Lori Hatcher's Blog: Refresh Blog, page 35

One of the Sweetest Ways to Change the World

When you grow up in a small town in New England, you don’t have much to brag about. Nestled on the shores of Narragansett Bay, the sleepy little town where I was born is home to about 23,000 people. 



But once a year, it goes from obscure to ostentatious. 


On July 4th, Bristol, Rhode Island makes headlines by hosting the oldest continuously-running Fourth of July parade in the world. As a Girl Scout from troop #229, I proudly marched with my band of sisters in this parade on more than one occasion. 

Organized in 1785 by Henry Wright, a Congregational minister and veteran of the Revolutionary War, the celebration attracts more than 200,000 visitors from around the world. It’s not uncommon to see the Today Show broadcasting "The Military, Civic and Firemen's Parade" from a perch on Hope Street. 


In preparation for the celebration, the town paints the town red. And white. And blue. Literally. A tri-color stripe down the middle of Hope Street marks the parade route. Fire hydrants painted to look like minute men dot the main thoroughfare. Bunting, flags, and flowers adorn every home within ten miles of the town center. It’s no wonder Bristol has earned the nickname, “America’s Most Patriotic Town.” 

When my family moved from Rhode Island to South Carolina, I discovered that the biggest parade in Columbia took place in the winter. Smart. Very smart. In a land where July temperatures often reach 100 degrees or more, hosting a grand celebration in one of the cooler months of the year makes sense. 

The Columbia Christmas Parade has all the parade elements I grew up with and more. Because Columbia is home to Fort Jackson, the largest basic training facility in the country, we always see an impressive display of military power. Fly overs by jets from Shaw Air Force base, rolling tanks and Armored Personnel Carriers from the fort, and music by the Army band add a chest-swelling patriotic touch. 

I was half way through my senior year of dental hygiene school when parade organizers invited me to represent the Allied Health Department. Dressed in my white uniform and cap and accompanied by a five-foot wooden tooth, I waved and smiled until my face hurt. 

One of the funnest parts of the parade was throwing candy to the kids along the route. (Ironic in light of my life-long pledge to fight tooth decay, but hey, it was Christmas.) Before event organizers decided it was dangerous and banned the practice, we had the freedom to fling handfuls of candy into the crowds that lined the streets. 

Reveling in the memory of digging into that bucket of candy and scattering sweets far and wide, I realized something. Although safety concerns has ended the tradition of distributing candy at a parades, we as Christians can share a blessing that far surpasses Fireballs, Starburst, and Jolly Ranchers. 

We can scatter prayers. 

God showed me this early one morning as I walked the streets of my neighborhood. What if you scattered prayers the way you once scattered candy? The Holy Spirit whispered to my heart. Fling them far and wide. See how many people you can touch in my name today. 

So I did. 

I prayed for my closest neighbors as I walked past their houses.

Father, bless that hard-working university professor. Help her shine the light of Christ in her classroom. 

Heal that precious friend with cancer and keep her faith strong. Meet her every need according to your riches and glory. 

Protect that young couple as they travel. Give them a restful time away and bring them home safely. 

I also prayed for neighbors I haven’t yet met, flinging petitions their way with abandon. 

Lord, there’s that young girl I pass every morning jogging with her dog. Keep her safe. Keep her pure. If she doesn’t know you as Savior, help her find you. 

And the man who leaves for work every morning at 6 a.m. Bless his home and his family. Draw him close to you. 

And the grumpy lady who never smiles. Help her find joy. 

Unlike the big bucket of candy on the parade floats, these sweet offerings multiplied the more I scattered them. I prayed for the policeman who lives at the entrance to our neighborhood. For the contractor who parks his trailer in a cul de sac. For the couple whose toy poodle barks every time I walk by. 


The house with a fleet of bicycles reminded me to pray for the next generation that will one day lead our country. The home with a Navy flag prompted me to pray for our military and their families. The house with the handicap ramp led me to pray for the health and safety of all my neighbors. 

Everywhere I walked, I scattered prayers with abandon, knowing God hears every one of them and promises to fulfill his purpose in each person’s life. 

What a privilege to be part of his work in the world. 

Would you like to join me? What if, instead of mindlessly walking, driving, or moving through your day, you grabbed a bucket of sweet prayers and flung them wherever you went? Who knows how God might use your petitions to accomplish his work in the lives of those around you. 

One day we’ll be part of the parade to end all parades. Instead of a red, white, and blue stripe down the middle of the road, we’ll march on golden pavement. The King of kings and Lord of lords will lead the throng, and behind him will walk people from every tribe, tongue and nation. 

How many will be there because of your prayers? 

Now it’s your turn. How have you incorporated prayer into your daily routine? Leave a comment below and share your thoughts.



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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

Are Your Words Grounded and Timed in Love? A Guest Post by Lori Roeleveld

It's my pleasure to welcome my friend, fellow-writer, and fellow-Rhode Islander (who just happens to share my name), Lori Roeleveld to Hungry for God ... Starving for Time today. I admire Lori for her courage to speak and write the truth, even when it's unpopular. Follow the link at the end of the blog to read more from her. But be warned, hanging around with her will make you do hard things, just like Jesus did.



Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. (1 Peter 4:8) 

I was surprised when Carly invited me to lunch. Our church had been experiencing a conflict that had divided many. Carly and I had had numerous hard conversations about her attitude. Our last conversation had been particularly adversarial, so I was nervous that our meeting might be a vengeful ambush. 

Carly arrived after I did, and once we ordered, she didn’t keep me in suspense. “I need your help and your prayers. My doctor called me to discuss my most recent test results, and I don’t want to face it alone. Can you come along?” 

I was taken aback. “Of course. Still, I’m surprised you’re asking me.” 

“Why?” she said, leaning back in the booth. “Well, our last few exchanges haven’t been the most comfortable,” I replied. 


She nodded. “In fact, I hated those conversations. But through everything, one thing that’s always been clear is that you love me. It takes a huge commitment to love to stick with someone through talks like that. Other people probably have thought those things and just given up on me or walked away. I’ll take the tough talks as long as there’s the love.” 

Love is a multidimensional quality. It’s both a noun, representing a feeling, and a verb, representing actions that put others first. In John 21, after Jesus has risen from the dead, He appears to some of the disciples on the shore of the Sea of Tiberias. 

In verses 15–19, over breakfast, Jesus asks Peter three times about his love for Him. Peter answers three times that He does, indeed, love Jesus. Jesus’s response to each affirmative answer is to call Peter to action—feeding Jesus’s sheep—in demonstration of this love. 

To say that we love others is to say we’re willing to risk our own discomfort to speak hard things to them. 

To say that we love Jesus is to say we are ready to obey Him by living and speaking the truth. 

To say that we love Jesus is to say we are willing to reflect Him by loving and serving others. 

To say that we love others is to say we’re willing to risk our own discomfort to speak hard things to them.

Love is a feeling that leads to action.When we prepare for any hard conversation, we must ask ourselves questions about love. Do I love this person, and if not, what am I going to do about that? Am I being loving to speak this truth in this way, at this time, to this person? 

Some believers falsely assume that to be loving means to stay silent about truth or to compromise it in some way. Others are so afraid that loving feelings will lead to a softening of truth, they harden their hearts toward others and eschew mercy. 

This is dangerous thinking—both for the church of Jesus Christ and ultimately for the world.The world (meaning people who don’t follow Jesus) has absconded with love, replacing God’s idea of love with a facsimile that many buy as the real thing. 

And not just the world. Some parts of the body of Christ believe that to be loving, biblical truth must be muted or modified. 

Not so. 

Jesus walked on Earth living out perfect love while delivering perfect truth. It is possible. It’s not possible without Jesus, but it’s possible. Love and truth can occupy the same space, just as surely as Christ was fully human and fully God.

I’m aware that these two words frustrate, frighten, or trigger a wound reflex in some people. We’ve heard this phrase before, perhaps tossed around the church like a beach ball (or a dodge ball). 

“I’m just speaking the truth in love, is all.” 

“Well, don’t you know you have to speak truth in love?” 

Intended for useful instruction, this power-filled phrase from Ephesians 4 is too often snapped from its context like a tree branch and used to club innocent passersby in Jesus’s name. The misguided speaker is often leaning heavily toward a personal interpretation of truth, while offering only a passing nod at anything others might recognize as love. 

Inhale. 

Exhale. 

It’s tempting to edit from Scripture any passage that’s been misused, but this would be detrimental (not to mention heretical). Agreed, there has been a shameful amount of bullying that’s occurred in Jesus’s name. This speaking the truth in love concept has too often been the last word spiritually bludgeoned victims hear just before they hit the mat. 

The worse thing we can do, though—worse than lancing the wounds—is to allow the bullies and abusers the last word on God’s Word. It will challenge some of us to revisit “speaking the truth in love,” but these are our Father’s Words. We must reclaim them from the bullies. 

Of course, we can fairly represent love and truth simultaneously. Parents do it with children every day. Spouses do it. Church leaders, doctors, friends, and others all speak truth and communicate love, sometimes in the same breath. 

Love is our high calling. The highest. We need to be trained and transformed by love, so that love is our first language, our initial reflex, and our emotional default setting. We need to foster loving hearts, if we want that love to influence our words. 

(Excerpted from The Art of Hard Conversations, Lori Stanley Roeleveld, February 2019 by permission Kregel Publications)



[image error] Lori Stanley Roeleveld is an author, speaker, and disturber of hobbits who enjoys making comfortable Christians late for dinner. She’s authored four encouraging, unsettling books. Her latest release is The Art of Hard Conversations: Biblical Tools for the Tough Talks that Matter. She speaks her mind at www.loriroeleveld.com.







Are you hungry for God, but starving for time? 
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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

Learning from the Wonder Boys

When you hear the words Wonder Boy, who comes to mind? 

The best modern example I can think of is Tim Tebow. Smart, handsome, athletic, and successful, he exemplifies everything a man should be. And when you add godliness to all his other characteristics, whoo boy, he’s a hero. 

In Old Testament days, King Uzziah was Tim Tebow’s equivalent. Crowned before the stubble had fully grown on his cheeks, Uzzy took his father’s seat on the throne at age 16. He was brave, strong, courageous, and creative. 

Second Chronicles 26 elaborates on his qualities, describing his military prowess, his ambitious building projects, and his “love for the soil.” But there’s more. 

If brave, strong, courageous, and creative weren’t solid enough adjectives for his college application, Uzzy was also an entrepreneur. He took other men’s clever designs and produced devices to launch arrows and stones at Judah’s enemies, giving them a serious technological advantage in battle (v. 15). 

Like Tim Tebow, Uzziah loved the Lord. “He sought God in the days of Zechariah.” And God blessed him. “As long as he sought the Lord, God made him prosper” (v. 5). Everyone knew God’s favor rested squarely on his broad shoulders—Wonder Boy Uzziah “had the hand of God on everything he did.” “So his fame spread far and wide, for he was marvelously helped till he became strong” (v. 15). 

But ...

Oh, don’t you hate those “buts” after a compliment? 

“But when he was strong his heart was lifted up, to his destruction” (v. 16). Taking his cue from the pagan cultures around him, Uzziah disregarded God’s clear instructions for temple worship. Although only Levitical priests were allowed to enter the house of God to offer incense on the altar, Uzziah barged into the temple, royal robes flapping, swinging his censer. Surely those laws don’t apply to me, he reasoned. I’m God’s favored son. He blesses everything I touch. 

Unless you touch something God has declared off limits. 

“Hold it right there, Wonder Boy,” Azariah, the high priest, flanked by 80 valiant men, rushed in after him. “It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the LORD, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Get out of the sanctuary, for you have trespassed! You shall have no honor from the Lord God” (v. 18). 

As I shake my head at Uzziah’s audacity, I also recognize that the dangerous ground he stood on rests firmly beneath my feet. And perhaps yours as well. 

Remember the days when you were young and inexperienced. Maybe you were tiptoeing into the college years, stepping into a new job or profession, or easing into the waters of parenting. You knew nothing and sought help from every credible source, especially God. You combed your Bible, highlighting every nugget of practical advice you could find, determined to apply them to your life. You prayed often, asking God to give you wisdom and direction. 

But then you found your professional sea legs. You grew in knowledge and confidence and enjoyed a measure of success. The anxiety eased and people began coming to you for input and advice. You matured spiritually. You could find the book of Amos without looking in the table of contents. During Bible study, you had insight to share. People sought your advice and asked you to pray for them. You grew casual in your faith. 

And herein lies the danger. 

When we grow comfortable and confident professionally, personally, and spiritually, we often forget Who is the ultimate source of our success. Pride appears at the door of our hearts. Sometimes it elbows its way in like King Uzziah did at the temple, shoving humility to the side and plopping itself on the throne only God has a right to occupy. Other times it slithers in, silent and subtle. We don’t realize it’s there until we step on its scaly tail, and it bites us. 

Sometimes we don’t recognize pride because it has as many masks as the Halloween aisle at Walmart. 

The most obvious mask is self-confident arrogance. There’s no need to listen to or consider anyone else’s opinion or perspective because, of course, I know best. 

A more subtle form of pride is independence. No need to stop and pray about a decision, because I already know what’s best. God gave me a brain, and he expects me to use it. Why bother him? 

Complaining is another form of pride. The antithesis of gratitude, complaining says to God, “I don’t like my circumstances. There’s no way you can use them for good in my life. You’re not serving me the way I want.” 

Direct disobedience to God’s Word is perhaps the most dangerous form of pride, as King Uzziah discovered. He was convinced his plan was best, even though it directly contradicted God’s Word. God will be moved by my great idea, he thought. 

And God was moved—so moved he struck Uzziah with leprosy until the day he died. Even the king had to learn to obey God’s law. 

What can we learn from Uzziah’s example? If we want to finish well, we must guard against pride.  

Here are a few ways to do so: 

1. Pray every morning and throughout the day, “Lord, what would you have me to do? How would you have me answer this person, accomplish this task, deal with this situation?” We are most successfully independent when we acknowledge and embrace our dependence on God. 

2. Be willing and eager to consider others’ opinions and insight. There’s wisdom in a multitude of counselors (Proverbs 15:22). 

3. Practice gratitude. True gratitude acknowledges every good and perfect gift comes from God (James 1:17). When we walk through each day looking for God’s blessings, we’re less likely to grumble about what we lack. 

4. Obey God’s Word. This seems like a no-brainer, but how many times do we directly disobey a principle or command in God’s Word? We worry when God tells us to pray. We vent our anger when he tells us to practice self-control. We compromise when he tells us to take a stand. Every time we do this, we declare that our way is better than God’s way. How prideful and presumptuous is this? 

King Uzziah’s story didn’t end well, but Tim Tebow’s and ours are still being written. King Uzziah spent the rest of his life in exile. We can spend the rest of our lives (and all eternity) in God’s presence. 

By praying daily, listening to others, practicing gratitude, and obeying God’s Word, we can resist pride and live humble, God-honoring lives. How’s that for a success story? 

Now it’s your turn. Which face of pride do you find most challenging? Leave a comment below and share your thoughts. If you’re reading by email, CLICK HERE to visit Hungry for God online and leave a comment.



Are you hungry for God, but starving for time? 
I’d love to send you a 5-minute e-mail devotion twice a week to start your day off with the Lord. 

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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

Is Your Bible a Tool or a Treasure?

For years I seldom opened my Bible. 


Like my favorite purse, I’d carry it to church on Sunday and Wednesday nights. When the pastor introduced the text of his sermon, I’d flip to the passage and follow along. If I attended a Bible study, I’d look up verses in my Bible and pencil in my answers onto the worksheet. My Bible was a tool, not a treasure. 

Today I read about Chinese Christians who are memorizing huge portions and even entire books of the Bible. At a recent seminar, 18 of the 22 Christians attending had been imprisoned for their faith. One woman shared how, in prison, “you have lots of time.” She spent much of it memorizing Scripture. 

Although guards confiscate Bibles and other Christian material, believers smuggle in portions of the Word of God on scraps of paper. “We memorize it as fast as we can,” the woman said, “because even though they can take the paper away, they can’t take what’s hidden in your heart.” 

Amos 8:11-12 prophesied what this woman described: 

"’Behold, the days are coming,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘That I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine of bread, Nor a thirst for water, But of hearing the words of the LORD. They shall wander from sea to sea, And from north to east; They shall run to and fro, seeking the word of the LORD, But shall not find it.’” 

Chinese Christians' love for and commitment to God’s Word has shamed me. Because of the Bible’s scarcity in her world, even one verse of Scripture a precious treasure. Every encounter she has with the Bible is a feast and a delight. 

Compared to my brothers and sisters in China, I’m a Bible glutton. There’s enough contraband in my house that if I lived in their country, I’d be imprisoned for life. Or executed. 

A quick scan of my bookshelves unearthed more than 20 Bibles: The Chronological Study Bible I read every morning; three copies of my favorite Bible, the MacArthur Daily Bible; the cardboard-cover Holy Bible I received at Vacation Bible School; the Scofield Reference Bible I received at my baptism; my late mother-in-law’s Bible, my late brother-in-law’s Bible, the Bible I bought to give to my granddaughter on her birthday, and so on, and so on, and so on. 

I’ve come a long way in the 35 years since I carried my Bible as an accessory. Now I read my Bible almost every day. But it’s been more than a year since I memorized a passage of Scripture. The days are coming—and in some places are already here—when there will be a famine of the Word of God.

If all 20 of my Bibles were taken away tomorrow, would I have enough spiritual food in my mental refrigerator to stay alive? To thrive? To share with others? I suspect not. 

It’s time to remedy this. First Corinthians 4:2 (NIV) says, “He who has been given a trust must prove faithful.” In light of this trust, the amazing privilege of being able to own a Bible—or enough Bibles to stock a small bookstore—I must faithfully steward the gift God has given me. I must begin committing significant portions of Scripture to memory. 

What about you? When was the last time you memorized a portion of God’s Word? If it’s been too long, we can remedy this. Will you join me in honoring the God who gave us his Word and the believers all over the world who are starving for a piece of it by starting, today, to hide it in our hearts? 

I plan to begin by memorizing Psalm 32:8: “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye.” 


If you’ve never memorized Scripture, or if you’ve struggled to find an effective method, let me describe a method that’s worked well for me in the past. 

1. Write the verse on an index card, including the Scripture reference. 



2. Write the first letter of every word and the reference on the back of the card. 

3. Put the card where you’ll see it every day. On your bathroom mirror, beside your bedside table, taped to the refrigerator. I keep my card in my car and redeem the time I spend waiting at stop lights. 

4. Read the verse on the card several times every day. After I’ve read it a few times, I flip the card over and try to recite the verse using only the first letters to prompt me. After a day or two (or more) I begin with the side containing only the letters. 

5. Attempt to say the entire verse from memory with no prompts. You’ll be pleasantly surprised how quickly you’ll learn the verse. 

6. Once you've learned a verse or passage, add it to your stack of verses and review it at least once a week. The keys to long term retention is repetition and review.

Finally, at the bottom of each card I write a reminder: Pray for the persecuted church. This reminds me, every day, to pray for those who are suffering for Christ’s sake. Like the Chinese Christians, I want my Bible to become more than a tool. I want it to become a treasure.

So what do you think? Are you in? Leave a comment below and share your thoughts, including what verse or passage you intend to memorize. If you’re reading by email, CLICK HERE to visit Hungry for God online and leave a comment. 

If you’d like to read the full article from Christianpost.com, Chinese Christians Memorize Bible in Prison: Gov't "Can't Take What's In Your Heart" that prompted this post, click this link. 



Are you hungry for God, but starving for time? 
I’d love to send you a 5-minute e-mail devotion twice a week to start your day off with the Lord. 

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If this post was meaningful to you, would you consider sharing it with a friend by clicking on one of the buttons below? Did you know you can receive bi-weekly Hungry for God posts sent directly to your email inbox? Visit http://www.lori-benotweary.blogspot.com and click on the link in the right hand corner to Subscribe Via Email.

Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

The Doggiest Cat I Know

Mushu is the doggiest cat I know. Primarily an outside pet, Mushu lives two cul de sacs over from my house. I see him every day on my morning walk. 

But he always sees me first. 

As soon as I turn the corner and head down the street, he bounds toward me, tail held high and white paws flashing. He greets me with chirrups and meows, delighted I’ve come his way. Leaning into my fingers as I scratch behind his ears and down his spine, he knows every encounter with me is good. 

Unlike other neighborhood cats who run, hide, or approach me hesitantly, Mushu runs toward me with a confidence born of trust and relationship. 

Hebrews 4:14-16 reminds me I can enjoy this same confidence in my relationship with God. 

“Seeing then that we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin. 

“Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:14-16). 

Because Jesus Christ has removed the sin barrier that separated us, I can come boldly to him in prayer. Our relationship gives me full access to his mercy and grace. I need not fear his wrath, judgment, or disapproval. 

My Father is always eager to see me approach. Before a word leaves my lips, he is already working on my behalf. Scattering good gifts like raindrops, he waters my thirsty soul. I rest secure, knowing that he who knows me best loves me most. 

Father, remind me every day how you eagerly wait for me to approach you in prayer. Even before I turn my gaze toward you, your eyes are upon me, and your ears are attentive to my cry. Silence the voice of the enemy that sows seeds of fear, confusion, and timidity into my heart. Help me rest in confidence, knowing you are my Savior and my advocate, my protector and my friend.



Are you hungry for God, but starving for time? 
I’d love to send you a 5-minute e-mail devotion twice a week to start your day off with the Lord. 

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Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

That Bird on My Chimney

Oh, that bird on my chimney. Dastardly thing perches itself atop the fireplace vent and tweets and chirps and sings. Its bothersome noise echoes down through the fireplace and into my living room, elbowing itself into my peaceful silence. 

When the television is on, I wonder, why is a bird tweeting in the middle of an operating room scene? What in the world could it be trying to communicate so zealously? And so obnoxiously? No one’s listening anyway, except those of us forced to endure its non-stop chorus like a tortured parent at a fifth-grade choir rehearsal. 

Oh, that bird on my chimney. Lovely thing alights upon my rooftop and sends happy peeps and chirrups down the shaft. It doesn’t know I’m listening, but I hear every sharp and flat it joyfully sings. The first note drops into the silence of my morning like a single raindrop on parched ground. Soon others join it until my thirsty soul drinks in the heavenly music.

I laugh at the way its tweets blend with the scene on the morning news, wondering if, perhaps, there are birds on space stations or inside great cathedrals. My feathered friend has an extensive repertoire, and to my untrained ear, every note is different. 

Its passion is unmistakable, and its determination to sing on is impressive, especially without the sound system or water bottles most singers deem necessary. I never know when one concert will end or the next begin, but, regardless, I stop what I’m doing to listen and marvel. 

Today, a bird is going to land on your chimney. Or a child will knock upon your door. Or a family member will insert themself into your day. How will you view the interruption? 

Your response will make all the difference. 

Choose well.



Are you hungry for God, but starving for time? 
I’d love to send you a 5-minute e-mail devotion twice a week to start your day off with the Lord. 

Sign up for a free subscription to Hungry for God by CLICKING HERE.
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Note: I promise never to spam you or share your email address.
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If this post was meaningful to you, would you consider sharing it with a friend by clicking on one of the buttons below? Did you know you can receive bi-weekly Hungry for God posts sent directly to your email inbox? Visit http://www.lori-benotweary.blogspot.com and click on the link in the right hand corner to Subscribe Via Email.

Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

Unlocking God's Word by Asking, "So What?"

“So what?” If someone asked me this question, I’d probably be offended. It sounds snarky, slightly rude, and in your face. Yet I include this question in my list of questions to answer each week in my adult Sunday School class. 

We’ve begun a comprehensive survey of the Bible, studying a book a week until we’ve covered the entire Bible. So far, it’s been a blast. When I prayed about how to approach each book, my training as a newspaper reporter kicked in. Ask the five W’s and an H—Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How. Of course, brilliant! 

Who wrote the book and to whom is it written? What was the main theme? When did the events take place? Where did the events take place? Why did the author write the book? How did the events unfold? 

Looking over my list of questions, I knew I was on the right track to teach the historicity of each book, but something was missing.That’s when I added, “So what?” “Now that I’ve studied the facts of the book, so what? Why does this matter? How should this impact my life?”

“So what?” might just be the most important question at all, because if we read the Bible for information only, it probably won’t change our lives. And we should never leave an encounter with God’s Word unchanged. 

The Bible is a living book, one that has the power to bolster faith, transform people’s hearts, and make us more like Christ. But studying the who, what, when, where, why, and how of Scripture can be more like reading a biography of Lincoln instead of meeting Lincoln himself. It’s only a shadow of everything it could be. 

This is why we must also ask, “So what?” 

Here are a few examples of what this looked like in our study of Genesis: 

FACT: God deliberately created mankind in his image instead of human life spontaneously occurring.  

SO What? My life and the lives of those around me aren’t accidents. They’re part of God’s plan and purpose for the world. Every life matters, because God creates every life. 

FACT: God created Adam and Eve with a free will, even though he knew they’d use it to sin against him. 

SO What? God doesn’t force people to love him. He gives us the ability to choose. 

FACT: God made a promise in Genesis 3:15 that he would send a Redeemer to save mankind from their sin. Thousands of years later, God kept his promise by sending Jesus Christ to die on the cross for the sins of the world. 

SO What? I can trust God to keep his promises in my life as well. 

FACT: God called Abraham to offer his only son as proof of his love for God. Abraham was able to be willing to obey his command because he believed God was a promise-keeping God. 

SO What? Sometimes God calls me to do difficult things. If I truly trust God, I’ll demonstrate my trust by obeying him. 

FACT: God used the unjust circumstances of Joseph’s life to bring deliverance to thousands of people. 

SO What? God can use the difficult circumstances of my life to bring about good in other people’s lives. 

FACT: God placed the infant nation of Israel in the incubator of Egypt so they could grow and begin to establish themselves as a people without interference from dangerous nations. In Egypt, they grew from 70 people to 2.5 million. 

SO What? Similarly, God can orchestrate unlikely situations or circumstances in my life for good. 

Studying the facts of a book gives us vital information to help us understand God’s message. Asking “So what?” helps us apply God’s message to our lives. So the next time you open your Bible to study a passage, I encourage you to learn the who, what, when, where, why, and how of a passage. Then, prayerfully and intentionally, ask God to show you how each passage applies to your life right now. You’ll be amazed at how God’s Word comes alive. 

Now it’s your turn. What is your approach to studying the Scripture, and how has it enhanced your understanding? Leave a comment below and share your insights. If you’re reading by email, CLICK HERE to visit Hungry for God online and leave a comment.



Are you hungry for God, but starving for time? 
I’d love to send you a 5-minute e-mail devotion twice a week to start your day off with the Lord. 

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If this post was meaningful to you, would you consider sharing it with a friend by clicking on one of the buttons below? Did you know you can receive bi-weekly Hungry for God posts sent directly to your email inbox? Visit http://www.lori-benotweary.blogspot.com and click on the link in the right hand corner to Subscribe Via Email.

Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

Why Is It So Hard to Forgive?

The 1,000 Lincoln logs scattered on the carpet in my living room were proof that scarcity doesn’t breed selfishness. Human nature does. 

It's easy to understand why a starving cat would hiss and spit to keep other cats away from a morsel of food in a trash can, but it's harder to understand why someone would act selfishly in the face of abundance. Yet this was the scenario unfolding before me. 

“These are mine,” one grandchild shouted. “I’m using them to build a tower.” 

“No, they’re mine,” the other said, snatching the log from her sister’s hand. “I need them to build a bridge.” A tug of war ensued, and I stepped in to mediate. 

“Girls, these logs aren’t yours. They belong to Gigi, and I'm sharing them with you. If you want to play with them, you’re going to have to work out a way to share with each other. If you fight again, I’m going to put them back into the attic.” 

I shake my head at my grandchildren’s squabbles, yet I am often guilty of the same crime—selfishness in the face of abundance. Apparently it’s a sin that goes back to Bible times. The book of Jonah describes an ancient version of the Lincoln Log scene. 

You know the story. God commanded Jonah to go to the city of Ninevah and deliver a message: Repent of your sinful ways or I will destroy you." Instead of rushing to obey, Jonah jumped aboard a ship and hightailed it in the opposite direction. 

A storm arose, Jonah confessed to the crew that his disobedience was the cause, and they threw him overboard to save their lives. He sank into the depths of the sea, only to be swallowed by a giant fish. 

In the belly of the fish, Jonah had lots of time to think. But he was stubborn. My, my was he stubborn. It took him three days and three nights, but finally, surrounded by partially-digested fish, his head wrapped in seaweed, and his skin bleached white from the fish’s stomach acid, he repented. 


God, in his mercy, gave him a second chance. He commanded the whale to burp Jonah out—guess where—on the coast of Ninevah. Then he repeated his call, “Arise, go to Ninevah.” 

This time Jonah obeyed. 

You’d think, after being tossed into the ocean, swallowed by a fish, and stuck in its belly for three days and three nights, Jonah would be eager to share the God of Second Chances with the Ninevites. I can hear his opening line, “Boy, do I have a story to tell you. . .” 

Instead, he delivered God’s message verbatim and sulked when the entire city repented and turned to God. “This is why I didn’t want to come,” he muttered. “I know that You are a gracious and merciful God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, One who relents from doing harm” (4:2). 

It’s easy to cluck our tongues at Jonah until we look in the mirror and see bits of seaweed clinging to our faces.


Like Jonah, I readily accept God’s mercy and forgiveness. When I sin, I rush to drink from the cleansing water, allowing his grace to expunge my guilt. I revel in his mercy, marveling that one so holy would even look at a sinful soul like me, let along welcome me into a relationship. 

Yet when the opportunity comes to extend forgiveness and grace to someone who has wronged me, instead of lavishing it on them in the quantity I have received, I hoard it selfishly, unwilling to share the smallest drop. I ignore Ephesians 4:32, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” and instead crave judgment and punishment. They hurt me, so they should hurt a while, too. Forgiveness lets them off too easily. 

When I need forgiveness, when I confess my sin to a holy and righteous God, he doesn’t let me stew and sweat. He doesn’t require penance and purgatory. Even before the words leave my mouth, his response covers them, “Yes. Yes! A thousand times yes. Not only do I forgive you, but I cast your sins as far as the east is from the west to remember them no more. You are cleansed. You are restored. You are forgiven.” 

And then he wipes the seaweed, sea salt, and stomach acid from my Jonah face and gives me another chance. And another. And another. 

Consider the precious words of Psalm 103: 8-14.

The LORD is compassionate and gracious, 
slow to anger, abounding in loving devotion. 
He will not always accuse us, nor harbor His anger forever. 
He has not dealt with us according to our sins 
or repaid us according to our iniquities. 
For as high as the heavens are above the earth, 
so great is His loving devotion for those who fear Him. 
As far as the east is from the west, 
so far has He removed our transgressions from us. 
As a father has compassion on his children, 
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear Him. 

“He who has been forgiven much loves much,” Jesus once said of a sinful woman. Like her, we, too, have been forgiven much. Let’s do our best to live like it. 

Father, remind me every day how great a love debt I owe you and how quickly you forgive me every time I ask. Help me forgive others just like you forgive me. In the mighty name of Jesus I ask, Amen.



Are you hungry for God, but starving for time? 
I’d love to send you a 5-minute e-mail devotion twice a week to start your day off with the Lord. 

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If this post was meaningful to you, would you consider sharing it with a friend by clicking on one of the buttons below? Did you know you can receive bi-weekly Hungry for God posts sent directly to your email inbox? Visit http://www.lori-benotweary.blogspot.com and click on the link in the right hand corner to Subscribe Via Email.

Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

Why You Need Church (and I Do, Too)

My husband and I became Christians in our late teen years. Led to Christ through the efforts of caring, soul-winning members of two different local churches, we were immediately adopted into God’s family. These kind people who loved Jesus also loved us. They overlooked our rough edges and immature ways and took time corporately and individually to teach us what it looked like to live the faith life. 

We’ve walked with God for almost forty years now. Second only to accepting Christ as our Savior, being active members of a local church has been the single best life decision we’ve ever made. 

Here’s why: 

1. Church helps us gain wisdom and discernment. My Toastmasters club teaches me how to speak effectively. My dental hygiene study club keeps my professional knowledge up to date. An occasional nutrition class reminds me to make healthy food choices. Only the church helps me learn how to make wise parenting decisions, live peacefully with my spouse, care for my aging parents, pray with power, share my faith, and make God-centered life decisions. 

At every new stage of life, God met our family’s need for wisdom and knowledge through his Body, the church. In the early days of our parenting, godly couples several years ahead of us invited us to a Bible study. “Bring your baby,” they said. “She won’t be a problem.” How did they know we were lonely, overwhelmed, and struggling? Maybe they didn’t, but God did, and he opened their hearts to invite us. That study, and the fellowship and friendship it provided, gave us the hope and help we desperately needed. 

A Growing Kids God’s Way class taught us that strong families begin with strong marriages. A Let Prayer Change Your Life study cracked the door on the power of prayer. A Love and Respect study helped us identify sources of conflict that had troubled our marriage since its early days. In every age and stage of life, the church has met our need for guidance through a class, a resource, or a relationship. 

2. Church helps us connect with like-minded people and those with similar goals and values. In a church, certain standards of thought and conduct are understood. Parents look out for each other’s kids and blow the whistle if they see something concerning. They’re not afraid to challenge our kids if they hear words or see behavior that contradicts God’s Word. 

They provide invaluable reinforcement in the weary trenches of parenting. They bolster our faith with their examples of standing for righteousness even when it costs something. They provide a peer group for wholesome activities and meaningful pursuits. 

3. Church attendance is good for your health. Laura Rowley, in her article, “5 Surprising Scientific Reasons to Attend Church” writes, “Tyler J. VanderWeele, an epidemiologist with the Harvard School of Public Health, conducted a study of regular church-goers over two decades with his colleagues. He found that people who attend religious services at least once a week enjoy better blood pressure, healthier cardiovascular, immune and endocrine functions and less coronary artery disease than those who don’t attend at all”. 

The article also notes, “People who go to services regularly are less likely to be depressed. A survey of nearly 100,000 women over 50 who attended religious services found they were 56 percent more likely to have a positive outlook on life and 27 percent less likely to be depressed, according to a study in the Journal of Religion and Health. 

4. Church knits people’s hearts together unlike anything else. Because we share the same Holy Spirit, our friendships are deeper, our conversations more intentional, and our time together richer and more life-changing. We’ve discovered the collective joy of serving our community, each other, and the Lord. Nothing builds a friendship like packing and inspecting 2,600 Operation Christmas Child boxes in a single afternoon. Or packing and delivering 100 Thanksgiving food boxes. Or volunteering at a crisis pregnancy center or a homeless woman’s shelter. 

The satisfaction of working together on projects like these makes shallow, self-centered pursuits pale in comparison. At the end of the day, the shared experience of laboring together for a cause greater than ourselves builds eternal relationships.

5. Church is there for the good times and the bad. We’ve celebrated new babies, graduations, and marriages together. We’ve mourned job losses, cancer, and death. When our family received word while out of the country on a mission trip that my sister-in-law had died of a triple brain aneurysm, we couldn’t make it back in time for the funeral. Members of our church helped make funeral arrangements, fed the family, and stood beside our loved ones in our absence. For one daughter’s wedding, friends baked cakes and pies, tied a hundred bows, and cleaned up late into the night. We’ve done the same for them, with joy. It’s what family does.

6. Church gives us something bigger than ourselves in which to invest our lives. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 4:2 reminds us, “He who has been given a trust must prove faithful.” Each of us have been entrusted with a measure of time, talent, and treasure. One day we’ll give an account of what we did with it. And while there are a thousand good causes, there are also a thousand empty pursuits. 

Christ gave believers one assignment—to build his kingdom by pointing others to himself. “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you;” (Matthew 28:19-20). God’s kingdom is the only one that promises eternal rewards and endless joy. Every time we give, teach, pray, and serve in God’s name, we invest in people—people who will live forever. When all is said and done, this is the most meaningful and significant way to spend and be spent. 

These six reasons why we need church are a small sample of the hundreds I could describe. I’d like to conclude with perhaps the greatest reason: We need church because God is there. Yes, God lives in us, so, technically, he is present wherever we are, but when we gather as a body of believers for the purpose of worshiping him, his presence is almost palpable. He speaks through the music and the preaching. He draws us to his side through the collective prayers of his children. He inspires us through stories of others’ faithfulness. We are stronger, wiser, kinder, sweeter when we sit in our Father’s house, surrounded by our brothers and sisters, for the sole purpose of drawing closer to Him. 

Why, oh why, would you want to miss this? 

If you regularly attend a church, don’t stop. If you don’t, perhaps it’s time to give it a try. What do you have to lose? And what might you gain?

Now it’s your turn to share a reason why we need church. Leave a comment below and share your thoughts. If you’re reading by email, CLICK HERE to visit Hungry for God online and leave a comment. 



Are you hungry for God, but starving for time? 
I’d love to send you a 5-minute e-mail devotion twice a week to start your day off with the Lord. 

Sign up for a free subscription to Hungry for God by CLICKING HERE.
Then, be sure to VALIDATE the confirmation email you receive. 

Note: I promise never to spam you or share your email address.
Because busy women need to connect with God in the craziness of everyday life.






If this post was meaningful to you, would you consider sharing it with a friend by clicking on one of the buttons below? Did you know you can receive bi-weekly Hungry for God posts sent directly to your email inbox? Visit http://www.lori-benotweary.blogspot.com and click on the link in the right hand corner to Subscribe Via Email.

Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher

How to Age Well

In my job as a health care worker, I’m privileged to treat many elderly patients. I’ve worked in the same practice for more than 31 years, so I’ve also had the opportunity to watch our patient population age. 

The ones who were children when I joined the staff now have children of their own. The college students are middle-aged. Those who were middle-aged are now elderly. 

I find the middle-agers who are now senior citizens most interesting, probably because I see my future most clearly in them. 

Some have aged well. Their faces have grown kinder. Their personalities have softened. Their eyes sparkle with laughter, and their hearts overflow with gratitude. Even though their physical limitations make caring for them more difficult, I look forward to seeing them because they’re fun, inspiring, and sweet. 

Others, I’m sad to say, haven’t improved with age. Their words are impatient and sharp. Their faces wear a permanent scowl. They’re demanding, suspicious, and entitled. Instead of believing the best about the people who have cared for them all these years, they believe we’re part of a giant conspiracy to steal their money. 

Watching people age has taught me much. It’s helped me realize I have a choice to make about how I approach each day—with grumbling or gratitude. 

If I choose to grumble about my aches, pains, and limitations, my grumpy words will reflect my grumpy attitude. If I demand special care because of my age, social status, or income, I’ll never be satisfied, because any effort will fall short by my unrealistic standards. If I grow suspicious and cynical and treat honest, hard-working people with distrust, I’ll sabotage any hope of genuine care, because relationships require trust. 

Like a dog who’s been eating out of the garbage can, the stench of my bad attitude will precede me, surround me, and linger behind me wherever I go. Before long, people will catch a whiff and hide rather than hold their breath in my presence. 


If I embrace gratitude, however, I’ll become a very different person. By focusing on my blessings (and everyone has some), I can change the atmosphere of a room almost instantly. By expressing thanks for the care others show me, I can validate those who feel unappreciated or overlooked. By trusting others and assuming the good (while exercising discretion, of course), I can foster an environment of mutual respect and commitment. 

Like bed sheets fresh from the clothesline, I can scatter sunshine and fresh air wherever I go. Instead of hiding when people see me coming, they’ll gravitate toward me, eager to share a smile, a laugh, or an encouraging word. 

Of all the patients I've cared for, Mrs. Maisy is one of my favorites. 

Well into her 90s, she lost a husband and a son in tragic deaths. While we’ve often talked about her losses, she always ends the conversation the same way. “I have much to be thankful for. God has given me a good life.” 

For the last year or so, Mrs. Maisy’s been battling cancer. Three weeks before she passed away, she came in for a visit. Every staff member stuck their head into the treatment room to speak to her. 

“How’re you doing, Mrs. Maisy?” 

“Oh, I’m slowing down,” she said, shaking her head. But her blue eyes twinkled and a smile hovered at the corners of her mouth. “It won’t be long now. But I’m ready. I have much to be thankful for. God has given me a good life.” 

Mrs. Maisy’s obituary was two columns long in the local paper, but I believe her greatest accomplishment wasn’t the committees she served on or the charities with which she worked. Her greatest accomplishment was demonstrating to the world that old doesn’t have to be synonymous for grumpy. Old can also mean grateful. 

Thank you, Mrs. Maisy, for showing me how to age gracefully, squeeze every bit of joy out of life, and share that joy with those around me. Thanks for teaching me I have a choice about the type of old person I become—grumbly or grateful. I want to wear well the grateful gown you left behind. 

"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever."(1 Chronicles 16:34).

Now it’s your turn. Have you known someone who got sweeter, kinder, and more grateful as they aged? How did their example impact you? Leave a comment below and share your story. If you’re reading by email, CLICK HERE to visit Hungry for God online and leave a comment.



Are you hungry for God, but starving for time? 
I’d love to send you a 5-minute e-mail devotion twice a week to start your day off with the Lord. 

Sign up for a free subscription to Hungry for God by CLICKING HERE.
Then, be sure to VALIDATE the confirmation email you receive. 

Note: I promise never to spam you or share your email address.
Because busy women need to connect with God in the craziness of everyday life.








If this post was meaningful to you, would you consider sharing it with a friend by clicking on one of the buttons below? Did you know you can receive bi-weekly Hungry for God posts sent directly to your email inbox? Visit http://www.lori-benotweary.blogspot.com and click on the link in the right hand corner to Subscribe Via Email.

Copyright 2018 by Lori Hatcher