Teresa's Treasures

Can you imagine how Adam and Eve must have felt after living in the Garden of Eden where they thought they would live forever when God told them they were going to die because they had sinned? Can you imagine how Moses must have felt when he thought God was going to use him to free the Israelites at the age of forty but had to wait forty MORE years before he heard God’s voice again or how Hannah must have felt wanting so desperately to have a child but “THE LORD HAD CLOSED HER WOMB.” (1 Sam. 1:5) Because you and I can look back, we know the rest of their stories but still we wonder if God knows ours and what’s best for us sometimes. I lived for ten years in the pit of depression hearing God say no to me every hour of every day of every week of every month of every year throughout all ten of them when I was begging him to release me. I couldn’t figure out why on earth I was in the bottom of a pit when I knew I had so much more to offer. I heard nothing but no to every question I aske...

Bella and I have spent quite a bit of time together lately--much more time than we've spent together probably since she's been born. In three of our non-chalant conversations God spoke through Bella to remind me of three Biblical truths He apparently thought I had forgotten; and He was right. Conversation #1 Mammie as she reads to Bella in her bed right before David comes in to say her prayers: "Bella, I know daddy says your prayers with you at night. Would you want to say a prayer with Mammie too?" Bella pensively staring, thinking... Silence... Mammie wanting to hear some of the sweet things David says Bella prays for every night: "It's okay if you don't want to pray with Mammie, but would you just want to tell Mammie some of the things you pray for?" Bella thinking as Mammie waits... Silence... Bella looking seriously into Mammie's eyes: "Mammie, I just tell God." Conversation #2 Mammie upon arriving see...

Several years ago I used to teach larger classes than I have in the immediate past, involving maybe 35-40 women. In one of these such classes I was teaching a class on humility and thought Jesus’ example of washing feet would be the most appropriate way I could teach it and felt I had Jesus’ permission to do so, because he said to the apostles “Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them.” Yes, I know that washing feet is basically an unheard of practice in churches of Christ, but I do remember hearing my father-in-law say that the reason his church practiced washing of feet was because it did, indeed, teach humility. So, it was with good intentions, a sincere heart and Jesus’ example that we washed feet. We sat in circles of twelve women with a pitcher and bowl in the middle of each circle. My husband had built a large cross, not just for this class but for another, which I also had in the room and I believe I had a scripture tape playing also. The lights were...