Truth and Grace Above All Else

The book of Joshua Part 1 We are very pleased to introduce to you the first ever guest blogger on Thetruvine! He will be covering the book of Joshua in a multi part series. You should keep a close eye out for these posts as they come from a published author. This is very exciting and we cannot wait to see how all of you respond. Without further ado, here is Matt Davenport. A bout Me Matt (M.R.) Davenport was born in a small town in Northern California. He's traveled the U.S. a lot since then. He is the "middle" child. "And therefore, have the issues of such." As he points out. He served in the US Army as a Military Policeman. It was, at the time, his aspiration to be a full time California Highway Patrolman. But life got in the way. He met and married his first wife shortly after leaving the service. They had three children together. Mercedes first while living in Missouri. Then Caleb came along after they returned to California. Then Jacob. He...

The Bible in a Year (A series) This is the second year of reading the Bible in a year. Another year means more has been understood, retained and connections have been made between major Biblical characters. There have been several themes which stuck out over the year, but being able to go over everything in a different light has allowed my mind to be opened to the true vastness of the Bible.  For context, the YouVersion Bible app was used with the Bible Project   Read the Bible in a Year Plan . I personally use the NIV because it is what I have used for many years and it has always been sufficient for my understanding. The videos provided at the beginning of each book puts the book into the appropriate context so that as you read through, you are almost transported into the world of the writer. I highly recommend going and checking out their material and consider starting the new year out by reading the Bible in a year. The sections which you read are very mana...

A growing hunger to know Him better On Christmas day of 2017 I began a three day journey of fasting from food. Please understand that I drank lots of water throughout the three days in order to stay hydrated. This is similar to another three day fast from 2016. You might wonder what the significance of this fast was or why someone would even subject themselves to something so harsh. There are multiple reason why fasting is such an integral part of my life:  1. It teaches us to remember the things in life that are more important then walking to the fridge and pulling out our favorite snack and mindlessly eating.  2. When you are hungry, you are more focused. During this time of being hungry, reading my Bible in replacement of my meals brought me true comfort and peace.  3. We are to be in this world, but not of it. If you ever want to get your friends or coworkers to ask questions about why you are not eating, this will surely help you do that! (Tip: This is...

Daily involvement with God's word Galatians 5:17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want.  Our flesh is constantly at odds with what the Spirit wants, therefore we need to daily offer up ourselves in service of God so as to recognize that our bodies are not our own, but the Father's. Luke 9:23 says, "Then he said to them all: 'Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.'". We must make a choice on a day to day basis to give up our sinful desires and live a life devoted to Him. Form habits that are uncomfortable Even though I am an extrovert and love talking to new people, it is hard to share my faith sometimes. There are habits that I have tried to form over the last few years to help with my shortcomings in this aspect of ministry though. The first is wh...

Growth needs to be directed and maintained Having a few different hobbies keeps me very busy. Thankfully most of my hobbies require little to no effort to enjoy, except one. By far the most time consuming and enjoyable hobby that I take part in is growing bonsai trees. Yes, I know what you are probably thinking right now, "Oh, like Mr. Miyagi?". Yes, bonsai trees were popularized by the movie The Karate Kid , but that is not the reason I became fascinated with these almost whimsical plants.  I was browsing my Facebook feed one day and came across an image of a man holding a clay pot in the palm of his hand. Inside of that pot was a small tree that looked as though it was well aged and had a thick trunk to show how old it was. I became awestruck by this image and was captivated to the point of going crazy  over the other images I found of these delicate and beautiful plants. So about three years ago, I purchased a small kit to grow a tree from seed.  The pa...