Guest Post: The Beauty In Between

After reading this piece written by her friend, the Little One turned to me with awe in her voice and said, "Mummy, you've got to read this!" I read it and immediately reached out to this young writer to get her permission to share her thought-provoking work. BTW the Little One is not so little anymore; she'll be 17 in March.

Meranie McGuire is just a young woman trying to live her life Coram Deo. Through her writings, she conveys the lessons God has taught her through prayer and the study of His Word. She currently attends the University of Southern California as she pursues her B.S. in Business Administration with a Minor in Religion. Meranie is young but has a deep understanding of the reality of God. There are no age limits when you're used by God. Paul noted of Timothy that "You have been taught the holy Scriptures from childhood, and they have given you the wisdom to receive the salvation that comes by trusting in Christ Jesus (2 Timothy 3:15 NLT)." The same can be said of this writer. Read on.

Joyful Expressions

Have you ever noticed the joyful expressions throughout the Christmas story, as told in Luke 1 and Luke 2? Through fresh eyes as I reread this familiar passage this past Christmas, joyful feelings resonated with me.

Discovering Advent

You, like me, may not have grown up celebrating Advent. You may not have ever heard about it until now. I became aware of Advent about 5 years ago, but I have not incorporated it into my routine until this year.

First, some background.  Here is some information on Advent that I discovered as I wrote this post:

Ezra Bible Study - Change: There is Hope

The last chapter of Ezra does not end as we would expect; instead, we see what happens when we truly make a U-turn and change. In this final chapter, there's a recognition of error, coupled with a desire to correct even though it affects their life choices. You see, these men had married women from countries that did not believe in God, which means these women also did not believe in God. God placed a prohibition of intermarriage with the people of heathen nations (Deuteronomy 7:1-6). This chapter ends with a reckoning, listing all the men that left their wives, but let's not oversimplify it. This is