Ruby Hayes is a retired schoolteacher and widow from Lexington, Virginia. Most mornings she is up before the house, writing at her kitchen table with her Bible open and Earl's old mug full of coffee.
devotional
"The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree." — Matthew 13:31-32 The children have been
devotional
"Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being
devotional
"Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these." — Matthew 6:28-29 The cherry tomatoes have come in and I ate three of them standing
devotional
"He has made everything suitable for its time; moreover he has put a sense of past and future into their minds, yet they cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end." — Ecclesiastes 3:11 I have been thinking about the summers when I
devotional
"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you." — Isaiah 43:2 There is a woman at church I have been praying for and I do not know how she is doing this week because I have
devotional
"Let me hear of your steadfast love in the morning, for in you I put my trust. Teach me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul." — Psalm 143:8 The town is quiet this morning the way it always is on the
Sunday Letter
"The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace." — Numbers 6:24-26 It is Sunday evening and the holiday is behind us. Jack
devotional
"Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; come into his presence with singing. Know that the LORD is God. It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. Enter his
devotional
"For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven..." — Isaiah 55:10-11 I opened the Bible this morning to the place where the ribbon was, which is Isaiah, and I read the part about the rain. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow
devotional
"Blessed are those who trust in the LORD, whose trust is the LORD. They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream. It shall not fear when heat comes, and its leaves shall stay green." — Jeremiah 17:7-8 The garden
devotional
"Grandchildren are the crown of the aged, and the glory of children is their parents." — Proverbs 17:6 Jack is twelve today. I called this morning and Dan answered and said Jack was still asleep, which is exactly right for a boy on his birthday in summer. Dan
devotional
"I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you." — 2 Timothy 1:5 My mother used to say that the garden will tell you when it is ready and