It is truly "holy ground" to reflect on the Cross — what our Lord went through … but more than that, what He accomplished there. Would you meditate along with me ... and revisit Christ's seven sayings from the Cross? [links below]
What a perfect preparation for the joy, freedom, and release of the Resurrection.
Read MoreOctober 31, 1517… the day that changed the world of Christendom forever. German monk Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses on the door of All Saints’ Church in Wittenberg. His action launched what came to be known as the Protestant Reformation (Or Protestant Revolt, depending on which side you are on).
Luther never intended to leave the Catholic church, but rather to reform it. But in God’s will, reform and a Biblical revolution began and continues to this day.
Luther didn’t get everything right, but he did get it right that “the just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:16-17) and so much more.
And Luther got something else right that helps us today. He got it right about how to live in the midst of a pandemic (the Black Plague) with God’s balanced, grace-filled perspective.
Read MoreOctober 31, 1517… the day that changed the world of Christendom forever. German monk Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses on the door of All Saints’ Church in Wittenberg. His action launched what came to be known as the Protestant Reformation (Or Protestant Revolt, depending on which side you are on).
Luther never intended to leave the Catholic church, but rather to reform it. But in God’s will, reform and a Biblical revolution began and continues to this day.
Luther didn’t get everything right, but he did get it right that “the just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:16-17) and so much more.
And Luther got something else right that helps us today. He got it right about how to live in the midst of a pandemic (the Black Plague) with God’s balanced, grace-filled perspective.
Read MoreOctober 31, 1517… the day that changed the world of Christendom forever. German monk Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses on the door of All Saints’ Church in Wittenberg. His action launched what came to be known as the Protestant Reformation (Or Protestant Revolt, depending on which side you are on).
Luther never intended to leave the Catholic church, but rather to reform it. But in God’s will, reform and a Biblical revolution began and continues to this day.
Luther didn’t get everything right, but he did get it right that “the just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:16-17) and so much more.
And Luther got something else right that helps us today. He got it right about how to live in the midst of a pandemic (the Black Plague) with God’s balanced, grace-filled perspective.
Read MoreI posted this back in March. I need this again. Do you? Read these Scriptures aloud. Let them wash over your soul. Listen to the song … the words … the imagery … the truth.
And be still and know HE is GOD, and HE is what we need in the midst of the upheaval and discord and confusion and ungodly attitudes all around us. And may the mind of Christ have sway in us His sons and daughters! Amen….
…When in the deepest of troubles...when there is no consolation or comfort...go to the sacred place where you and the Lord live together and nothing can touch...the place of union with our God through Jesus Christ by faith (Colossians 2:9-10 ESV)...and rest in Him who rests in you (John 17:20-23 ESV)!
Hide me in the shadow of your wings. Psalm 17:8b
Read MoreDo you ever feel like there are holes in your soul? I do. In fact, right now I feel a bit like a piece of Swiss cheese. And I don't mean "baby swiss." No, the real holes kind.
The interesting thing is that nothing bad is going on right now in my life. It's all good stuff! But the constancy of the schedule with a newborn (darling first granddaughter!), a two year old (energetic boy, I might add!), two older boys (awesome, each one!), plus sleep deprived young parents (getting ready for a military move next month, I might add), and two aged, also sleep-deprived, grandparents (John & me!) has been hard and delightful at the same time. But to be honest, we adults are all living "on the edge" of something (I just drew a blank as to what).
Read MoreMug of coffee in hand, I walk out into the early morning air, ready to commune with my Lord as I walk the circuitous path outside my home.
No one is stirring so I quietly sing my prayer-filled greeting to the Lover of my soul:
Be Thou my Vision, O Lord of my heart. . .
But today, there is a decision to be made, and we don’t know which way to go. So in the presence of my Lord, I’m thinking and praying as I walk along.
Read MoreEach of us is a real person behind the masks we wear. Some of those masks are self-imposed to protect us from “being exposed” for who we are. They portray a false self.
But then there are other “masks” that are “good” in the sense they are rightful or necessary or “just are.” I say “masks” because they still can, in a sense, hide the real person inside. I’m thinking of the roles we have in life: mother, teacher, athlete, sister, wife, pastor, etc.
And I just realized something — our bodies can serve as masks…physical beauty or lack thereof, aging, physical handicaps etc. And here is a shocker. . .
Read MoreIt was sixteen years ago now ... that day when we unboxed the items my mother-in-law was discarding because of her need to downsize. Betty Jean Loyd was moving to a senior community, states away from where she had lived most of her adult life and where she had married a man and raised an only son.
At 80 years of age, Betty Jean, an only child herself, knew that she needed to be near us, her only family. So we helped her dispose of her discarded things.
And there it was -- her sifter!
Read MoreHow to refocus on Christ and the Cross during these unsettling, fear-filled days of the COVID-19 pandemic? I usually post a review of all of our Lord’s beautiful final words before His death on the Cross during Holy Week.
But I decided this year to share this post at the beginning of each of the remaining weeks of Lent. It will take us back “beneath the Cross” via links to each saying and also via an amazing “cartoon” from days gone by — B.C. (Johnny Hart).
I love this post because it was such a serendipitous delight to find this clipping in my file a few years ago. So I can't help but share it year by year.
Would you meditate along with me ... and revisit Christ's seven sayings for the Cross this week? [See links below] It's truly "holy ground" as we reflect on the Cross, what our Lord went through, but mainly, what He accomplished there. What a perfect preparation for the joy, freedom, and release of the Resurrection.
Read MoreSo appropriate is this imagery for what we are facing today with the COVID-19 outbreak. Now more than ever, we need these Scriptures and these truths to keep us stabilized in the Lord.
When in the deepest of troubles...when there is no consolation or comfort...go to the sacred place where you and the Lord live together and nothing can touch...the place of union with our God through Jesus Christ by faith (Colossians 2:9-10 ESV)...and rest in Him who rests in you (John 17:20-23 ESV)!
Hide me in the shadow of your wings. Psalm 17:8b
Read More…For you are timeless and part of a puzzle.
You are winsome and young as a lad.
And there is no disease or no struggle, that can pull you from God,
Be Ye Glad.
We have an Enemy. . . a silent enemy. . . an invisible enemy . . . a nasty Bully of an enemy.
And it’s not the coronavirus or any other entity that can harass our bodies and do damage in our physical world. The enemy I’m referring to is the Enemy of our souls, God’s enemy and therefore ours (because we belong to God) — the “spiritual forces of wickedness” —the devil and his evil legions.
Read MoreThis entered my email inbox early today through a trusted friend. I just HAD to share it with you — the wise and practical words of one of my flawed but courageous heroes of the faith. Take his ancient words to heart…so applicable to our COVID-19 situation today.
Read MoreThe situation we now face is enough to send each of us over the edge with anxiety and fear. We have no idea how this will all go globally, nationally, and personally. We watch it all unfold as our government officials and staff spell out what they know day by day.
It is then that we have to remember we have a choice. Will we carry the weight of these facts and predictions? Or will we cast our care, fling our anxieties on Him who is on the throne of heaven because He cares for us?
Read MoreHi everyone,
We are going through some unusual times.
Since I live in Europe, I feel a bit of a responsibility to write to dear friends and family in the US about the situation here and what it most likely will be like in the US in a few days.
Let me paint a picture of what may come in the next few days in the USA.
The Virus hit Europe several weeks before it arrived in the USA…
When in the deepest of troubles...when there is no consolation or comfort...go to the sacred place where you and the Lord live together and nothing can touch...the place of union with our God through Jesus Christ by faith (Colossians 2:9-10 ESV)...and rest in Him who rests in you (John 17:20-23 ESV)!
Hide me in the shadow of your wings. Psalm 17:8b
Read MoreRemembering where our life really is . . .
My REAL life is hidden [right now] WITH Christ IN God!
Read MoreHow do we live during this unsettling time? Is God still God? Can we children of God practice what we preach as in the times of relative peace?
Jesus comforted and warned His beloved disciples (including us) just hours before He died:
I have told you these things so that you will be whole and at peace.
In this world, you will be plagued with times of trouble, but you need not fear;
I have triumphed over this corrupt world order.
Janet Renner Loyd has been a disciple of the Lord Jesus Christ most of her life. Her formal education includes a degree in education from the University of Arizona and also a degree in Bible & Theology from Moody Bible Institute. For more than thirty years, she has been involved in teaching and leading women’s Bible studies, retreats, and meetings…most notably Precept upon Precept and various studies that she has personally developed. Professionally, Jan recently retired from teaching language and writing to GED and adult ESOL students.
About her life, Jan says, “The most important thing about me is my relationship with my Father God through my Lord Jesus Christ. I am forever grateful to Him for His love, mercy, and grace to me and my family and friends...and the world.”
Jan has been happily married to John Loyd for more than forty years. They have two adult, married children and five lively young grandsons.
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