Tagged: Audrey Frank

Now Dinah, Leah’s daughter whom she bore to Jacob, went to meet the young women of the land.  Genesis 34:1 Here is the first and last time we see Dinah happy and whole. Dinah means judgment. She was the daughter born after her shamed mother, Leah, gave birth to honor (the meaning of Zebulun, the sixth son Leah bore to Jacob). Dinah, now a young woman, left that morning set on finding friendship. Instead, she was intercepted and violated by someone with great power. The rest of the story is about the silence of her father, the patriarch Jacob, and the violent revenge of her brothers. Yet we have no explanation of why Dinah, the daughter of an unloved woman who spent her life seeking… Read More

Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had not given birth to any children, but she had an Egyptian servant named Hagar. So Sarai said to Abram, “Since the LORD has prevented me from having children, please sleep with my servant. Perhaps I can have a family by her.” Abram did what Sarai told him. Genesis 16:1-5 Can we be so attached to God’s promises and the way we interpret their meaning that we try to make them happen on our own? In serving the Lord among the nations for over thirty years, I have observed something fascinating: God’s heart is always for the nations. That promise-invitation I was given about my future when I was nine, sitting in a small country church in the Appalachian mountains, was… Read More

  LORD, who may be a guest in your home? Who may live on your holy hill? Whoever lives a blameless life, does what is right, and speaks honestly. He does not slander, or do harm to others, or insult his neighbor.   Psalm 15:1-3 No spying on each other in God’s house. The Hebrew word for slander is רָגַל râg̱al, and its meaning includes to search, to slander, to go about as an explorer or spy. It is the same word Joseph used about his brothers when they came before him in Egypt so many years after throwing him in the pit and then selling him into slavery. It is the word used to describe the task of the spies sent in Joshua 6… Read More

Our Father in heaven, may your name be honored, may your kingdom come, may your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Matthew 6:9, NET One Thing Only by Audrey Frank Can we start anew today... Again? I’ll take Your hand once more Upon the Way. I lose myself Though You are near; Let go Your hand In paltry fear. Forgive me, Lord. Unruly mind, Assailed and tossed; Lord, teach me the focus Of the Cross. Set my will Upon one thing; And on the Way I’ll walk with You Free. No other person, Joy or pain, Circumstance, Or problem strange, May I give power Me to claim. Only one thing, One thing only, Above all else, One thing holy. Your will… Read More

From that time on Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, chief priests, and experts in the law, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. So Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him: "God forbid, Lord! This must not happen to you!" But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me, because you are not setting your mind on God's interests, but on man's." Matthew 16:21-23, NET   Peter said, "I have no silver or gold, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, stand up and walk!"… Read More

For Pastor Dave, with gratitude And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. And God will exalt you in due time, if you humble yourselves under his mighty hand by casting all your cares on him because he cares for you. 1 Peter 5:5-7, NET I don't care. This sentence brings to my lively mind a clear picture of a stubborn child, arms crossed, refusing to obey.  Or a weary ministry leader beleaguered by too much caring and not receiving enough care in return.  The child only cares about what he wants; the adult is desperately drawing boundaries to self-protect from any more pain in the challenging task of so much… Read More

  Then Laban and Bethuel replied, “This is the LORD’s doing. Our wishes are of no concern.” Genesis 24:50 Oh, to have such faith, such desire for God’s will that our wishes are of no concern! These hearts of ours sure do have lots of wishes. And when they concern those we love, our vocation, our identity, we are especially specific in our wishes. Abraham was no different. He was growing old, and his son Isaac’s future was primary in his mind. Issac, the covenant child, great ancestor of Jesus, needed a wife. Abraham’s last wish was for Isaac to marry a girl from Abraham’s relatives. After an impassioned conversation about Isaac’s future security, Abraham implores his servant to make a solemn promise to fulfill… Read More

  But you, LORD, are a shield that protects me; you are my glory and the one who restores me. Psalm 3:3   You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. Psalm 139:5  My prayers have been compartmentalized for so many years. Jesus, heal me. Father, protect me. Holy Spirit, help me. The realization is dawning in my soul like a sunrise that I am encircled. I am surrounded by the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Three in One are never alone and therefore I am never alone.  God exists in community; therefore so do I. The concept of God’s encircling is everywhere in Scripture. Psalm 3 describes the Lord as a shield who protects us.… Read More

“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed about himself like this: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: extortionists, unrighteous people, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of everything I get.’ The tax collector, however, stood far off and would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, be merciful to me, sinner that I am!’ Luke 18:10-13   I have been thinking about honest prayer. As I pondered today, I remembered a day when I witnessed different approaches to a human king. I have tried to capture it here. May… Read More

  My God with his lovingkindness will meet me (ASV). The God who loves me will help me (NET). Psalm 59:10 My work requires extensive travel. Sometimes, I arrive at my destination expected, prepared for, and cared for, while other times, I am on my own. Being expected, prepared for, and cared for makes a big difference. Sometimes it’s critical to know someone is waiting for me. One time I flew from Egypt to Kenya so sick I almost passed out in the passport queue upon arrival. As the blackness closed in, I feverishly scanned the crowd for a kind face, trying to decide if it was better to introduce myself before I fainted or let them meet me by looking through my bag for… Read More