We recently rearranged the furniture in our living room. We had the television placed above the fireplace and now our comfortable recliners that Mark and I love to sit in to relax at the end of the day, are oriented in that direction. Two large windows on either side of the mantel look out on …
Author Archives: michelledowdybytheway
Sacred or Scared?
“Fear not,” or some variation of that phrase, is one of the most repeated refrains in the Bible. Some sources say, depending on the translations, there are 365 such phrases, one for every day of the year! We need those reminders to trust, especially when we look at our circumstances. When we step out of …
The One
There’s a well known quote that says, “Preach the gospel at all times. If necessary use words.” While I understand the meaning and intended sentiment – be so radically loving, humble, and kind that people know there is something different about you- I can’t help but think this stops far short of what Jesus commands …
Opportunity
Question: Does prosperity cause you to look more and more like Jesus, or less? I am reminded of the account of the “rich young ruler,” who asked Jesus how he could inherit eternal life. From digging deeper into the text in Luke 18, and the Greek meaning of the words, we know that the man …
Establish Your Hearts
“Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand” (James 5:8). When something is established, it has a definite beginning. Establishment of a business, or a marriage, for instance, sets up a new arrangement, a new way of thinking and being that creates something that was not there before. It implies a …
WHERE THE RIVER FLOWS
I have been in church all my life, and until I listened to a message recently by a young pastor named Tyler Staton, I had never heard anyone tie the threads together that I will discuss in this post. I subsequently ordered his new book, “The Familiar Stranger,” which invites the reader to a deeper …
PUT IT ON
“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Ephesians …
YOU FEED THEM
Whenever people gather, you always have to think about food. It was no different in Jesus’ day. Wherever he went, crowds would come to hear his life changing words, often for days at a time. Luke recounts how Jesus had previously given the twelve authority and power over demons and disease, and sent them out to …
THE ROCK THAT WILL NOT FAIL
Have you have ever stood at edge of the ocean, and noticed how quickly the ground underneath you shifts? You may feel steady for a moment, but soon you are mired in the sand, and the longer you stay there, the more unbalanced you become. Jesus told a parable of a man who built his …
A Sacrifice of Praise
Have you ever been walking through something hard, something that tested you to the core? Maybe the last thing you felt like doing was going to church, being with others, or singing songs with your heavy heart. These are the times when praise is a sacrifice. Sometimes praise comes from a heart full of joy …
Life By The Way 