Ministry > Our Daily Bread
Ever-Present Presence
During the 2018 World Cup, Colombian forward Radamel Falcao scored in the seventieth minute against Poland, securing a victory. The dramatic goal was Falcao’s thirtieth in international play, earning him the distinction of scoring the most goals by a Columbian player in international competition.
Falcao has often used his success on the soccer pitch to share his Christian faith, frequently lifting his jersey after a score to reveal a shirt with the words, “Con Jesus nunca estara solo”: “With Jesus you’ll never be alone.”
Falcao’s statement points us to the reassuring promise from Jesus, “I am with you always, to the very…
Divided in Love
When public debate erupted over a controversial Singapore law, it divided Christians with differing views. Some called others “narrow-minded” or accused them of compromising their faith.
Controversies can cause sharp divisions among God’s family, bringing much hurt and discouraging people. I’ve been made to feel small over personal convictions on how I apply the Bible’s teachings to my life. And I’m sure I’ve been equally guilty of criticizing others I disagree with.
I wonder if the problem lies not in what or even how we express our views, but in the attitudes of our hearts when we do so. Are we just…
The Mouse That Roared
Several years ago my sons and I spent a few days camping in the Selway–Bitterroot Wilderness in Northern Idaho. It’s grizzly bear habitat, but we carried bear spray, kept our campsites clean, and anticipated no major grizzly encounters.
One evening, in the middle of the night, I heard Randy scramble around trying to get out of his sleeping bag. I grabbed my flashlight and turned it on, expecting to see him in the clutches of an enraged grizzly.
There, sitting upright on its haunches and waving its paws in the air was a field mouse about 4” tall. It had Randy’s cap…
When Life Is Hard
Physically, mentally, and emotionally exhausted, I curled up in my recliner. Our family had followed God’s leading and had moved from California to Wisconsin. After we arrived, car broke down and left us without a vehicle for two months. Meanwhile, my husband’s limited mobility after an unexpected back surgery and my increasing chronic pain complicated our unpacking. We uncovered costly problems with our new-to-us, old home. Our senior dog suffered with high-maintenance health issues. And though our new pup brought me great joy, raising a furry ball of energy was far more work than I anticipated. My attitude soured. How…
Freed from Our Cage
While out taking walks, writer Martin Laird would often encounter a man with four Kerry Blue Terriers. Three of the dogs ran wild through the open fields, but one stayed near its owner, running in tight circles. When Laird finally stopped and asked about this odd behavior, the owner explained that it was a rescue dog that had spent most of his life locked in a cage. The terrier continued to run in circles as though contained inside a confined box.
The Scriptures reveal that we’re trapped and hopeless unless God rescues us. The psalmist spoke of being afflicted by an…
The Miracle of White Snow
In the seventeenth century, Sir Isaac Newton used a prism to study how light helps us see different colors. He found that when light passes through an object, the object appears to possess a specific color. While a single ice crystal looks translucent, snow is made up of many ice crystals smashed together. When light passes through all of the crystals, snow appears to be white.
The Bible mentions something else that has a certain color—sin. Through the prophet Isaiah, God confronted the sins of the people of Judah and described their sin as “like scarlet” and as “red as crimson.”…
His Assuring Presence
My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest. Exodus 33:14
I will never forget my first stay in the hospital. As a young boy of 7, I had contracted tuberculosis of the hip.
I had never spent the night away from home before, and the prospect of being hospitalized frightened me.
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 starve. When people come to Christ, they receive forgiveness, life, and a relationship with God.
Paul put it this way: “To whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles,…
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 be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead” (1 Peter 1:3).
Here,…
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 be people of hope. This reality is at the core of our mission to share Christ with others. We do not merely offer an alternative religion, worldview, or philosophy. We offer hope to a world desperately longing for it.
This…
The Source of Hope
The psalmist recognized that God is the source of our hope. He declared, “And now, Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in You” (Psalm 39:7).
To understand how the Lord brings that hope into our lives, let’s again read what Paul wrote to the Romans. “For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction,…
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 had taken the USA by storm as the vanguard of music’s British invasion. Like scores of other young American boys, I wanted to be the next great guitarist. Early that Christmas morning, I ran down the steps to the living…
Hope for Desperate Times
Fear pounded in the hearts of the Israelites. Ahead of them lay the seemingly uncrossable waters of the Red Sea. Behind them the chariots of the armies of the Pharaoh thundered toward them. Their panicked complaint to Moses came in the form of an accusation: “Is it because there were no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away…
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…
