Mostrando resultados por autor "Janice Alonso" en Todas las categorías

Sometimes change is good, but sometimes there are those moments when you just want your “old standby.” In this experience I had teaching Sunday school, a little girl expresses that same feeling. A devotional based on a personal experience and James 1:17: “Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

A devotional based on a personal experience and Luke 18:16: But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.”

The Bible is filled with directions on how we are to behave in our Christian journey, through examples of how Jesus lived and wants us to follow and lead. Reading and believing God’s Holy Word is a great beginning. Carrying out His plan through our actions is the way we move forward. Based on a friend’s personal experience and Matthew 22:37-40: And Jesus replied, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the...

I watched as four Monarch butterflies emerged from their cocoons. Three opened their wings, lifted upward, and floated away. The fourth could not. Try as he may, his wings wouldn’t unfurl . . . Based on a personal experience and Philippians 4:11-13: “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all things through him...

Living with family and friends whose minds are slipping away is devastating to those of us left in the shadows. We long for those days when they recognized us and we had meaningful conversations with them. Based on a personal experience and 1 John 4:16: “And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.” ( 1 John 4:16)

It is easy for me to pray for people who are in distress or have been wronged by others. Praying for those I feel are the evil doers is difficult. Even more difficult is forgiving these individuals who bring pain and suffering to others. One Sunday, God brought me face-to-face with a man whose behavior had been so bad, I had vowed that I’d never forgive him. Based on a personal experience and Matthew 6:12: “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”

In early 2019, I went from a large purse to a medium-sized purse. I downsized because the needs in my life had changed, and I was having neck and shoulder soreness from the purse’s weight. When I emptied the contents on the bed, I found I was hauling around too many unnecessary things. In life we, too, carry around unnecessary burdens that weigh us down, causing us to be tired, resentful, or discontent. God offers to carry these loads for us. Based on a personal experience and Matthew 11:30: Jesus said, “For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

No matter where we go or if we shelter-in-place, God sees us. He’s there to offer guidance, and He’s there to extend grace. Based on a personal experience and Hebrews 4:13: “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.”

Have you ever felt so downhearted over a mistake you’ve made that you thought God couldn’t possibly forgive you? Think again. We are humans – we make poor choices – it’s our nature. God sent His Son Jesus to save us through grace . . . we can’t do it alone because . . . well, we’re human. Based on a personal experience and Psalm 34:8: “Those who look to Him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.

Sometimes we want to do the right thing, or what we perceive is the right thing. This experience reveals how saying “no” actually opened up a new and exciting “yes.” The reason for this change? My “no” was a reaction to my tunnel- view of what my capabilities were. My “yes” was a response to God’s all-seeing vision of what my potentials were. Based on a personal experience and Matthew 19:26: Jesus said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.”

A plan, schedule, or to-do list is not necessarily a bad way to organize your day. When your self-imposed agendas control your life and moods, thus interfering with God’s desires for you, the door to stress and anxiety enters your life. Based on a personal experience and Psalms 48:14: “For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end.”

Peace, tranquility, and calmness of mind, body, and soul . . . most of us long for these things yet never carve out the time and place to relish their deliciousness. If there is one gift that quarantine has given me, it is the opportunity to seize those times and intentionally clear out a place for them to unfold in the future. Based on a personal experience and Genesis 1:31: “God saw all that He had made, and it was very good.”

There is an age-old question Christians continue to ask and be asked by nonbelievers: Why does God “let” bad things happen? In the Bible, God never promises us a life free of turmoil and sadness. What He does promise is that He’ll be with us in all our circumstances. Based on a personal experience and John 14:27: “Peace be with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

Sometimes we feel that God is ignoring us . . . that He is not answering our prayers. In an experience I had teaching three-year-old Vacation Bible School at my church, I learned I was asking the wrong questions. Based on a personal experience and Jeremiah 29:13: “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

Sometimes the simplest thing we can do is one we forget or discount because of its seeming unimportance. Showing up is the most important thing we can do. However, in our current environment, we are urged to remain at home. Yes, we must physically distance, but that doesn’t mean we are required to socially distance. Based on a personal experience and Matthew 10:40: Jesus said, “Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me, and anyone who welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.”

Every day holds small experiences that not only bring joy in the moment, but create a photo album of memories to comfort us in our days ahead. And, as our old delights fade away, God replaces them with experiences even more wonderful than we could have ever imagined. Based on a personal experience and Luke 18:17: Jesus, said, “Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.”

Do you ever feel like you are trying hard to live a good and faithful life yet feel you are not doing what “you’d really like to do?” Perhaps all you need to do is look at your situation from a different point of view. Based on a personal experience and John 15:1-4: Jesus said, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me and I will remain in you. No branch can ...

What is life if not stories? Events, mostly small, follow each other, knot from end to end, and create the threads that bind us to one another. Based on a personal experience and Esther 9:28: “These days should be remembered and observed in every generation by every family, and in every province and in every city. And these days of Purim should never fail to be celebrated by the Jews – nor should the memory of these days die out among their descendants.”

A devotional based on a personal experience and Matthew 6:20: “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal.”