The Transforming Word of God

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech,  and night to night reveals knowledge. Psalm 19: 1,2 Do you, like me, ever find yourself in awe of the beauty of this world? We have the sunrise and the sunset, the twinkling of stars in a vast dark sky. We experience the wonder of changing seasons:   Spring with its glorious new life, that special green as leaves begin to appear, lawns that change from brown to green, trees that blossom, newborn animals, spires from bulbs pushing their way up from the thawing earth, the tug-of-war between winter and summer... Then summer triumphs, bringing warmth and dense foliage, blooming flowers, longer days of work and play, evenings with the sounds of birds and crickets, summer storms and the fresh smell after the rains... As summer wanes, the days grow shorter, the air cools, the leaves exchange their verdant clothes for colorful garments before curli...

One week ago today I attended the funeral of a 57-year-old man whose godliness and integrity affected so many people. He was a man whose life reflected his faith and even those in place where he worked could not refer to him without including his love for God and family. As I sat there listening to the many things that were said about him, I was especially impressed by the fact that everyone seemed to know what his life verse was: He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly, and to love mercy And to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8 Fantastic verse to live by! And all who knew him said he did just that.  As I pondered his verse, I wondered if anyone would know my life verse, if I had ever even identified such. There are so many verses that mean so much to me, but I think I would stake a claim to Paul's prayer for the Philippians that I have made my prayer for so many years - a prayer I prayed for my loved on...