on a journey together, on a search for joy. Desiring to dig deeper, we want to grasp hold of joy and explore its wonders. Yet the air was heavy as our life stories from the week reflected each of our struggles to even capture a glimpse of joy.

Some days, it seems like it’s just beyond our reach.

My own heart feels lost. I’ve been a nomad this year, both physically and emotionally. It seems I am always getting ready for a trip or just returning from one. I struggle to stay grounded, for my roots to cling to something solid and sure. It’s as though I am a rootless tumbleweed, blowing wherever the wind takes me.

It’s not just my clothes and toiletries that lack a permanent place of rest, my heart longs for it too.

“What is joy?” the girls and I asked each other. That evening, it seemed we had more questions than answers.

And I have my own questions. Can joy grow despite the jumbled and inconsistent mess of my life? Can it thrive and be nourished, even when I feel lost and unsure? What about when life is hard, why does joy always seem to go dormant, like the trees in winter?

As I learn and grow in grace, I’m learning that joy isn’t what I once thought it was. I used to look at it as a giddy, outgoing, highly optimistic outlook on life. And sometimes joy does look like that. But not always.

I’ve learned that joy can co-exist with other feelings and experiences like suffering and fear. Mike Mason describes joy as “letting go when we’re overwhelmed…(or) an underlying confidence or courage, (or) what seeps through the cracks when our hearts are breaking.” (in Champagne for the Soul)

When it comes to drinking glasses, I’ve always been the “half empty” type of person. So I assumed that joy wasn’t possible for me. Slowly, I’ve come to realize that I too can experience real joy, even all the time, and that “Rejoice in the Lord always” wasn’t just written for the optimistic crowd, but for me too.

And this from Mike Mason:

“Joy may seem an upbeat sort of feeling, but the direction of joy isn’t always up. Often to be joyful we must go down-down through the noise of racing thoughts, down through the swirling chaos of circumstances, down through the deceptive appearances of life, down into the still waters and green pastures at the heart’s core.”

Ultimately, joy comes from God, a gift, just like His grace. When I embraced the gospel and became a believer, joy became part of me, just like the Spirit who now lives and reigns in my heart. It’s always there, it’s just that sometimes I need a reminder to bring it back into focus. The fog of life’s challenges and circumstances clouds my view, distorting and veiling joy. But like the sun that always shines no matter the weather, the joy of the Lord never ceases.

In fact, joy is what the Trinity have experienced together from all eternity. They have always danced the dance of other-serving love where joy overflows from a never ending fountain. And the wonder of it all is that God desired to share that joy with us.

It was through His perfect life and sacrificial death that Jesus made a way for us to join in that dance. It’s in this life that we get to learn the moves and experience a taste of that perfect joy that awaits us in eternity. Until then, I live by faith, believing that joy is there even when I can’t see it. And I journey deep under the mess of my life, below the uncertainties and challenges, always seeking the joy that Christ died to give me.

Will you join me in this journey?

“my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” John 15:11

Dancing in community as I count all His gifts of grace (1966-1980):

that no matter my life’s circumstances, the joy of the Lord is always with me

that counting these gifts each week is part of the discipline of digging deeper to find the joy

that it’s okay for life to be uncertain because God is always certain

my small group who journeys with me in the search for joy

belated birthday presents

my sister-in-law and I playing around asking Siri questions:)

Hosting Thanksgiving to 20 friends and family

chocolate pecan pie and cute turkey cookies made out of Oreos and Reese’s

the guys frying turkey

getting our Christmas tree!

a friend taking over Sunday school for me because my youngest was sick

the cheesy Christmas movies on Hallmark

after Thanksgiving sales almost being done with my Christmas shopping

Linking up with these friends:

Giving Thanks

21. November 2012 · 2 comments · Categories: Gratitude Community

Today we celebrate and give thanks for all God has done for us. As we gather around the table and feast upon the generous provisions, I will say a prayer of thanks for you, my friends. You have been a great source of encouragement and blessing to me this past year. You have read my stumbling words and managed to make sense of what my heart was trying to say. We have shared our hurts with one another and pointed each other to the One who heals. So thank you.

I’m including a portion of Abraham Lincoln’s speech where he declared the last Thursday of November as Thanksgiving Day. Perhaps, consider reading it to your children (those of age to understand). In the full speech, he pointed out how God had continued to bless this country despite the Civil War. It gives one a lot to think about and reflect on this Thanksgiving.

“To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God….No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens.”

For the rest of the speech, click here.

On this Thanksgiving, may we all reflect with gratitude on the numerous blessings He has provided-all because of Grace.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Homeschooling on the Road

16. November 2012 · Write a comment · Categories: Homeschooling

There are numerous benefits to homeschooling. One of our favorites is the freedom it gives to travel. My husband is often out of town for work and since we homeschool, we like to join him on his travels. For the most part, we are able to keep up with our homeschooling while we are away. Today, I wanted to share a few ideas on how we homeschool while out of town.

To read the rest of this post, visit Hip Homeschool Moms, where I am contributing today.

Teach Me Jesus Thursdays: Celebrating Advent

14. November 2012 · 6 comments · Categories: Teach Me Jesus

Do you have any favorite Christmas traditions from when you were a child? Perhaps it is going together as a family to pick out the perfect tree. Maybe it’s the cookies you baked together with your mom. Traditions are very important for children. They give children an anchor and connection to their family. Traditions are what ties a family together and give children a sense of belonging.

In the Bible, traditions were important to God’s people. God instructed them to celebrate certain feasts and festivals each year. These events were to be used to reflect and remind God’s people of all God had done for them. Parents were instructed to use these festivals to teach their children about God and what He had done for His people.

“This is a day you are to commemorate; for the generations to come you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord—a lasting ordinance…And when your children ask you, ‘What does this ceremony mean to you?’ then tell them, ‘It is the Passover sacrifice to the Lord, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.’” Exodus 12: 14, 26-27

Christmas is an opportune time for Christian parents to “teach Jesus” to their children. Teaching them about what Jesus has done is not simply about reading to them the Christmas story, though it is certainly not less than that. It’s an opportunity to show our children how all of Scripture tells us about Jesus-how “every story whispers his name.” (Sally Lloyd Jones)

There are many different activities and ways to do this. Some families use an Advent wreath (and we have one of those) and some make a Jesse Tree (another great idea). Our favorite Christmas tradition is our “Advent Box.” When I was a child, I remember having an Advent calendar where each day I tore open the door and inside was a piece of chocolate (or in the case of my family, carob:). There is something fun about opening a little door each day to find a hidden surprise. We have a wooden Advent Box with twenty-five doors. Inside each door I place an object that relates to what I want my children to learn during the Christmas season. I also place objects that signify an activity we might be doing that day. For each object, I have a Bible passage that we read. Since there are so many activities that we do during the holidays (putting up a tree, wrapping presents, baking cookies, sending cards, visiting a live nativity, etc.) I want to use these activities to point my children to Jesus. I also want to use the Advent season to read through the story of redemption with my children. So, each day during Advent, my children open one door on the Advent box and inside they find a small object. The object will relate to a holiday activity we are doing or some aspect of the Christmas story.

Examples:

1. I like to start out the first few days focusing on the promised Savior. Day one might have a small apple or Bible inside that will represent the Savior promised in Genesis 3:15. We will read the passage and discuss it. The next day might have a little scroll behind the door. That day we read the prophecies in Isaiah about Jesus’ birth. We talk about how all of the Old Testament points to the promised Savior.

2. I also include objects that tell the story surrounding Jesus’ birth. Examples include: The angel telling Mary about Jesus, Mary’s Song, the journey to Bethlehem, the birth of Jesus, the shepherd’s visiting the manger, etc. (Objects I use might include a small angel ornament, a small sheep, a donkey, etc.) We often make ornaments, do crafts, read special Christmas stories or watch movies all in an effort to “teach Jesus” to the kids.

3. In addition, I like to include passages that speak of why Jesus was born, about His second coming and the great wedding feast. I like to include a small cross and read passages about Jesus’ death. We also usually read “The Princes Poison Cup” by R.C. Sproul. Other objects I include are a small trumpet ornament as an object to represent the second Advent and confetti to represent the great wedding feast.

4. For the various activities we do during the holidays, I include an object about the activity and a passage to read. If we are wrapping presents one day, I will put a little bow in the Advent box and we read John 3:16. If we are baking cookies or some other treat, I will include passages about Jesus being the Bread of Life. If we are purchasing gifts to give the homeless or someone else in need, I include a small communion cup and we read the passage from Matthew 25:37. If we plan to drive around looking at Christmas lights that evening, I will include a little light bulb and we will read the verse about Jesus being the light of the world.

The objects I use are really anything I can find that is small enough to fit in the box. Many of them are ornaments. The boys have their own small tree in their bedroom. As they accumulate ornaments throughout Advent, they add them to their tree.

There are a number of different activities to do during the holidays to point our children to Christ. The Advent box is one way we like to keep the focus of the holiday on our Lord.

To see a sample of the passages we read and objects I place in our box, click here.

And by the way, I do add pieces of chocolate to the box for the boys to find:)

What is your family’s favorite Advent tradition? Please share your ideas!

In two weeks, I will post about more Advent activities so be sure to check back.

Linking up with:

The Healer of Our Souls: No More Shame

13. November 2012 · 10 comments · Categories: God's still working on me, Spiritual Growth · Tags: The Healer of Our Souls

Have you ever had days where nothing goes right? Maybe days when no matter how hard you try, you get everything wrong? How about those days when you wished you had just stayed in bed?

Some days I mess up so much that I hesitate to face God. I’m covered in shame and embarrassed by my own sinfulness. And so I hide, neglect prayer, and leave my Bible on the shelf.

There are also times when shadows from the past pursue me in the present. A word, an incident, a flash of memory will bring something from the back of my mind to the forefront. The same feelings of shame and unworthiness will overtake me as though no time had passed. My actions and sins from the past will taunt me, telling me that I have not changed, and that I am still unworthy.

Does your life, whether in the past or the present ever feel too messed up for God to love you? And have you ever thought that maybe everyone else has this Christianity thing figured out and have left you behind?

This mini series, The Healer of Our Souls, is meant to draw us to the Source-God and His Word.

When shame and unworthiness haunt us, when the past holds us hostage, and when our messes in the present tell us we can’t be in God’s presence, remember that Scripture tells us otherwise. For those who believe in Christ, this is our anchor of truth:

1. When Christ died for us, He died for all our sin-past, present, and future. (Psalm 103:12, 1 Peter 2:24, 1 John 4:10, Romans 4-5,8, Colossians 2)

2. God looks at us and sees the righteousness of Christ. The perfect life He lived, has become ours. (Galatians 2:20, Romans 5:15,8,Colossians 1:21-22, Colossians 2)

3. God loves us just as much as He loves the Son. (John 17:23)

4. Nothing can separate us from Him. He will never leave us or forsake us. (Romans 8:38, Deuteronomy 31:8)

5. We have been adopted. We are permanently part of God’s family. Jesus is not ashamed to call us part of His famiy. (Hebrews 2:2-3, Romans 8:15-17)

These are the truths we need to return to time and time again. Every time we doubt, every time we feel unworthy of love, every time shame rises up in our heart, we need to remember that we are loved more than we could ever imagine or understand. It was that love that took on flesh, became sin, and died so that we could be restored as children of God.

Because the cure for shame and doubt is remembering God’s great love for us.

Linking with these friends:

What We Were Made For

11. November 2012 · 25 comments · Categories: Gratitude Community

This past week I have been on vacation in beautiful California. Keeping up with my gratitude list has been rather easy when walking the beaches of the Pacific and enjoying the mild coastal weather. After all, it’s not hard to be grateful when life is going well. I can quickly count off all the things I am thankful for when there have been no obstacles or trials in my life. This is especially true during enjoyable events, vacations, and new experiences.

But when life is mundane and boring, I struggle with gratitude. And when life is hard and the tears blind my eyes, counting God’s graces seems almost impossible.

Then I read this: “I will give thanks to the LORD because of his righteousness and will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High.” (Psalm 7:17)

Giving thanks isn’t about me and whether God is doing what I want Him to do in my life. It’s about Him. He is the creator and sustainer of all things. He alone deserves praise, honor, and worship simply because He is holy, righteous, and good.

And when I don’t give thanks, when I hold it back because life is hard, I am in a sense robbing God of the thanks and praise that is due Him.

Whether He blesses me in abundance or takes me through a dark valley of suffering, He always deserves praise and thanksgiving because He is God. His righteousness alone is worthy of my gratitude.

This is why the four living creatures in John’s vision never stop saying, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come.” (Revelation 4:8)

In fact, giving thanks is what I was made for. The confession says that “the chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever.” Praise, honor, worship, thanksgiving, and gratitude is what my heart was made to do. Having a heart of gratitude isn’t some trendy thing to do. It’s not a feel good exercise to greater self-fulfillment. Living a life of gratitude is simply living out what I was created to do.

The beautiful thing about doing what we were made for is that it brings us great joy. It completes us, fulfills us, and satisfies us. Knowing Him and responding to His wonder and beauty with thanksgiving is the very thing and only thing that fills all the empty places of the heart.

“I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.” Psalm 9:1-2

Continuing to count and give thanks in community: (#1938-1950)

God’s holiness, that He is the “I am”

Driving over the bridge on the way home just as the sun was setting

The way my ladies bible study is helping us all to grow, change, and learn

The opportunity to join my husband in San Diego while he was there for work

The miraculous behavior of the boys during the long day of travel from FL to CA

Beautiful, sunny southern CA

How the names of God provides healing to the wounds in my heart

this fun Hobbit study my friend is doing

seeing seals lying on the beach in CA

discovering a hang gliding spot and watching the gliders take off with the ocean below them

Finding a doctor who makes hotel visits

Taking the kids to the Melting Pot for the first time and hearing “This is the best restaurant ever!”

Linking up with these friends:

Teach Me Jesus Thursdays: Thanksgiving Tree

08. November 2012 · 10 comments · Categories: Parenting, Teach Me Jesus

Can you believe Thanksgiving is only a couple of weeks away? What do you look forward to the most? With turkey, pumpkin pie, friends, family, football…Thanksgiving is a great time of food and celebration with those we love most. It is also a time to reflect and consider all the blessings God has given us during the year.

Since I started keeping a gratitude list a couple of years ago, I’ve experienced the life changing, heart transforming power that comes from counting all the graces God so generously gives. Focusing my heart on what I do have, rather than on what is lacking, has opened my eyes to all the ways God blesses me. I don’t deserve a single thing, yet each day He provides me with life and breath. Not only does He give me life, because of Christ, I also have the gift of eternal life.

Gratitude is also a habit we try to instill in our family. I say try, because our hearts are prone to wander. As parents, we quickly forget what we’ve been given. My children do as well. But our goal is to be intentional in showing them how much they have been given, not just materially, but also in pointing out all the blessings they have because of the gospel of grace. We often put this into practice when there is a problem with whining or discontent. We all stop and take turns counting the ways God has blessed us.

Thanksgiving is an opportune time to begin developing the habit of gratitude. Last year, I put together a Thanksgiving tree for our family to use in the weeks leading up to the holiday. This is our second year using the tree and I think it’s becoming a tradition for us. I used a simple vase, tree branches, and cardstock. I placed a bowl filled with cut out leaves and a pen next to the tree. Whenever we think of something we are grateful for, we write it down on one of the leaves and hang it on the tree. By the time Thanksgiving day arrives, our tree is full of leaves.

What activities do you do with your children to help them develop the habit of gratitude? I would love to hear!

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Counting All Joy

07. November 2012 · Write a comment · Categories: Anxiety, Spiritual Growth · Tags: Must Love God

It started with the dryer breaking, then the car, then the pool pump, then the well, and ended with the garage door. One after another, all in the space of a few weeks. They say that bad things come in three’s. What does it mean if it’s more than three?

James says to “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds.” (James 1:2) It was a trial when everything broke at our house, but count it as joy? How? How do we count the trials in life as joy and as Paul admonished, rejoice in all things? Even when a job is lost, there’s a scary diagnosis, and a child runs away?

To read the rest of this post, visit Must Love God, my writing home today.

The Healer of Our Souls: The Names of God

06. November 2012 · 13 comments · Categories: Anxiety, fear, Spiritual Growth · Tags: The Healer of Our Souls

This post is the second is a series of posts on finding hope and healing through the Word of God.

Lost, frightened, and alone, she wanders far from home. An uncertain future before her, she wonders what will happen to her. Will she die out here? Does anyone even care? Blinded by tears, she falls to the ground and sobs. And then she hears a voice:

“The angel of the Lord found Hagar near a spring in the desert; it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur. And he said, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from, and where are you going?” “I’m running away from my mistress Sarai,” she answered. Then the angel of the Lord told her, “Go back to your mistress and submit to her.” The angel added, “I will so increase your descendants that they will be too numerous to count.” The angel of the Lord also said to her: “You are now with child and you will have a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery.” Genesis 16:7-11

God saw Hagar crying in the wilderness. He saw how her mistress Sarai had hurt her. He saw deep into her wounded heart and had compassion. In response to God’s kindness, Hagar gives God a name, El Roi. “She gave this name to the Lord who spoke to her: “You are the God who sees me,” for she said, “I have now seen the One who sees me.” (vs.13)

Did you know that there are more than 200 names for God in the Bible? If you include titles and nicknames, there are hundreds more. Our God is so immense, complex, and amazing, it takes so many names to describe Him. It is these names which reveal to us aspects of His love, character, wisdom, and power.

My own heart has been filled with worry and fear many times. I’ve felt alone and uncertain about the future. Many time anxiety has taken over my heart, paralyzing me. I too have run. I too have hidden from all that frightens me. But no matter where I go, God is always there. He sees, He knows, and He cares about all the burdens on my heart. He sees the weight on my shoulders and the way worry holds me hostage.

Learning the names of God revealed to us in Scripture can help us in times of fear, worry, and uncertainty. Knowing not only the names, but their meanings reveals to us just how good, strong, beautiful, and amazing our God is. The more we know about Him, the greater we trust Him. Trust leads us out and away from fear, worry, and anxiety and into His arms of peace.

“And those who know your name put their trust in you.” Psalm 9:10

Below are just a few of God’s names and corresponding passages to read:

1. El Shaddai: God Almighty (Genesis 17)

This name tells us that God is all-powerful. Nothing is too hard for Him. He has proven this over and over in Scripture and in our lives. He has conquered sin and defeated our enemy. He has freed us from slavery and rescued us from shame. No matter how big the problem in our life, He is bigger still.

2. El Roi: The God who sees (Genesis 16)

This name tells us that God sees everything. He is not a distant God, watching things from afar. He sees our hurt and pain, our worries and fears. He not only sees, but He meets us where we are, enters into our pain and rescues us.

3. Jehovah-Jireh: The Lord will provide (Genesis 22, Matthew 6)

God not only sees everything that is happening in our lives, He knows just what we need. This name reminds us that God is our provider and sustainer. The name Jehovah-Jireh comes from the story of Abraham and Isaac where God provided a ram in the thicket. This event pointed to the day when God would provide His very own Son as a substitution, a payment for our sins. If He would provide His Son for us, won’t He also provide for us all our daily needs?

4. Strong Tower: (Proverbs 18:10)

Just as a strong tower keeps us safe from a storm, so too is God’s name a place of safety for us. Proverbs 18:10 says, “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it and is safe.” When we trust Christ as our Savior, we are safe from evil and sin forever. Nothing can take away God’s love for us. Our eternal hope is firm and secure in Him.

5. Jehovah-Rohi: Our Shepherd:(Psalm 23)

Psalm 23 is a comforting passage to us. It reminds us that God is our shepherd who watches over us, guides us, protects us. Jesus is the Great Shepherd who became the Lamb of God, dying in our place. This name also tells us that He loves each one of us. Jesus told a parable about a shepherd leaving ninety-nine sheep to seek one lost sheep (Luke 15). God has gone to great lengths to show His endless love for us.

There are so many more names of God than these five. The more we study His names and their meanings, the more we trust Him. He has proven faithful and worthy of our trust. When we are lost, wandering in our own wilderness, uncertain and afraid, we can call out to our Strong Tower, El Shaddai, Jehovah-Jireh, Jehovah-Rohi, and El Roi and know that He hears, He sees, He provides, He cares, and He is mighty and strong to save us.

Which of God’s names have special meaning to you?

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