Have you ever been dry spiritually?  Have you ever experienced a spiritual desert, a season in which your Bible reading seems empty, prayers hallow, and worship life-less?  Me too.  That seems to be a dangerous time, when temptations and spiritual assaults can be particularly effective against us.

Has summer slipped by faster than you wanted?  Are you looking at the last week before schools starts, wishing that you had more time to be recharged before the mad rush of fall?  Me too! 

Perhaps it would be helpful for us to carve out some time this week-- maybe just a half hour-- for intentional time with God.  Perhaps we could use that time for prayer for spiritual renewal, meditation on Biblical truth, and/or reflection on how God would realign our lives so that we could enjoy the sweetness of Him amidst the rush of fall activities. 

Former major league all-star thrower Roger Clemens was in the news this last week.  He was indicted by a federal grand jury for allegedly lying to Congress about steroid use.

It is just another example that demonstrates how good and wise is God's injunction that we not lie or deceive, but instead speak the truth.  Honest is really the best policy.  It's true in testimony before Congress; and it's true in everyday life.

It's time for the Dream Cruise in metro Detroit.  Once a year the car city of the nation enjoys struting its stuff in a festival that celebrates our love of automobiles.  It has always amazed me how some enthusiasts can identify the model, make and year of a vehicle by looking at a headlight. 

The ultimate Designer and Creator has implanted wonderful creativity into human beings.  Praise Him also for that the next time you look at a cool car!

It is easy to get out of balance, off of center, as a Christian.  The joys, entertainment and fun of summer are a wonderful gift of God.  The extra activities of lawn and garden can be either a burden or a delightful hobby.  But all together these things can easily distract us, put us out of balance, and put aside the center and source of best life, that is, Jesus.

So,...

Recently I've been reflecting on the first "book of the Bible."  Almost daily I've been struck by the spiritual and moral failures of the patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac and Jacob).  It is a reminder to me that, as the Apostle Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:7, "But we have this treasure [of God's love in Jesus] in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not us." 

In my devotions this morning, I was struck by...well, coincidence.  I was reading the account of Jesus' birth in Luke 2. It notes that a civil census required Mary and Joseph to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem, where Jesus was born.  It struck me that Luke doesn't record this as a fulfillment of prophecy.  But in Matthew's account of Jesus' birth, when the Magi inquire of the birthplace of the new king, Herod is told by the scribes that, according to prophecy, the Messiah was to be born in Bethlehem.

Today is an amazing day of weather.  One minute it is cold, windy and raining.  The next minute the sun is shining.  It has been doing that most of the day.  It is a good day to stay inside a controlled environment.

I must admit that I am thoroughly fascinated by earthquakes.  This is not because I like to see people suffer.  Rather, I am intrigued by the geology of it...and what the Bible says regarding these phenomenon.  I am interested in how earthquakes likely played a role in the world-wide flood at the time of Noah.

So, this morning my eyes perked up when I read in my devotions, "Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forever."

As we close out our reading/listening to the Bible accounts of Jesus with  John 20-21 (ESV), I am struck by the Apostle John's Easter morning spiritual self-assessment.  He wrote in John 20:8-9, "...the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead."  Through these Bible accounts of Jesus, the disciples are portrayed as slow to believe, slow