February 16, 2022
I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know…His incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of His mighty strength, which He exerted in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. Ephesians 1:18-22
Since January 1st, our family has been caught up in a whirlpool of suffering on many levels. Our beloved pastor and dear friend, Ray Bentley, suddenly and unexpectedly went to be with Jesus on the 4th. Four days later Rachel-Ruth was admitted to the hospital with her first of two heart attacks. My first cousin was placed in ICU with COVID where he is still fighting for his life. Another cousin has begun chemo for cancer that has returned for the third time. My sister’s granddaughter is undergoing intense therapy as she learns to walk again after a massive car accident. My brother had surgery for prostate cancer. My son has been told his lungs may never improve. And I have apparently pulled my groin muscle which makes even walking to the kitchen painful.
January 5, 2022
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” John 11:25-26
Yes, Lord. I believe that Ray has never been more alive than at the moment on January 4th when his faith became sight, and he saw You face to face. Yet I remember that at the tomb of Lazarus You, too, believed, and yet You wept. While I’ve read many of the well-deserved tributes to Ray given by Christian leaders worldwide, all I have been able to do is weep.
Yet I, too, want to give tribute:
September 11, 2021
I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. Romans 1:16
Those of us who lived through the Attack on America, September 11, 2001, will never forget where we were at the time. I was at home when my daughter called me and told me to turn on the TV. When I did, I was stunned to see smoke billowing out of the first trade tower and heard the announcer saying a plane had flown into it! As I watched, I saw a second plane fly into the second tower…then to my horror the first tower imploded in a mushroom cloud of dust and ashes…then the second tower followed. I cried out, “No! No!” I knew that right on my TV screen I was watching people step into eternity. And I was struck with the conviction: “How many of them were not ready to meet God face to face because people like me had never shared the Gospel with them?” As a result, I recommitted my life to sharing the Gospel with whoever, whenever, however I could.
August 17, 2021
While I am intensely preparing for my Cove seminar this weekend, I cannot shake the very heavy burden I feel to pray for Afghanistan. The following is a summary of how I am praying as I pour out my heart before God.
Please join me if you feel led:
May 21, 2021
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” John 20:19
Replay: Summer LIVE with Rachel-Ruth (and Anne) from Rachel_Ruth Lotz Wright on Vimeo.
