By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer At my last annual checkup, I told the doctor I thought I had a spider bite. The doctor told me spiders don’t bite. Clearly, he’d never seen the movie Spiderman. I’d been working in the yard a few days earlier and bore what I
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Do you believe God is the God of one? Some may say that’s a self-centered way of looking at things, focusing on what God has done for you or me alone. Maybe not. In a women’s Bible study I attend, we recently worked through
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer If you are a long-time reader of this blog, you may have guessed that I like to take pictures of the sunrise. Have you noticed that each one is unique? Most mornings when I walk, I strike out toward the east, so I’m greeted
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer I celebrate this Independence Day by honoring my husband, Mike Spencer, who won his freedom from a lengthy disability on June 28. He is now riding the grassy ranges of God’s High Country, where the streams run clear and the air is fresh as
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Merriam-Webster: prepare verb pre·pare | \ pri-ˈper \ prepared; preparing Definition of prepare 1a: to make ready beforehand for some purpose, use, or activity – prepare food for dinner b: to put in a proper state of mind is prepared to listen 2: to work out the details of: plan in advance preparing a campaign strategy 3a: to put
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer More than a century ago, the Civil War uprooted dreams, decimated families, and divided the nation. Those who survived were determined to remember the price paid by decorating the graves of their fallen loved ones with flowers and flags on Decoration Day. Gradually, the
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Years ago when my rodeo-clown/bullfighter husband and I followed the circuit, we spent most of our summers on the road getting from one rodeo to the next. Headed north through Colorado one day on our way to Montana, we listened to the recording of
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Have you ever stood at the edge of the sea or a large lake and listened to waves lap against the shore? Or cradled yourself in a gently rocking boat, relaxing as you drifted with the breeze? How about making your way to shore
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer A couple thousand years ago in Jerusalem, a man named Thomas got the short end of the experiential stick. Or did he? As one of the twelve closest friends of Jesus, he spent three years hanging out with God-as-man. He saw miracles. He saw
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer We were created to live forever with God. Sin interrupted and set us on a detour to death. Jesus intervened, paid for the sin with His life and fixed us. Now, because of Him, we get to do what we were created to do
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer The mob can turn. A big event was coming to town and everyone was busy preparing, anticipating, hurrying. The Jews called it Passover. Early in the week, on a dirt-and-stone street, a crowd hailed an itinerant teacher as a king entering the gates of
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer When I lived in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, spring was obvious. Riotous, even, with flowers splashed on the hillsides and new-green grass everywhere. Some of my family still live there, and when they post photos on social media, I can almost
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Daylight Saving Time started today. At 2 a.m., to be exact. Were you awake? Me neither. I remember once asking my mother about Daylight Wasting Time. Of course she thought it was cute. But my elementary-school brain figured the opposite of saving had to
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Reading one morning from a different version of the Bible, I was caught by new wording of a familiar verse: You are my refuge and my shield. Your word is my source of hope. Psalm 119:114 In my childhood, I had learned the first
By Davalynn Spencer @davalynnspencer Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you. Mark out a straight path for your feet; stay on the safe path. Don’t get sidetracked. Prov. 4:25-27 Stay on the path. A simple directive. As simple as the one about not