A Time of Refreshing

by Friday Friend | | 2 comments

We hope you are enjoying the Girlfriends in God daily devotions. We (Mary, Sharon, and Gwen) would like to introduce you to some of our special friends. From time-to-time, the Friday devotions will be written by one of our friends in ministry.  We call them our Friday Friends. So grab your Bible and a fresh cup of coffee and drink in the words from our Friday Friend, Lisa Morrone.

Friend to Friend

Sometimes in life you walk alongside someone who teaches you how to live more fully. Other times, if you are so blessed, you will find someone who teaches you how to grow old with grace. For me, this woman is 93 and her name is Helen.

Each week I look forward to visiting with

Natural Prayer

by Mary Southerland | | 4 comments

Friend to Friend

Three ministers were talking about prayer and the most effective positions for prayer. As they were talking, a telephone repairman worked silently in the background.

One minister shared that he felt the key to powerful prayer was in the hands. “I always hold my hands together and point them upward as a sign of worship,” he explained.

The second minister suggested that real prayer should always be conducted on the knees.

The third minister shook his head and said, “I’m afraid you both have it wrong. The only position worth its salt is to pray while stretched out flat on your face.”

As the three ministers solemnly contemplated the wisdom they had shared, the phone man put down his tools, approached the

Give Fear the Boot

by Sharon Jaynes | | 4 comments

Friend to Friend

I just love 1 John 4:18 in the Amplified version! “Love turns fear out of doors and expels every trace of terror.” Perfect love, God’s love, gives fear the boot.

Fear stands at the doorway of our destinies and dares us to step inside. It bullies us into believing that if we step across the threshold we will fail, or worse yet, God will fail us. Fear holds a “Danger! Keep Out!” sign over our pre-ordained adventures and pokes drain holes in our Spirit-filled confidence.

What if . . .

Oswald Chambers once said, “The remarkable thing about fearing God is that when you fear God you fear nothing else, whereas if you do not fear God you fear everything else.”

The fear of

It’s All About Timing

by Mary Southerland | | 8 comments

Friend to Friend

My husband was determined to teach me how to fish … whether I wanted to learn or not. We were on vacation with our two children and everyone was getting in on Dan’s fishing lessons.

Danna had already announced that she would never – under any circumstances – touch a worm or a fish. Dan and Jered promised to bait her hook and reel in any fish she caught. I knew what they were thinking: the possibility of Danna actually learning how to cast a line or catch a fish was so remote that they had nothing to fear. They could not have been more wrong.

The fish seemed to jump on Danna’s hook. She squealed with excitement as she

5 Steps to Help You Make Wise Choices

by Gwen Smith | | 1 comment

Friend to Friend

The book of Acts is an account of the birth and growth of the early church and of the work of the Holy Spirit. After His death and resurrection, Jesus remained on earth for 40 days then ascended into heaven.

Just before He ascended, Jesus gave the disciples a fresh and compelling mission – one that you and I share in. He told them (and us) “…you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)

Wow.

Power … Holy Spirit … witnesses… I imagine they must’ve been shaking their heads in wonder and scratching their heads

How’s Your Heart? Part 1

by Mary Southerland | | 10 comments

Friend to Friend

It had been a very long day. My husband and I were both tired and looking forward to a good night’s sleep – but we needed to talk. We didn’t have any major concerns or problems to discuss; we just wanted to catch up on life and unwind a little bit.

Dan was telling me about his day when he suddenly stopped, looked around and asked, “What was that beeping sound?” I hadn’t heard anything but suggested that the smoke detector battery probably needed replacing.

“It was a different kind of beeping,” Dan insisted. We listened – nothing. We turned out the lights and went to sleep, and I forgot all about the elusive beeping.

When Dan came home from work

How’s Your Heart Part 2

by Mary Southerland | | 9 comments

Friend to Friend

I was physically exhausted and had let my guard down. The minute I let my guard down, the enemy moved in with a vengeance. My unguarded heart was in trouble, wounded by the words of someone I love.

I knew what I needed to do – deal with the hurt, forgive the one who had hurt me, and let go of the pain. I just didn’t want to do it. And God calls that sin.

If you did not read yesterday’s devotion about my husband’s defibrillator, I encourage you to take a few minutes to do that now.

As surely as that beeping defibrillator grabbed Dan’s attention, the Holy Spirit grabbed mine. I examined my life for ways to guard my

When Faith is a Battle

by Gwen Smith | | 3 comments

Friend to Friend

When I was a little girl, one of the highlights of every summer was going to our family reunion at White Oak Park. I loved those reunions because there was always a seven-layer salad, yummy home- made favorites, and lots of desserts. All of us kids played fun games that filled us with laughter and drenched us in sweat. Then after the kid games were done, some adults would join us for a final competition: the tug-of-war.

When it came to tug-of-war, I had a strategy: wherever my dad went, I went. Because in my little-girl mind, he was superhuman strong. (I was ever the rational one.) Dad always positioned himself at the far end of the rope as

When Family Gets Messy

by Sharon Jaynes | | 1 comment

Friend to Friend

If ever there is a place to learn about forgiveness…to practice forgiveness…to struggle with forgiveness…it is in the family. Makes me tired just thinking about it. And interestingly, it is in the context of family where the word forgiveness first shows up in the Bible.

Let’s dig into Scripture today. Come on. You can do it.

In the book of Genesis, we meet a young man named Joseph—the eleventh of twelve brothers, and favorite son of Jacob. He is most famously known for his elaborate coat of many colors. Young Joseph had several prophetic dreams involving his brothers and father one day bowing down to him. Rather than keep that bit of information to himself, he shared it with his

When Doors Don’t Open

by Gwen Smith | | 3 comments

Friend to Friend

The morning had been hectic and they were running late because the baby needed a last minute diaper change. Tara needed to get all three kiddos loaded up and to the car pool location quickly, but for some strange reason the back doors of her van would not open. She tried her clicker. She tried the key. She tried jiggling the lock.

Anxiousness started to well up in her heart.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” She grumbled loudly while trying to open the back doors of her minivan. “This is NOT what I need right now!”

The kids began to sense the tension and take on the stress for their own.

“What’s wrong, mommy?”

“The back doors aren’t opening and we’re gonna