Faith Archives | Council Fire

March 13, 2026

March 13, 2026

Never Hopeless

“The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is His faithfulness; His mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in Him!’ ” Lamentations 3:22-23 (NLT) The Bible is not clear as to the author of the book of Lamentations but, regardless of who wrote it, it appears to be someone who was in deep distress, particularly over the fact that Jerusalem was being destroyed by the Babylonians. Imagine having your country and people in ruin! It is a terrible loss and the person who […]

March 12, 2026

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March 12, 2026

Lord, Use Me for Your Glory

“Who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood.” 1 Peter 1:2 (NIV) When the Lord first called me to His work, I was so excited and ready to go about sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ. But then things happened to destroy all that. I felt shame. There were people relying on me, but I had come up way short of everyone’s expectations— most of all Jesus, who gave up all things for me. I felt like […]

March 11, 2026

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March 11, 2026

Strengthen That Which Remains

“Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.” Revelation 3:2 (KJV) In Revelation 3, Jesus gave the church in Sardis a warning to repent and turn back to God. It sounds as if most of the believers in the church had become spiritually weak. But there is hope! . . . although death is mentioned, the possibility for renewal remains. Some people have a life motto. My own motto is the title of this devotional. In our little village, language is what kept our people […]

March 10, 2026

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March 10, 2026

How Do You Take Your Coffee?

“There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work.” 1 Corinthians 12:4-6 (NIV) I was thinking about the different ways we do things. For us coffee drinkers, we seem to have a wide variance in the way we like our coffee. The coffee chain I gravitate to has four sizes of coffee: S, M, L and XL . . . three kinds of coffee to choose […]

March 9, 2026

March 9, 2026

God Knows Best

“Then the Lord opened Balaam’s eyes, and he saw the angel of the LORD standing in the road with his sword drawn. So he bowed low and fell facedown.” Numbers 22:31 (NIV) This story of Balaam, the donkey, and the angel (Numbers 22) reminds me that God knows best and prevents many things from happening that we do not know about. On a cold morning, my family and I were preparing to leave our Saskatchewan home for Manitoba. My van started, but there was no heat, so we ended up staying home. Soon I started having chest pains. I called […]

March 8, 2026

March 8, 2026

Seeing Myself

“You are the one who put me together inside my mother’s womb, and I praise you because of the wonderful way you created me. Everything you do is marvelous! Of this, I have no doubt.” Psalm 139:13-14 (CEV) As a child I had difficulty in seeing value in my life. I looked at other people and compared myself to them. When I didn’t think I measured up (which usually happened), I would look down on myself, thinking I was less than them. That whole thought pattern followed me into my adult years. It took a long time before I realized […]

March 7, 2026

March 7, 2026

Look at Who I Am

“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made.” Romans 1:20a. (NIV) Do you ever regret the choices you’ve made? Do you wonder if God exists and, if so, why you are in such a mess? Has a self-proclaimed Christian ever wounded you or led you astray? My faith turned to rubble in 1990. I sifted through broken dreams and shattered trust, trying to find a solid foothold, but I kept slipping on fear, anger, confusion and shame. I lay on the floor crying […]

March 6, 2026

March 6, 2026

Fear Not

“Fear not, for I am with you.” Isaiah 41:10a (NKJV) The phrase “Fear not” appears in the Bible many times, more than any other phrase. It is strange that God has to remind us constantly not to be afraid. The Almighty God of the Universe loves us, and yet we are constantly afraid of a thousand things that might or might not happen. We need constant assurance that God loves us and is watching over us. When my children were small, I would often hold them on my lap and read the Bible to them. We lived on a farm […]

March 5, 2026

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March 5, 2026

No Harm Will Overtake You

“Because you have made the LORD, who is my refuge, even the Most High, your dwelling, there shall be no evil befall you, neither shall any plague come near your tent.” Psalm 91:9-10 (MEV) Because of my early life experiences, I carried fear into my adult life. As a young Christian, I did not realize that the enemy would use these fears against me. Often when alone, I would hear someone walking in the other room and, at night, I would see ugly faces in the windows. However, it was the evil presence I could feel around me that scared […]