Arrival in Heaven

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Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.                   1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 ESV

Rejoicing, praying, and giving thanks put the circumstances of our lives, both good and bad into God’s hands and help us see them through His eyes. Last night our beloved daughter-in-law Melinda slipped from this world into the presence of Jesus. And while we are overwhelmed with grief and shock, these words are promises to which we cling. Melinda has finished her race. Her battle with cancer is finished. And while that pernicious disease claimed her physical life, it could not touch her soul. That remained fully and exclusively in the hands of Jesus with whom she now lives. Nancy and I didn’t know how to process the news that came in three words. “She is gone.” Yet as sadness rolls over my heart I sense the message echo back from Heaven, ” She has arrived!”

A River Glorious

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You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You. Isaiah 26:3 NKJV

“Like a river glorious, flows God’s perfect peace.” This opening line of Frances Havergal’s hymn was written as she lay in her sickbed, while doctors suggested to her that she might not survive. Instead of allowing depression or panic to set in, Francis is famously quoted as saying, “If I am really going, it is too good to be true!” I wish I always had that kind of experience with God’s peace, when I am suffering. I am learning that the key to peace that flows like a glorious river, is that it has its source in God. As today’s verse says, we can have that peace when our mind is “stayed on” God. Instead of frittering away our time with useless activities, God invites us to come to His river, whose flow cannot be interrupted by circumstances, situations, or disasters. It is a stream of eternal hope. It is a peace that leads calmly on, when floods of sorrow are overwhelming, just as the Red Sea was held back as the children of Israel crossed. It is a peace that cools the flames of anger and persecution, just as Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego came safely out of the fiery furnace, with only their bonds burned away. What a great hope we have, and what strength flows from God’s river which flows freely, without fail from the foot of the cross, where our Lord Jesus poured out His blood for us. Will you look to Him and trust Him today? Will you fix your eyes on the beautiful face of Jesus, who offers us His perfect peace, if we will only trust in Him?

In God We Trust!

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Penny was so happy
In the year nineteen-o-nine
When he was first imprinted
With Abraham's design

He was kept as the treasure
Of our children's piggybanks
And worked in every grocery store
Though no one gave him thanks

Now Penny would remind us
Though they say his job's a bust
With word's engraved upon his face
That say, "In God we trust!"

In God We Trust
By Peter Caligiuri
Copyright © 2026 
All rights reserved


Jesus Remembers

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Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground outside your Father’s care.
Matthew 10:29 NIV

Every Thursday, I get to sing with my friends in a memory care facility. It is such a blessing seeing them light up as they hear the familiar hymns and many of them sing along. But as I greet them, some cannot remember my name, or in a few cases, even their own! Visitors rarely come. Perhaps most people think that since their loved one doesn’t even remember them any longer, that there is no purpose in coming. But the good news is that even when everyone else forgets, Jesus remembers! Jesus also weeps. Just as when Jesus came to visit the sisters of Lazarus, while he lay in the grave, Jesus wept with them before He did any miracles. Sometimes people don’t need explanations, they need our tears, our listening ears and our presence. Yes, Jesus weeps with them, but then Jesus does something more: He prays.

But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned back, strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:32 NIV

Jesus is not retired, waiting up in Heaven for you and I to get things right. No! Jesus remembers us, Jesus weeps with us and Jesus prays for us. Jesus also prays for every one who sits in memory care. Jesus also calls you and I to remember, to weep and to pray. Will you take time this week to remember someone who has been forgotten by most? A few minutes, a prayer, a kiss, or an arm around their shoulders, may not seem like much, but it is everything to them. Have a blessed day everyone and remember to pray for those in memory care and put some feet to those prayers this week.