Seen by God
My first pair of eyeglasses opened my eyes to a bold world. I’m nearsighted, meaning objects close up are sharp and defined. Without my glasses, however, items across a room or in the distance are a blur. At age twelve, with my first pair of eyeglasses, I was shocked to see clearer words on blackboards, tiny leaves on trees and, perhaps most important, big smiles on faces.
As friends smiled back when I greeted them, I learned that to be seen was as great a gift as the blessing of seeing.
The slave Hagar realized that as she fled from her mistress…
When Marriage Isn’t Quite What You Hoped For
I grew up with Ashley (not her real name) and we attended the same schools. We talked a lot about relationships when we were younger and the kind of married life we hoped for.
What If Our Struggles Are Meant To Point Us To God?
The phrase “the struggle is real” conjures up images of day-to-day frustrations. But what if our struggles are meant to point us to God? Today on Discover the Word, the team and author Nicole Unice begin a series called, “The Struggle Is Real.” It’s an honest discussion about what it means to trust in the Lord, even when […]
Back in 2010 when I was in university in Ghana, I made a friend who was two years ahead of me. Even though he was troublesome (he wasn’t always very honest and often caused problems) he still remained my friend. One day he visited and asked if we could watch a preaching video by a local pastor. The sermon was titled “Understanding the power of your opportunity”. The point of the message was basically about treating people right, because you never know who you might need to help you one day.
Fast forward a few years and my friend completed university and went off somewhere else to do a second degree. I completed my course two years later. Little did I know that God was going to use him to affect my life in ways I couldn’t have imagined.
I’d been working for about two and half years when my employer told me the company wasn’t making a profit and so they’d be scaling down. Within that period I had been applying to schools outside of Ghana to be able to do my second degree. So I told my old university friend about it, who was in a better position to help secure me a scholarship.
Just like in a bad dream, many of us at my workplace were told we no longer had jobs. The amazing thing is that two days after we were sacked, my scholarship to study in the UK (worth almost £30,000) was approved.
But a short while later I was told that I was not selected to be part of the beneficiaries of the scholarship. However my belief was that God still loved me anyway and that the time was just not right, according to His good wisdom.
Now I’m in the UK to pursue my masters in International Relations. I got here later than I thought I would, but it means I can carry on with my studies. I didn’t know how this was going to be possible without my friend going all out for me. All I knew was that God was going to come through for me and that He knew my name.
I just want to encourage someone out there that God is faithful. He really does know us, even from when He made us in the womb (Psalm 139:13). If you’re trusting in Him and waiting for Him to answer you, He will! Just delight yourself in the Lord and He shall provide what you need. Whilst you do that, treat people that come your way well. God loves and blesses us, and He often does that through people. In my case, He provided through my friend from university eight years ago. —Abigail
I want to share with everyone what the Lord has done for me during a time of sickness. I pray this will be a great encouragement to you.
Six weeks after having my second child I returned to work. But literally overnight I became extremely ill. I phoned the doctor the following morning for antibiotics as I thought I maybe had tonsillitis. But my temperature soared at 11am and so my husband took to me the doctor. I was hospitalised with sepsis, quinsy (an abscess on the tonsil), a blocked airway and inflamed vocal cords!
When I was admitted the surgeons said I was a very lucky girl as two others had been admitted with the same symptoms as me and were in intensive care unit. It meant the hospital staff already knew how to treat me (it’s amazing how God works!). A week later I got home and I was on antibiotics for quite a while, but I kept getting infections and began to wonder if I was ever going to get better. Four months on I was still going to the doctor for prescriptions and I still needed three hours of sleep every day after dropping the kids off at school.
On one of my visits to the doctor, she said I was never going to get better if I was scared of getting sick again. She recommended exercise, reflexology, yoga and counselling. She left me more apprehensive as I wondered, What should I do! I was so distressed!
That night I decided I would pray. I asked God to take all my worries, anxiety and fears—and to heal me. I just focused on those things and imagined them going up to him. During my prayers I felt something I can only describe as a ‘thump’ in the middle of my chest. I got so excited wondering was this it: Had God healed me?
The next day I felt like something was different. My mum happened to call that morning and couldn’t believe the change in me. My head was completely clear! It was on Friday 4th May that God healed me. On the Sunday 6th May all my family shared this verse: “Sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvellous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him” (Psalm 98:1). I had kept all my consultants appointments just to make sure I was really OK. When I saw them, they said I was fine. When I left one of my appointments, my daily reading for that day was on the theme of God making us (me!) strong!
Since then, He has been restoring me and healing me from strength to strength. It is by the grace and power of God that I am now healed. I can’t tell you how wonderful and amazing this experience has been! I honestly thought at one point that I would never see the day! Glory be to our Lord Jesus Christ our Saviour, Redeemer and Friend.
The Lord used this experience to bring me back to Him. Every day I am getting to know our Lord Jesus Christ personally. I believe with all my heart, soul and mind that the Bible is the Word of God.
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – 9 not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2: 8-9).
We just need to have faith in what Christ did for us on the cross. He died and suffered the wrath of God for us, and God accepted His death as a sacrifice for all our sin. If we believe and receive Jesus as our Saviour, repent of our sins and ask for forgiveness, Jesus comes into our hearts and cleanses us from all sin.
Jesus said: “My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (John 14:2-3). All we have to do is trust Him and accept Him as our Saviour! My hope, joy and peace is in Our Lord Jesus Christ. —Leah
Giving Credit
In the early 1960s, some unusual paintings featuring a person or animal with huge, sad eyes became popular. Some considered the work “kitschy”—or tacky—but others delighted in it. As the artist’s husband began to promote his wife’s creations, the couple grew quite prosperous. But the artist’s signature—Margaret Keane—didn’t appear on her work. Instead, Margaret’s husband presented his wife’s work as his own. Margaret fearfully remained silent about the fraud for twenty years until the couple’s marriage ended. It took a courtroom “paint-off” between them to prove the true artist’s identity.
The man’s deception was clearly wrong, but even as followers of…
3 Ways to Push Through A Dry Season
Three years ago, l entered a dry season. Up till then, l had been a private school teacher for 14 years; l had worked 75 hours a week, including on the weekends and during school holidays.
Living with the Lights On
A work assignment had taken my coworker and me on a 250-mile journey, and it was late when we began our trip home. An aging body with aging eyes makes me a bit uneasy about nighttime driving; nevertheless, I opted to drive first. My hands gripped the steering wheel and my eyes gazed intently at dimly lit roads. While driving I found I could see better when lights from vehicles behind me beamed on the highway before me. I was much relieved when my friend eventually took the wheel of his vehicle. That’s when he discovered that I had been…
Discovering My True Self
Who am I? That’s the question a faded stuffed animal asks himself in the children’s book Nothing by Mick Inkpen. Left in a dusty corner of an attic, the animal hears movers call him “nothing” and thinks that’s his name: Nothing.
Encounters with other animals spark memories. Nothing realizes that he used to have a tail, whiskers, and stripes. But it’s not until he meets a tabby cat who helps him find his way home that Nothing remembers who he truly is: a stuffed cat named Toby. His owner lovingly restores him, sewing on new ears, tail, whiskers, and stripes.
Whenever I read…
Standing United When We Don’t Agree
When it comes to topics like religion or politics, people rarely see eye to eye. But disagreement doesn’t have to lead to disunity. Today on Discover the Word, we’ll urge Christians to stay united, even when we don’t agree. Hear the conclusion of our series titled, “One Heart, One Mind,” today on Discover the Word!
Love and Peace
It always amazes me the way peace—powerful, unexplainable peace (Philippians 4:7)—can somehow fill our hearts even in our deepest grief. I experienced this most recently at my father’s memorial service. As a long line of sympathetic acquaintances passed by offering their condolences, I was relieved to see a good high school friend. Without a word, he simply wrapped me in a long bear hug. His quiet understanding flooded me with the first feelings of peace within grief that difficult day, a powerful reminder that I wasn’t as alone as I felt.
As David describes in Psalm 16, the kind of peace…
Why I’m Choosing to Stay Single This Season
The standard answer I have on hand whenever people inquire about my single status is that I have not met Mr Right.
God Is The Source Of Every Good Gift
The Bible says that every good and perfect gift is from above. Still, we tend to forget where our blessings come from. Today on Discover the Word, the team reminds us that God is the source and provider of every good thing in our lives. We’ll save you a seat at the table for Discover the Word!
15 Ways to Cultivate Joy in Your Life
A friend told me recently of a trip he and his wife took to Hawaii several years back. After dropping his wife off at the terminal for the flight home, he was the only person on the rental car shuttle.
Good Works Prepared
When a burly stranger approached my wife and me on a street abroad, we shrunk back in fear. Our holiday had been going badly; we had been yelled at, cheated, and extorted from several times. Were we going to be shaken down again? To our surprise, the man just wanted to show us where to get the best view of his city. Then he gave us a chocolate bar, smiled, and left. That little gesture made our day—and saved the whole trip. It made us grateful—both to the man and to God for cheering us up.
What had made the man…
