Beverly Joy Roberts

  No one likes getting something for nothing more than me.     Getting a good deal or better yet, getting something for free makes my happy endorphins all a glow.       But what can change that happy glow to red hot righteous anger is when I buy into an amazing free deal and later find out there are strings attached.   The Sea World tickets aren't really free at all because you have to sit through a mind-numbing lecture on timeshares.     So no, the tickets were not FREE!  And, I was not a good representative of Jesus at 45-minutes into that lecture nor following the lecture when I had to sit for 30 more minutes with the high-pressure salesperson  one-on-one .   I'm guessing you figured out by now, we don't own a timeshare.   However, seeing The Otter Show at Sea World went a long way in helping me forget the misery of the timeshare meeting.   In the book of Galatians, Paul addresses something that reminds me of a timeshare deal, too good to be true .     In the early chur

I know there has been much talk about the mandate to wear face masks in public places.  Some people are 100% behind this safety measure while others are equally against it.      For me, there are definitely some pros besides the health and safety benefits of wearing a mask.     I love the privacy I feel when my mask is in place.  It's like I'm completely hidden away.  I don't have to wear makeup.  I can talk to myself and no one sees my lips moving.     At church, I can belt out all the wrong words to the songs and no one can see that my lips don't match the words on the screen.     Of course,  I'd  never do this, but someone else might even make faces behind their mask showing delight or disgust for any given situation.      The best thing about a face mask is that you know when you have bad breath...and if you do, that's another reason that I'm thankful for the mask.   Masks or veils aren't always good though.  When it comes to the gospel being veiled,

The Cross   A few years ago, when my eldest granddaughter celebrated her first communion, my husband and I went to Nebraska to be with her, and we wanted to buy her a special gift that fit the occasion.    Unlike the church I was brought up in, she prepared for this event with two years of classes and a public confession of her faith before taking communion at the age of 14. The gift we selected for her was a silver infinity cross necklace.  (See picture.)  We set a high budget for the gift because we valued the decision she was making; both in her heart to follow the Lord and His commandment to take communion in remembrance of what Christ did for us. I know many people wear cross jewelry without any understanding of the meaning of the cross , nor do they have any desire to follow God’s commandments.    For me, the cross is more than a piece of ornamental jewelry.  The message of the cross to the believer is the death of the innocent for the redemption of the guilty.   I look at a cr

I like to keep things uncomplicated.  If there is an  easy way  to do something, write something or say something, why would someone choose to make it difficult?  This is one of my pet peeves.   I remember when my husband was doing masters-level work, and he handed me his textbook and said, "Read that first page out loud."   I took the book and began reading.  About two paragraphs in, I tossed the book on the sofa and said, "Why?  Why would anyone write like this?  They are purposefully making it more complicated than it needs to be.  It's wordy for no reason with complicated sentence structure.  I simply don't get it.  Don't they want to help their students soar?"     In the Bible, there is a verse that I love because it's uncomplicated with no hoops to jump through, nor steps to follow to perfection, and no endless list of does or don'ts.  This verse says what it means and means what it says.     For  everyone who calls on the name of the Lord

In the 1980s, a movie was released called Grease.  In that movie, there was a song that was sung by the two leading characters and a phase in that song had these words,  I'm hopelessly devoted to you.     The  act of devotion  should be a thoughtful act but the word devotion can also be carelessly tossed around.   True devotion is a powerful thing when it comes to our relationship with the Lord, acts of service to our church, and in relation to our spouse and family.     The word devotion can also be used in less passionate ways like I'm devoted to a certain television show and would never, ever miss it.  I’m devoted to eating ice cream every day.  I’m devoted to going to Disneyworld at least once a year.     In my life, I have had seasons of devotion for some of the things listed above, but I did not remain truly devoted to them. There are only a few things in my life that I am absolutely devoted to. They are constant and unwavering.    In the book of Acts 2:42 (NET) it says,