Divine Reconnaissance The Bible is surprisingly full of spies—and not the James Bond kind. Sometimes, espionage was actually part of God’s game plan. Takes Numbers 13, for instance, where God told Moses to send men to spy out the land of Canaan. This wasn’t a covert op gone rogue. It was a divine reconnaissance mission. And in Joshua 2:1, Joshua sent two men as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” In other words, “Sneak around and try not... Read more
Wanted- A Good Wife The Bible presents a noble vision of a wife—a woman of virtue, strength, and wisdom. Proverbs 31 describes her as industrious, compassionate, and capable, a cornerstone of her household. She wakes early to provide for her family, brings honor to her husband, and extends kindness to the needy. While this portrait is inspiring, it can also feel like an impossible standard. What about those of us who aren’t morning people, who burn dinner, or who consider... Read more
Biblical Fruitcakes As we deck the halls with boughs of holly and turn our hearts to the festiveness of the Christmas season, one inescapable fact remains. This time of year always brings out the fruitcake fanatics. Did you know that fruitcakes actually date back to Biblical times? In fact, we may still be eating fruitcakes from Biblical times, as far as I know. The Bible mentions raisin cakes as food for travelers and soldiers. (2 Sam 6:19) and other places.... Read more
Biblical Basis For Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is Biblical, although the references to thanksgiving that are mentioned in the Bible don’t necessarily correlate with the American tradition of turkey and dressing. Numerous verses specifically mention thanksgiving: I will praise the name of God with a song. I will magnify him with thanksgiving. (Psalm 69:30); Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. (Philippians 4:6); Enter his gates with thanksgiving... Read more
Today, I want to take a break from humor to answer the question, “How much do you tithe to your place of worship?” The best answer I’ve ever heard came from a sermon my husband, Pastor Doug Fannon, preached several years ago. Here is the gist of that message: How Much Should I Tithe? Most people simply don’t understand tithing. To many Christians, it seems like some sort of country club dues. Another bill in the long list of monthly... Read more
Ancient Writers’ Obstacles to Writing I often marvel at how the Bible was written. In an earlier blog, I mentioned how the ancient writers not only had to capture divine revelations before they slipped away, but they also had to procure their own writing materials, such as animal skins and fish bones. As if that wasn’t challenging enough, they often wrote under adverse circumstances. John wrote from exile on a treeless barren island with nothing but rocks and volcanoes. Paul... Read more
The Bible does not explicitly mention weight loss or obesity. However, several places in Scripture discuss the importance of our health (3 John 1:2) and taking care of our bodies. Since our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6: 19-20), we should keep our bodies as healthy as possible. Many people fight the “battle of the bulge,” hence the obsession in our culture to lose weight. Over thirty years ago, when I cleaned out my parents’... Read more
Winning the Battle of Inspiration I had an excellent idea for a devotion the other night, so instead of vegging out in front of the television, I sat down at the computer to put my thoughts on the screen before they disappeared from my head. There is nothing worse than thinking of a perfect devotion, blog, or story plot when you’re somewhere you can’t write down. Of course, I’m always going to “remember” that great idea I had because it... Read more
What Did They Do With the Leftovers? The story of Jesus feeding the 5000 with five loaves and two fish is told in all four gospels of the Bible: Matthew 14:13–21, Mark 6:30–44, Luke 9:10–17, and John 6:1–15: Taking the five loaves and two fish and looking up to heaven, Jesus gave thanks and broke them. Then, He gave them to the disciples to give to the people. They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward, the disciples picked up twelve... Read more
Animals Talked in the Bible The Bible records three accounts of talking animals. The first occurs in Genesis 3:1-5 when the serpent spoke to Eve. It makes me wonder whether or not Eve thought it strange that a serpent would speak at all or whether all the animals spoke, therefore, it was no big deal. We know how that encounter turned out. The second account is Balaam’s Donkey in Numbers 22:22-40. Again, Balaam did not appear to find it odd... Read more
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