It Is Good Friday

I was probably eight or nine the first time I read the account of Jesus's crucifixion. Good Friday had always been a solemn occasion at our house with my mother cooking a special fish dinner and my father reading the Bible. By teaching me to read and reading the Bible and other story books to me, my mother had instilled in me a love for reading from an early age. So that year when she opened the Bible to the book of Luke and told me to read the story of the crucifixion, I didn't hesitate. But as I read, I became more and more anxious and by the time I got to the part where they crucified Jesus, tears were streaming down my face. It's not Good Friday, I thought in childlike disappointment, it should be called Bad Friday.

Jesus died. How could He? Why did He?

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3: 16).


And that's why the day He died on the cross is called Good Friday. Because on that day, we, the lost and fallen human race, were redeemed, forgiven and restored to our rightful place with God the Father.

Are you in your rightful place? Have you been redeemed, restored and forgiven? If not, Jesus's arms are still outstretched, waiting to welcome you in. But you must ask. Do like one of the thieves who hung on a cross beside Jesus.

He turned to Him and said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom. Jesus answered him, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise” (Luke 3: 42 - 43).

Just like that the man was saved. Jesus didn't say, "I'm in too much pain, I can't think about that right now." Or, "You are a bad man. I'm not sure if you should go to heaven."

No, He said, "Today." And He will say to you too, "Today," if you ask Him right now.

And if you haven't yet, don't forget to download a copy of my award-winning story on Amazon Kindle, For God So Loved. I'm sure it will bless your heart.
Just click on the image below.

A True Love Story For Valentine's Day

The Book of Ruth (novel) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

What is your favorite Valentine's Day activity? If you say curling up with your honey and reading a good love story, then you may be in tandem with some other people. So, if you're looking for a good love story to read this weekend, why not read the book of Ruth? Aww, that's the Bible, you might say. True, but reading this story has several benefits:
1) If you feel guilty because you haven't been reading your Bible, this is a way to assuage your guilt.
2) If you love romance, this is one of the best romances ever.
3) It's true.

So, here's the story of Ruth.

Ruth was a young widow who decided to follow Naomi her mother-in-law to Bethlehem because there was a famine in the land where they lived. Naomi had recently lost her husband and, feeling very bitter, thought she would be better off relocating. She and Ruth got to Bethlehem at the beginning of the harvest, and no sooner had they settled in than Ruth decided to go in search of work.

She went straight to the field of Boaz, who just happened to be Naomi's relative. Boaz came in to inspect his field and his eyes lit on Ruth. "Who is that?" he asked. When the other workers told him who she was, he invited her to have lunch with him. How many of us have been invited to lunch with the boss on the first day? That evening when Ruth told Naomi where she'd worked that day, Naomi began to hear wedding bells. When the harvest came to an end, she instructed Ruth to put on her best clothes and go down to the threshing floor where Boaz would sleep after threshing wheat that night. Ruth obeyed her mother-in-law, and the rest, as we say, is history.

I'm not going to tell you the whole story because I want you to read it for yourself. But, like all romances, it does have a very happy ending. Ruth's story is the story of every believer. Boaz represents Jesus Christ and Ruth represents us, His bride. Ruth was a Moabitess, a race of people who were outside the covenant of God. We were Gentiles, outside the covenant of God. Just as Boaz redeemed Ruth and made her his own, just so Christ has redeemed us and made us His own. Isn't that beautiful? Read the story for yourself. You will fall in love again. Happy Valentine's Day.

For a limited time, you can learn more about Ruth and other women of the Bible by purchasing my book Women For All Seasons from the Amazon Kindle store for just  $2.99 cents. Or, if you prefer the print copy, go to

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