Whispers of Truth

And. It joins together, connects, signifying that something is to be added on to what came before, functioning much like the plus sign does in mathematics. It indicates part of a sum of words, reminding us not to subtract them but to hold them together. It is easy to overlook, to think that one can pick and choose the part or the sum of a list of words, choosing the one (or even the ones) that are easy, that fit naturally, but that isn’t the case. Today, I am reading in Proverbs, particularly the opening chapters. The richness of the writing always astounds me. I find myself reading verses and sections and whole chapters multiple times to get a sense of what it is trying to convey even though I’ve read it so many times before, both in part and in whole. Acute attention to wisdom requires focus that often seems lacking.  When chapter one throws this at me early: The [reverent] fear of the LORD [that is, worshiping Him and regarding Him as truly awesome] is the beginning and ...

My youngest grandson, Aaron, will soon be four months old, and he wants to eat constantly, which his hefty weight of seventeen pounds reflects. He weighed a few ounces over nine pounds at birth, so admittedly, he started somewhat big. He’s growing and hungry, and just let him see his momma and he thinks about eating. Let him get sleepy, and he thinks about eating. Let him see anyone drinking or eating, and he thinks about getting his bottle or some food. The more he eats, the more he wants to eat, and the more sleepy he is the more restless he gets, especially when he is fighting what he needs to do, and all this while he looks anywhere but at the person who is holding him or trying to get his attention, busy little body that he is, while still somehow being a sweet snuggle-bug.   Maybe you’ve experienced that restless hunger inside, especially when you aren’t actively doing something. Your mind isn’t engaged but it seems that your stomach is, and you go looking for something to ea...

Last year I planted some cilantro seed in my big box planter along with many other plants and seeds. Everything I planted came up but the cilantro, and I thought never to see it again, figuring that I overwatered it in learning how to manage the drainage in the box. This year, cilantro (or at least what looks like a version of it) popped up in the box as soon as spring arrived and the weather warmed. I admit am a little afraid to eat it because of the delay, but I don’t really doubt that it is cilantro. It looks like cilantro, smells like cilantro, and came up where I planted cilantro last year. It has been watered and has had access to at least six hours of sunlight daily. Why should I doubt that it is cilantro in the box emerging exactly where I sewed it last summer? Aren’t we sometimes a bit like the cilantro in the box? God plants a seed deep within us, sows light on the righteousness He has bestowed on us through our belief in Christ; God sets our feet on paths of righteousne...