God's Roadmap

Now may the Lord Jesus Christ and our Father God, who loved us and in his wonderful grace gave us eternal comfort and a beautiful hope that cannot fail, encourage your hearts and inspire you with strength to always do and speak what is good and beautiful in his eyes (2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 TPT).


Sunday, May 27, 2018

Memorial Day Tribute to Little Known Heroes


by Barbara Latta

Memorial Day Tribute to Little Known Heroes
Memorial Day is a time set aside to remember the sacrifice of those who have given their lives for our country. Almost 1.4 million military personnel have been killed in battle since the Revolutionary War. Heroes are recognized and decorated as they should be, but most of those who died remain nameless and faceless except to their family and friends.


While we can never list all the heroic actions and names of those who fought and died, here are some little known stories of those who saved the lives of their fellow soldiers while preserving the freedoms we enjoy every day.

Sunday, May 13, 2018

Wisdom from Biblical Mothers


by Barbara Latta

Wisdom from biblical mothers
Mother’s Day is a time to honor and remember our mothers for their love and sacrifice throughout the years. As mothers ourselves, our children will be bringing gifts to honor us. When our offspring show us love their words are appreciated more than we can express.

But sometimes thoughts of all the mistakes we have made while raising our children attack us. None of us are perfect, but when we are focused on training our children in the fear of the Lord, God blesses our efforts. 
We can learn lessons from biblical mothers. Some listened to God and others didn’t, but we can discern wisdom from their lives and the consequences of their decisions, whether good or bad.

These women can show us the results of listening to God or ignoring His Word:

Sunday, May 6, 2018

Using the Potter to Reveal the Truth about Trials


by Barbara Latta

Using the potter to reveal the
truth about trials
Okay, you may be saying, not another story about the potter and the clay. If you have been in church for any length of time, you have heard sermons preached using Jeremiah and this illustration (Jeremiah 18).

This is not an attempt to re-preach that lesson; however, a recent illustration at my church showed me something else not usually seen in the potter and clay story.

A talented art teacher was our guest speaker and while he taught he created clay works of art on his potter’s wheel. Spinning the wheel with his foot, the talented hands worked the clay until the object in his mind formed on the plate. His statement that the clay is sometimes harder or softer sounds like us. Even though his hands were forming, the clay had to submit to the fingers pressing in on it. If the clay was too hard, the bowl he wanted to create did not turn out like he planned.

Creating a bowl was just the first step. If left in that state, the clay would dry but would be fragile. The artist held up a bowl that had been left in the air to dry and the edge had been broken off. When he tried to pick the bowl up by the rim, the clay, although dry, was not strong enough to withstand the pressure of his hands. The teacher flicked his finger against the rim of the bowl and the pottery made a dull klunking sound.

We all know pottery must be fired to complete the process. The next bowl on the table had been through one firing. The teacher flicked his finger against the rim and a ringing sound was heard. The firing of the clay had made the clay stronger and the sound happier.

However, that is not the final product. A second firing is necessary after a glaze is applied to create a beautiful color. But the second firing also created a more distinct and bell tone ring when flicked with the artist’s finger.

A lot of teaching has been used to say that when we go through “firings” of life we become stronger. That is not exactly true. If it were, we would all be the strongest of Christians because we all go through trials and difficulties in our lives. What makes us stronger is that when we go through those “firings” we overcome them. But if we succumb to the
Become ash or a singing vessel.
trial we become a pot of crumbled ash. Clay pots that go through firings can come out broken and useless. The difference is in the strength of the clay. Become ash or a singing vessel.

When we stand on the Word of God to withstand temptation, discouragement and difficulty we come out of the fire better than we were before and we have a song. A song of a stronger faith, a song of deliverance from our Savior and a song of victory knowing the next time we face something we have an arsenal of weapons in our fired clay.

When we realize these truths, we can view those fired times as an opportunity to become a strong vessel. Trials don’t make us stronger. Standing strong through the fire makes us stronger. God doesn’t send the trials. The difficulties come from our enemy because he wants to discourage us enough to get us to give up and stay away from the Word of God (Mark 4:17). That’s why when we stand on the Word, we can be in the fire without being consumed. And our song will keep on singing.

What does the pottery reveal to you? Join the conversation.