Can Christians Justify Leisure?
I’m a huge Taylor Swift fan. From her start as an American country artist to her current status as an international pop star, I’ve been there for every stage along the way.
A Blind Man’s Plea
Some years ago a traveling companion noticed I was straining to see objects at a distance. What he did next was simple but life changing. He took off his glasses and said, “Try these.” When I put his glasses on, surprisingly my blurred vision cleared up. Eventually I went to an optometrist who prescribed glasses to correct my vision problem.
Today’s reading in Luke 18 features a man with no vision at all; and living in total darkness had forced him to beg for a living. Word about Jesus, the popular teacher and miracle worker, had reached the blind beggar’s ears;…
“Four Dimensional Love Of God”
From Marco Polo to Amelia Earhart and Neil Armstrong, it’s in our DNA to explore the air, the sea, and the outer reaches of space. Today on Discover the Word, you’re invited to begin an exploration into the height, and depth, and length, and width of God’s love. Discover the “Four Dimensional Love of God” when you listen […]
The Never-forsaking God
He Himself has said, ’I will never leave you nor forsake you’ —Hebrews 13:5
What line of thinking do my thoughts take? Do I turn to what God says or to my own fears? Am I simply repeating what …
3 Things I Learned From Moving Abroad
The day finally came for me to grab my bags and board the flight. I had been living with my grandparents and other relatives for more than 7 years, but it was now time to join my parents and undertake my university education in the new country they called home.
"The Secret of the Lord"
What is the sign of a friend? Is it that he tells you his secret sorrows? No, it is that he tells you his secret joys. Many people will confide their secret sorrows to you, but the final mark of intimacy is when they share their secret joys with you. Have we ever let God tell us any of His joys? Or are we continually telling God our secrets, leaving Him no time to talk to us? At the beginning of our Christian life we are full of requests to God. But then we find that God wants to get us into an intimate relationship with Himself— to get us in touch with His purposes.
Clocks and Calendars
My father died at 58 years of age. Ever since then, I pause on the date he died to remember Dad and reflect on his influence in my life. When I realized I had lived more of life without my dad than with him, I began pondering the brevity of my own life.
On reflection, we may wrestle with both an event in time and the feelings it stirs within us. Though we measure time with clocks and calendars, we remember times because of events. In the moments of life that trigger our deepest emotions, we can experience joy, loss, blessing, pain, success, failure.
The Scriptures…
Are You Obsessed by Something?
Are you obsessed by something? You will probably say, “No, by nothing,” but all of us are obsessed by something— usually by ourselves, or, if we are Christians, by our own experience of the Christian life. But the psalmist says that we are to be obsessed by God. The abiding awareness of the Christian life is to be God Himself, not just thoughts about Him. The total being of our life inside and out is to be absolutely obsessed by the presence of God. A child’s awareness is so absorbed in his mother that although he is not consciously thinking of her, when a problem arises, the abiding relationship is that with the mother.
The “Chewing” Years
My wife recently gave me a Labrador retriever puppy we named “Max.” One day when Max was spending time with me in my study, I was concentrating at my desk and heard the sound of paper ripping behind me. I turned to find a guilty-looking puppy with a book wide open and a page dangling from his mouth.
Our veterinarian tells us that Max is going through his “chewing years.” As puppies lose their milk teeth and permanent ones grow, they soothe their gums by chewing almost anything. We have to watch Max carefully to ensure he isn’t gnawing on something…
Preaching Workshop 2018
Date: 7-8 June, Thursday & Friday. For more details, click here.
The Staggering Question
Can a sinner be turned into a saint? Can a twisted life be made right? There is only one appropriate answer— “O Lord God, You know” (Ezekiel 37:3). Never forge ahead with your religious common sense and say, “Oh, yes, with just a little more Bible reading, devotional time, and prayer, I see how it can be done.”
Bible Calls Immigrants To Be A Blessing
Immigration affects everyone! It affects the citizens welcoming immigrants into their country, as well as the immigrants moving to a new land. And today on Discover the Word, we’re wrapping up our series called “Christians at the Border” with a discussion about how the Bible calls immigrants to be a blessing to their host country. […]
Introducing the Gospels
We all love getting good news. Sometimes good news comes that only makes a good situation better. Sometimes we get good news that is what we have been hanging our hopes on, something that will fix a bad situation, bring hope where there seems to be none. That’s what the gospel is. It’s the good news that brings hope to…
