Ministry > Our Daily Bread
Facing Your Enemies
During the US Civil War, fierce fighting was taking place near Moorefield, West Virginia. Because the town was close to enemy lines, it would be controlled one day by Union troops, and the next by Confederates.
In the heart of the town lived an old woman. According to the testimony of a Presbyterian minister, one morning several enemy soldiers knocked on her door and demanded breakfast. She asked them in and said she would prepare something for them.
I'll Pay You Later
Suppose a boss were to say to an employee, “We really appreciate what you’re doing around here, but we’ve decided to change the way we pay you. Starting today, we’re going to pay you later—after you retire.” Would the employee jump for joy? Of course not. That’s not the way things work in this world. We like our payment now—or at least every payday.
Money Matters
Godfrey Davis, who wrote a biography of the Duke of Wellington, said, “I found an old account ledger that showed how the Duke spent his money. It was a far better clue to what he thought was really important than the reading of his letters or speeches.”
How we handle money reveals much about our priorities. That’s why Jesus often talked about money.
All Year Long
During Lent (the 40 days prior to Easter) many Christians follow the practice of giving up something and taking the time to reflect on Jesus’ sacrifice of Himself for us.
One group of middle-class believers in a church in the UK decided to live on the minimum wage.
Living In Retirement
As our plane landed at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, applause broke out among a group of airline employees. I thought this was a bit unusual, until I was told that the pilot had just completed the last flight of his career. He would retire the next day, and his colleagues were expressing their happiness for him.
For many people, retirement means doing what they have always wanted to do—fish, golf, travel. Others work hard to retire early so they can enjoy the fruit of their labor while still young and healthy.
The Blackness Of Midnight
When I was a young boy, our family visited an old abandoned copper mine. Having descended into the mine, our guide suddenly turned off his flashlight and we were enveloped by an oppressive blackness. It seemed as though we could feel the darkness.
The Obedience Factor
Dewey VanderVelde refused to be baptized. He steadfastly resisted, even when his wife and daughters were baptized one Sunday afternoon.
Years later, his pastor preached on the baptism of Jesus. He pointed out that John the Baptist initially refused to baptize Jesus, but Jesus said, “It is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15). The pastor then added this comment: “If Jesus obeyed the will of the Father, so should we.”
"Enough!"
After Bob Ritchie graduated from college, he spent the next two decades in the grasp of a love for money and advancement. He uprooted his wife and family five times for his career, so that he could make more money. Each time they left warm church communities behind.
After a while, Bob and his family seldom had time for church. As God’s people became strangers, so did the Lord. He became desperately lonely and isolated. Growing discontented with his life, he finally said, “Enough!”
Pointing Fingers
An employee in the bill-collection department of a large store gave me an insight into human nature. He told me that he repeatedly gets the following response from customers who are delinquent in paying their bills: “I know you must have others who owe a lot more than I do. Get off my back, will you!”
Overcoming Greed
Greed — it has toppled highly paid executives, brought down giant corporations, and cost thousands of workers their jobs and retirement funds. One columnist has written that unrestrained corporate greed is a greater threat than terrorism.
Greed whispers in our ear that we would be happier if we had more money, more things, and more power. It creates discontent and a growing desire to do whatever it takes to gain position and possessions. But the Bible commands us to trust in God, not in“uncertain riches”(1 Timothy 6:17).
"Apatheists"
Most people profess belief in God, meaning they are theists. True atheism is a rarity.
Recently, however, it has been suggested that we need a new term for the multitude who are theists but are indifferent to God in daily living. They ought to be called apatheists. That word is built on the noun apathy, which means “indifference,” a sort of sluggish unconcern. And sadly, whatever belief an individual professes, he may be living as an apatheist. His faith may make only a minimal difference in his behavior.
How Would You Answer?
Sir Norman Anderson was invited to give a television talk on the evidence for Christ’s resurrection, a subject that he had written much about. When his son died of cancer, the program producers offered to cancel his participation, saying, “You can’t speak about the resurrection when you’ve just lost a son.” But Anderson said, “I want to speak about it now even more.” And so, sad in heart but with great assurance, he spoke of Christ’s resurrection, and ours as believers.
The Joy Of Waiting
Nine months can seem like forever for a mother-to-be. In the first trimester, hormonal changes sometimes cause lingering morning sickness. Emotions rise to the surface, prolonging afternoon blues. Then a changing appetite stretches out evening hours with late-night cravings for pizza, chocolate, and dill pickles.
During the next 3 months, Mom outgrows her clothes and spends long hours looking for a new wardrobe. The last trimester turns normal activity into a chore as the final watch begins.
Becoming A Mentor
According to Homer’s Odyssey, when King Odysseus went off to fight in the Trojan war, he left his son Telemachus in the hands of a wise old man named Mentor. Mentor was charged with the task of teaching the young man wisdom.
More than 2,000 years after Homer, a French scholar and theologian by the name of François Fénelon adapted the story of Telemachus in a novel titled Télémaque. In it he
Life After Miracles
On the other side of every miraculous intervention by God on our behalf, there is a road of faith to travel. Whether God’s power has touched our health, finances, or family relationships, we must not only praise and thank the Lord but obey Him as well.
After God opened the Red Sea for His people, then released the waters to overwhelm Pharaoh’s pursuing army, there was a great celebration of praise to the Lord (Exodus 15:1-21). But then it was time to move on in the journey toward the land of promise. “So Moses brought Israel from the Red Sea; then they went out into the Wilderness of Shur” (v.22). There they traveled for 3 days without finding water, and they began to complain
