Bethany McIlrath

First and Second: Perspective On What Matters Most (Matthew 22:36-40)

Tag: belief

  • Raw Vs. Refined Knowledge

    Raw Vs. Refined Knowledge

    “I know where babies come from!” exclaimed the second grader as his classmates stared. A little girl had asked something related, and this boy could hardly raise his hand high enough. It was typical for him- he had an answer for everything at 7 years old. That being the case, we didn’t want to know…

  • A Tree Proverb

    A Tree Proverb

    Long into a serious and frustrating conversation about faith, my husband pointed at a familiar tree in the yard. It’s been there for decades longer than we’ve been alive. “How does the tree stand?” he asked. I knew the question was loaded. I also know him; he won’t answer until I do. “It’s weight. And…

  • God-sized Dreams Never Die

    God-sized Dreams Never Die

    Someone tell me I’m not the only one! There are moments where the thought that I could die anytime at all strikes me silly. I’m not worried about where I’m going. I believe God’s Word in 2 Timothy 4:18- He will deliver me safely into His Kingdom. I know my loved ones and that they’d…

  • When Resumes Don’t Match Dreams

    When Resumes Don’t Match Dreams

    Call me weird, but I love helping people with their resumes. It reminds me of those fun matching worksheets we’d fill out in school. Maybe you remember them too? One column might list dates. The other would outline events. We would draw a line between those that matched. Similarly, good resumes tend to align with…

  • In Case You Thought There Wasn’t Enough

    In Case You Thought There Wasn’t Enough

    A massive crowd gathers and listens to lectures for hours. As the hour gets later and later, they begin to get hungry. You have just a small amount of food to offer. Would you organize them by neediest? By the most vulnerable, feeding children and the elderly first? Maybe, because they should have brought food,…

  • 3 Ways to Get Truth from the Head to the Heart

    3 Ways to Get Truth from the Head to the Heart

    You might have heard the famous quote: “The longest journey you will ever take is the 18 inches from your head to your heart.” 18 inches doesn’t seem that far. We can cover that distance in one swift step with our feet. Many of our pets are about that length, and we can run our…

  • Facing the Big “What If”

    Facing the Big “What If”

    I recently had the privilege of sharing a brief devotion with a bunch of teenage girls. Weeks in advance, when I asked the Lord what He might have me say, His answer was clear: “tell them they can pour it all out to me, they can always come to me.” The Lord never gives you…

  • He Must Increase- The Word Works Series!

    He Must Increase- The Word Works Series!

    Formerly a journalist, Lois approaches her blog, Waxing Gibbous, with facts. Facts about life, the facts of a story she is living, and the facts of who our Lord is and how He is working right now. She lives and writes truth, and I’m blessed to share this space with her today. When I was…

  • HE is More Than [Fill In the Blank]

    HE is More Than [Fill In the Blank]

    Photo from: Piaxbay We need to “love the Lord, not just the idea of the Lord” said my dear friend (SkillzUSA). AKA: Don’t reduce God to some idea you have about Him and miss out on His whole person as a result. Our ideas tend to address issues in reactionary ways, focusing on what isn’t…