Romans 5:3-5

MARKS OF MATURITY (Part 1)

(May 16, 2025) Dr Richard Winter shares a vital challenge…

The Roman Catholic Church recently elected a new Pope and the eyes of the world are currently on him… Who is he really? What new changes will he bring about? Will he be backed up?

While his name is Robert from Chicago, he will be called Leo 14th. The world will be inquisitive about his family and his life before his election as Pope. For example, I wonder if his brothers ever called him Bob? No doubt many will wonder if they ever thought he would be elected Pope.

Position
Life in families is always interesting because sometimes we don’t know how our brothers will turn out. Come with me to another family from the first century… to Mary and husband Joseph’s.

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PRECIOUS PEARLS OF PRUDENCE

(September 20, 2024) Mama Lava shares some precious insights…

Are you familiar with the origins of pearls? I admit I was a bit mistaken in what I thought I knew.

Did you know it’s not a scratchy bit of sand which typically begins the process? A pearl is more commonly a mollusc’s defensive reaction to a parasite.

Natural History Museum informs us that —
‘Pearls are made by marine oysters and freshwater mussels as a natural defence against an irritant such as a parasite entering their shell or damage to their fragile body. The oyster or mussel slowly secretes layers of aragonite and conchiolin, materials that also make up its shell. This creates a material called nacre, also known as mother-of-pearl, which encases the irritant and protects the mollusc from it. When pearls are cultured commercially an irritant is manually inserted into a mollusc to promote the production of mother-of-pearl. Nacre can form naturally around almost any irritant that gets inside the shell, creating some very unique and precious pearls.’

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