Topic > Christian Living
How does God want us to respond to the life He’s given us?
We’re not in control of the hand we’ve been dealt. But we do have a choice in how we play the cards we have. Join us as we conclude our study in Ruth with a biblical challenge.
In The Same Boat
When the cruise ship pulled into port, the passengers got off as quickly as possible. They had spent the last few days enduring an outbreak of a virus, and hundreds of people had been sickened. One passenger, interviewed as he disembarked, said: “Well, I don’t mean to complain so much. I mean I know everybody was in the same boat.” His seemingly unintentional pun made the reporter smile.
Giving All
During his only inaugural address as the US President, John F. Kennedy issued this challenge to Americans: “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.” It was a renewed call for citizens to surrender their lives in sacrifice and service to others. His words especially inspired the sons and daughters of men and women who had served their country in war.
Hope Lives
When unspeakable tragedy shatters people’s lives, they search for answers. Recently, a mother who had lost a teenager said to me, “I can’t figure it out. I don’t know if I can believe anymore. I try, but God doesn’t make sense to me. What does it all mean?” There are no easy answers to such big concerns. But for those who have trusted Christ, there is hope—whether we are basking in blessings or grinding through grief.
What Does It Mean to Hope?
I recently bought a pair of shoes online. Naturally, I waited in great anticipation for the shoes to arrive—like kids do when anticipating the arrival of Santa on Christmas Eve. (Okay, it’s just an analogy; I don’t actually believe in Santa Claus.) Every morning, I would check the delivery status and hope to receive the […]
Facing The Impossible
In 2008, house values were tumbling in the United Kingdom. But 2 weeks after my husband and I put our home of 40 years on the market, a buyer offered us a good price and we agreed to a sale. Soon our builders started work on the house I had inherited, which would be our new home. But a few days before the sale of our old home was finalized, our buyer pulled out. We were devastated. Now we owned two properties—one whose value was tumbling rapidly, and the other a virtual ruin that we could neither sell nor move into.…
God’s World
I knew my son would enjoy receiving a map of the world for his birthday. After some shopping, I found a colorful chart of the continents, which included illustrations in every region. A birdwing butterfly hovered over Papua, New Guinea. Mountains cascaded through Chile. A diamond adorned South Africa. I was delighted, but I wondered about the label at the bottom of the map: Our World.
We’re A Community
A pastor’s wife was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. That put the family in a difficult, stressful situation. The pastor wondered how he was going to be able to take good care of her while he still had responsibilities for his church family. But he needn’t have worried because church members stepped up and volunteered to assist him with meals and some of her care.
When Death Hits Us Hard
Written By Jes Nuylan, Philippines Just a week ago, I received a text message that left me shell-shocked. One of my friends from high school had passed away from heart failure—he was only 18. It didn’t help that my schoolmates and I were still recovering from the death of another of our friends on December […]
Why I Didn’t Give Up on Hope
By Michele Ong, New Zealand I once held a very dim view of the word “hope”. It sounded wishy-washy to me. If hope was personified, it would be a weak-willed doormat with no opinions of its own. To hope was to foolishly cling to the belief that someone would grant your wish after you threw […]
Don’t Worry!
George Burns, American actor and humorist, said, “If you ask, ‘What is the single most important key to longevity?’ I would have to say it is avoiding worry, stress, and tension. And if you didn’t ask me, I’d still have to say it.” Burns, who lived to be 100, enjoyed making people laugh, and apparently followed his own advice.
What Hope is There Six Feet Under?
Written By Amy Ji, Singapore To be honest, death really scares me, though not in the same way I get scared by horror movies and flying cockroaches. It’s the uncertainty of death I find absolutely frightening—there is no way of knowing when the “unwanted visitor” is going to come a-knocking, and no way of bolting […]
Pray First
When my husband and I supervise our son’s piano practice sessions, we begin by asking God to help us. We pray first because neither my husband nor I know how to play the instrument. Together, all three of us are coming to understand musical mysteries such as the meaning of “staccato” and “legato” and when to use the piano’s black keys.
When We’re Let Down
On August 4, 1991, the MTS Oceanos cruise ship ran into a terrible storm off the coast of South Africa. When the ship began to sink, the captain decided to abandon ship and left with his officers, failing to notify those onboard of any problem. Passenger Moss Hills, a British musician, noticed that something was wrong and sent out a Mayday signal to the South African coast guard. Then, taking matters into their own hands, Moss, his wife Tracy, and other entertainers on board helped organize the evacuation of all passengers by assisting them as they were lifted into helicopters.
