Category: encouragement

Posted in encouragement, theology

God made me

Posted on by elizabethprata

Who else but mankind can say, “God made me”? A bird, as merrily as it chirps on the piney branch, cannot say that God made it. A butterfly, as exquisitely as it floats over a vibrant flower cannot say that God made it. A gazelle, as nimbly as it leaps over the embrowned savannah grass, cannot say “God made me.”

Apprehension of our creator is a gift God was pleased to bestow. All believers, no matter their sorry estate, no matter how lofty a lifestyle, no matter how wide and far they’re separated from loved ones, no matter how faithful or prodigal, can say “God made me.”

Even more, He made believers to become His own. “God made me”…to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. “God made me”, for this.

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Posted in encouragement, theology

When did God hurry?

Posted on by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

I read one of Chapel Library’s free literature pieces,  AW Pink’s The Prodigal Son. Chapel Library is a ministry at Mt. Zion Bible Church in Florida, where you can download any of their hundreds of pieces of classic Christian Literature, for free. Or, you can request that the Library print it out in booklet form, and they will send it to you for free! You can order up to $20 per month in materials. (After that, you pay).

Anyway, it was a gem of a 32 page booklet filled with lots of insights I’d never thought of before. What a lot of truth Pink packed into 35 pages! He focused on the prodigal rather than the other son, though he did mention the other son at the end. If you bear with me to read of 2 nuggets I found fascinating: Continue reading “When did God hurry?” →

Posted in encouragement, theology

There was a THUNK on my windshield…

Posted on by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

I killed a baby bird. I didn’t mean to. I was actually an innocent bystander. It happened as I was driving up the road, on a divided highway at about 50 mph. The baby brown thrasher was flying low, and hit my windshield. He’d tried to veer at the last minute. He would have made it, too, but instead he hit the corner of my windshield a few inches too late.

For such a small bird his collision made a huge thunk. I glanced in my rear view mirror and he was tumbling wing over wing in the shoulder of the road. Continue reading “There was a THUNK on my windshield…” →

Posted in encouragement, theology

Complaining About the Manna

Posted on by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

You know the story. Yahweh had delivered the Hebrews from slavery. He delivered them using 10 miracles (plagues). He delivered them via parting the Red Sea. He sustained them by giving them water. He sustained them by giving them food. Literally, bread from heaven. (Exodus 16:4, Nehemiah 9:15).

It tasted like “wafers made with honey” (Exodus 16:31) and “fresh oil.” (Numbers 11:8).

The manna (literal translation, “What is it?” Exodus 16:15) was nutritious, delicious, and since it was from heaven, didn’t have the curse of the ground upon it.

But they grumbled. They didn’t know what it was. They wanted meat. Continue reading “Complaining About the Manna” →

Posted in encouragement, theology

The word of God is living

Posted on by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

To the Christian, the word of God is like a green lawn, undulating, rolling out blade after blade of perfectly manicured grass, thriving and living, each blade a perfect truth to be discovered, examined, applied, praised.

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12).

Underline is mine, it’s what I’m focusing on in this essay. Continue reading “The word of God is living” →

Posted in encouragement, theology

Who do you want to meet?

Posted on by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

Our busy days can get so fraught with things of this world, by necessity (kids, meetings, laundry, shopping, appointments, practices, etc) that when we read the Bible we can forget that the people we are reading about had the same kind of lives. They were real people and most of them that we read in the pages of scripture were believers. And since they are believers, we will meet them in heaven. They might have dropped off the pages of the Bible but they lived, died, and were brought to the presence of Jesus. Their lives are still going. When we get there, we will meet them. Their faith means that they have a relationship with us, and us with them.

Who do you want to meet? Who are you curious about? Continue reading “Who do you want to meet?” →

Posted in encouragement, theology

Womanly contentment vs. discontentment, advice from 1896

Posted on by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata*

I was destined for great things, my mother promised. Women can do anything, my mother said. We should be feminists, my mother urged. Folks in our family are successful- entrepreneurs, professors, businessmen, doctors. So that was proof.

I was indeed on that trajectory when Christ interrupted my plans, humbled them, humbled me, and plucked me from the secular notion of success and began the long road of transforming my mind into acceptance of Christian success. Continue reading “Womanly contentment vs. discontentment, advice from 1896” →

Posted in encouragement, theology

ALONE: Day 4,380

Posted on by elizabethprata

By Elizabeth Prata

I’ve been watching the History Channel’s show on Hulu called “Alone.” It features survivalists dropped into remote lands with a backpack of approved 10 pieces of gear, some cameras, to see who lasts the longest. The prize $500,000. The difference with this show and other reality programs is that there is no production crew taking film of the proceedings. The contestants are given a variety of cameras, go through a two-week boot camp (to learn the cameras and also about the land they will be surviving) and then dropped. Alone. Continue reading “ALONE: Day 4,380” →

Posted in encouragement, theology

My silly reluctance to read the Bible

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By Elizabeth Prata

There are a lot of songs of praise to and about God in the Bible. We think of Mary’s Magnificat at Christmas time. We think of the Psalms and their exaltation of Yahweh throughout. Simeon’s song. But there are so many others.

I follow a Bible reading plan that is chronological according to when the Bible book is written. So that means Job is the first book in the plan and Revelation is the last one. I just finished reading through Ezekiel.

When I was first saved the Lord saw fit to put in me an interest in Old Testament prophets. So that meant as a babe in Christ I was weaned on Jeremiah, Nahum, Obadiah and so on. I came to understand that was something a bit different as a new Christian than the logical progression of reading John and Acts and the other 3 Gospels. But I cut my teeth on the prophets and I love them and I’m familiar with them. Continue reading “My silly reluctance to read the Bible” →

Posted in encouragement, theology

Joy in renewed church going

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By Elizabeth Prata

I appreciate my elders and the crew that sets up for church and cleans up afterward, with my greatest thanks to Jesus of course, our Head of the Church!

You see, yesterday was the second Sunday in a row we have returned to gather for church services. We’ve been in a shelter-in-place/lockdown/quarantine during this weird coronavirus-pandemic time. May 31 was the first time since mid-March that we have been allowed to gather.

We all felt the dearth of the fellowship. We felt dry due to no word being preached. We longed to sing. We wanted to do it all in person, not virtually on a Zoom screen. Continue reading “Joy in renewed church going” →