Toni Ford

By Toni Ford In Chapter 8 of the Book of Mark we find the story of the feeding of the four thousand. people This story shows us a beautiful picture of not only our Father’s heart for ALL people but also skills needed to be an effective leader. Let’s take a look at this story

By Toni Ford Have you ever heard a speaker begin his or her seminar by holding up a $20 bill? Talking in front of 300 students, a speaker recently asked, “Who would like this $20 bill?” Of course, hands started going up all across the room. He said, “I am going to give this $20

By Toni Ford Have you ever heard of the Book of Micah? Better yet, have you ever read the Book of Micah? Micah was an Old Testament prophet who received visions from God concerning Samaria and Jerusalem. He sought to call the Jews back to faithful worship of Jehovah and sincere obedience to His covenant

By Toni Ford If you know much about Paul in the Bible, you know that he never doubted his calling, which was to share the Gospel of Jesus to both Jews and Gentiles. Paul did this with an incredible boldness and never wavered in his calling, regardless of the persecution and trials he faced. In

By Toni Ford Chapter 4 of the Book of Jonah reveals Jonah’s sins as well as the intentions and thoughts of his heart. We are reminded in 1 Samuel 16:7 that God looks at our hearts and weighs the motives of our heart. The root of every problem is the problem in the heart, and

By Toni Ford In just a few days, Easter Sunday will be here and millions of people will gather around the world to reflect on the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ. Yet the resurrection is more than just a historical event. For the believer, this is a time of great celebration

By Toni Ford The conversion of Saul, the leading persecutor of Christians, was one of the greatest events in church history. Saul, whose name was changed to Paul shortly after his conversion, met Jesus on his way to Damascus. The Lord had a special work for Paul. This Hebrew of Hebrews would become the apostle

By Toni Ford When we read the minor prophet books in the Old Testament, we quickly observe a recurring pattern in their prophecies to Israel and the Jews. First comes the warning to repent of their sins and next is the judgement that will come upon the Jews and their land if they do not

By Toni Ford I love the story in Acts 12 of Peter’s miraculous escape from prison. The story begins a few verses ahead, with King Herod Agrippa persecuting the believers of the church to such extremes as having the apostle James killed with a sword. This actually is the first of the twelve apostles martyred

By Toni Ford In the closing chapters of the Book of Joshua, we see that the children of Israel, as a nation, are resting from war and enjoying the riches God had given them in the Promised Land. But when we move to the next book, in Judges, we see the nation of Israel suffering

By Toni Ford What comes to mind when you think of the word “freedom?” Personally, I think of, “woo-hoo!,” minimal stress, relaxed not confined. Webster’s Dictionary defines freedom as “the quality or state of being free, the absence of necessity or constraint in choice or action, released from something.” Freedom is available to everyone, but

By Toni Ford In Acts Chapter 4, we once again see a crowd of people gathering around Peter and John, as they talk about this man named Jesus who walked among them for 33 years, was crucified by the people but resurrected from the dead by God, His Father. Since His resurrection, the disciples, along

By Toni Ford In the second chapter of Acts, we discover the first definition of the early church. Not only do we read about how it was formed but we see the qualities and characteristics that defined the New Testament church. Acts gives us the foundations of the early church. Acts 2:42-47 says, “All the

By Toni Ford Have you ever heard of the Book of Leviticus in the Bible? Some people might have heard of it, but like me, have not really spent much time reading it. In times past when I read Leviticus for my daily reading plan, I remember thinking that it was just a book written

By Toni Ford When writing Psalm 19, David wanted to emphasize God’s revelations of Himself in creation, scripture and the human heart. C.S. Lewis referred to this Psalm by saying, “I take this (Psalm 19) to be the greatest poem in The Psalms and one of the greatest lyrics in the world.” I have to

By Toni Ford Genesis 8 is a chapter of hope, encouragement and rest after tribulation. In this chapter, we read about Noah, his family and the animals who have been on an ark for over a year due to a flood that destroyed the entire earth and everything living on it. These were dark times

By Toni Ford This week’s devotion is actually one I saw written by Sylvia Gunter with “The Father’s Business.” Sylvia is an incredible woman of God and has written several books and Bible study curriculum. You can read more about Sylvia and her ministry at www.thefathersbusiness.com. I love Genesis 1:27 and personally believe it is

By Toni Ford I love the story of the lost sheep in Luke 15: 1-7, maybe because I can relate so easily to this story. Like sheep, we have a tendency to go astray and get lost because of our own foolishness. This is why sheep need a shepherd so that the shepherd can find

By Toni Ford There is something special about new beginnings. I love the thought of starting afresh and anew, making new goals and having fresh vision for the year ahead. I saw a quote posted on social media this past week by a man named Brad Paisley, which read, “Tomorrow is the first blank page

By Toni Ford Throughout the 43rd and 44th chapters of the Book of Isaiah, there is an emphasis on “God the Redeemer.” The word translated “redeem” or “Redeemer” is the Hebrew word for “a kinsman redeemer,” a near relative who could free family members and their property from bondage by paying their debts for them.

By Toni Ford During this Christmas season, I am reminded of Isaiah 9:6-7. This Scripture is one of the greatest prophesies ever foretold and serves as a great reminder for the true meaning of Christmas. Isaiah 9:6 proclaims not only the birth of Jesus (“a child is born”) but also His deity (“a son is

This week, my thoughts and readings in the Word kept taking me back to the importance of a name. Maybe, because this is the Christmas season and each year, in the midst of the business, of buying gifts, going to parties and preparing Christmas cards, I try to keep an awareness of the true meaning

By Toni Ford Have you ever received a “no,” or maybe a “no, not now,” response from the Lord concerning a prayer you had been praying for weeks, months or even years? This past week, our family experienced an answer like that. And although that answer at that moment made us sad and full of

By Toni Ford As I have been reading the book of Joshua this past month, I picture it being divided in three parts. The first part (chapters 1-12) is Joshua completing the first half of his commission. He had conquered the enemy and was now in control of the land and the cities the Lord

By Toni Ford Have you ever thought much about another person’s fragrance or noticed how the environment shifts when someone enters the room? According to Webster’s Dictionary, fragrance is defined as a “pleasant aroma or a sweet smell.” If someone were to ask us what type of fragrance we are, I wonder if most of

By Toni Ford The last five Psalms – 146 to 150 – are considered “hallelujah psalms” that focus our attention on praising the Lord. Psalm 146 begins with a vow to praise God throughout life and is filled with hope as a result of all God’s promises to His children. In this psalm, we are

By Toni Ford Deuteronomy is essentially Moses’ farewell address to a new generation. In chapter six, we find Moses reminding this new generation that they must never stop teaching the meaning of the laws to their children and telling the numerous stories of how the Lord brought His people out of slavery. One of the

By Toni Ford I believe it is safe to say that we have all experienced both defeat and victory at some point in our lives. If that is true, then how do we keep from staying in an attitude of defeat and how do we turn our mistakes into a victory? Henry Ford once defined

I love the book of Deuteronomy. If you ever need reassurance of who God is in your life, read this book! In the first chapter alone, we see so many characteristics of God’s faithfulness to care and protect His children. Deuteronomy 1: 29-33 (NIV) says, “But I said to you, ‘Don’t be shocked or afraid

By Toni Ford The church I attend just completed a series on prayer, as well as our bi-annual 21 Days of Prayer. During this time, we are all encouraged to readjust our focus on the Lord and let prayer be our first response and not our last resort. Our church provides a simple prayer journal