Nearby Neighbors
Our neighborhood, like many others, uses a website to help neighbors connect immediately with those surrounding them. In my neighborhood, members warn one another of mountain lion sightings and wildfire evacuation orders, as well as supply one another with child care when the need arises. It has even proven to be a resource for locating runaway pets. By leveraging the power of the internet, those living near one another are connecting again in ways that are often lost in today’s fast-paced world.
Being in relationship with those who live nearby was also important long ago, in the days of King Solomon.…
The Hope that Endures
Pearl Buck wrote: “To eat bread without hope is still slowly to starve to death.”
But no one needs to…
The Foundation of Hope
The Power of Christ’s Resurrection. The significance of Christ’s resurrection is found in the first letter written by Peter: “Blessed…
Hope for a Desperate World
One of the characteristics that should distinguish followers of Christ from those who don’t know Him is that we should…
THE MESSAGE
A fifth way we can know God through the Bible might be the most obvious. In this sense, the Bible is far more important to us than all the communication systems of the world. The Bible is nothing less than the means God has chosen to communicate His thoughts and desires to us. The people of His book and their…
THE MOOD (Emotion)
A fourth way we can know God through His book is by looking for Him in the moods of the Bible. We are emotional beings, created in the image of a God who has made us to walk with Him not only with our minds but also with our emotions. We have been created with the capacity to share God’s…
THE PLACES
The setting of a story is also important for us to know the God of the Bible. It is never by accident that He makes things happen where they do. If we spend some time thinking about the places in the Bible, we will see more deeply into God’s mind and character.
Learning From Literature.
An author chooses the setting of his…
The Source of Hope
The psalmist recognized that God is the source of our hope. He declared, “And now, Lord, for what do I…
The Meaning of Hope
On Christmas morning of 1964, I wanted to find only one gift under the tree—a guitar. That year the Beatles…
Hope for Desperate Times
Fear pounded in the hearts of the Israelites. Ahead of them lay the seemingly uncrossable waters of the Red Sea.…
THE PEOPLE
The second way we can know God through His book is to take note of what He does and doesn’t value in people. The people of Scripture are there because of their relationship with God—positive or negative. As we observe that relationship, we will learn not only about the Bible characters but also about the Lord—what He likes and doesn’t…
Friendship
One of…
In It Together
During a two month period in 1994, as many as one million Tutsis were slain in Rwanda by Hutu tribe members bent on killing their fellow countrymen. In the wake of this horrific genocide, Bishop Geoffrey Rwubusisi approached his wife about reaching out to women whose loved ones had been slain. Mary’s reply was, “All I want to do is cry.” She too had lost members of her family. The bishop’s response was that of a wise leader and caring husband: “Mary, gather the women together and cry with them.” He knew his wife’s pain had prepared her to uniquely…
THE STORY LINE
The first way we can know the God of the Bible through His book is by observing what happens in its pages. As we trace the sequence of events, the storyline, we will see God in action: creating, making things happen, reacting to the things that take place in His world, and responding to the needs of man. All of…
We Are Dust
The young father was at the end of his rope. “Ice cream! Ice cream!” his toddler screamed. The meltdown in the middle of the crowded mall began drawing the attention of shoppers nearby. “Fine, but we just need to do this for mommy first, okay?” “Nooooo! Ice cream!”And then she approached them: a small, well-dressed woman with shoes that matched her handbag. “He’s having a big fit,” the father said. The woman smiled and responded, “Actually, it looks like a big fit is having your little boy. Don’t forget he’s so small. He needs you to be patient and stay…
