Topic > Ethical Issues
A Letter from the Battlefield
For more than two decades, Andrew Carroll has been urging people not to throw away the letters written by family members or friends during a time of war. Carroll, director of the Center for American War Letters at Chapman University in California, considers them an irreplaceable link to tie families together and open a door of understanding. “Younger generations are reading these letters,” Carroll says, “and asking questions and saying, ‘Now I understand what you endured, what you sacrificed.’ ”
When the apostle Paul was imprisoned in Rome and knew his life would soon end, he wrote a letter to a…
Jesus and the Rohingya Refugees
Imagine being stranded at sea for more than a month without food and water. Packed into boats with hundreds of others, and with dwindling supplies, you have to drink urine in order to survive. The dead are thrown overboard. That is exactly what some 2,000 refugees are facing in the Bay of Bengal now.
Hope
Discover how you can strengthen your faith and trust in God, even in the midst of challenging times.
As young adults, Derek and his girlfriend chose to abort four pregnancies. Then they both came to know Jesus as their Savior. “And that’s what literally changed the course of…
WatchPaul uses surprisingly harsh words
In his previous letter, Paul chose to use words like “love,” “hope,” and “peace.” But in his final letter, the apostle closed with some pretty shocking terms! On “Discover the Word” today, we’ll have an honest discussion about people who disappoint us, as we unpack Paul’s harsh words for a former friend.
A Good Name
Charles Ponzi’s name will be forever associated with the financial fraud scheme he elevated to a way of life. After some minor financial crimes and brief times in jail, in early 1920 he began offering investors a 50 percent return on their money in 45 days and a 100 percent return in 90 days. Although it seemed too good to be true, the money poured in. Ponzi used money from new investors to pay prior investors and fund his lavish lifestyle. By the time his fraud was discovered in August 1920, investors had lost 20 million dollars and five banks…
I was 17, an athlete, a part of the "in crowd", a girl with dreams, and very very lost! The irony though is that I loved to go to bed at night and in the stillness of the dark I would pray to a God that I feared but didn't think I could love. I would pray the same exact prayer every single night, "God, please forgive me for the sins I did today and for the sins I've done ever since I've been born..." looking back I remember trembling with those words because I knew God wouldn't save a wretch like me. My life as I knew it, at 17, came to a screeching halt when I took an EPT test and it showed up positive. I was on a fun vacation with my best friend, visiting my sister in Florida. I remember thinking this can't be happening to me, I'm in my Senior year, softball season is about to start, college next fall, so much to think about, but not this. This was NOT part of MY plan. I was ignorant about pregnancy, this wouldn't happen to a "good" girl like me. How can I make this disappear without anyone knowing? When I returned home from my vacation I told my boyfriend that I was pregnant and that we needed to decide what to do. I knew in my heart what I should NOT do but my head told me it would be better this way and it would be all over soon and life would go on as if nothing happened, a case of just bad luck! From that point, at 17, until I came to know The Lord as my Savior, at 33, is pretty much a blur. I got married to my high school sweetheart and our first five years were pretty reckless. I had two boys in the next years that followed and they were my joy and life. I felt my purpose but little waves of guilt would creep in from time to time about the abortion. Finally, in May of '96, after attending a local Bible believing church for several weeks my husband and I opened our hearts to The Lord. I felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders, however I was still carrying a pretty heavy burden. The day after I asked God into my heart I broke. I didn't understand it, "why God?", "why now?"....I buried that awful memory and I didn't want it to surface. But God gently told me, "confess it to me so you can forgive yourself because I've already forgiven you." That was so difficult because I finally realized what I had given up at 17. God had allowed a life to begin in me and I made a decision to end it not even realizing at the time of the shattering consequences that would haunt me later. God did set me free by putting a wonderful friend in my path that had the same sad experience. She guided me through a post abortion Bible study and God revealed Himself to me during that time and I realized that even though I didn't have Him in my heart at 17, He was beside me on that fateful day, the day my unborn child's life ended but came to life in Jesus' arms as He carried it to Heaven. It took me a long time to really believe I could forgive myself because I know that there are always consequences to sin and sometimes memories are the consequences. But now I focus on the memory that God set me free during that Bible study and that one day I will be reunited with this very loved child.
ReadA Consistent Life
While studying the book of Daniel, I was struck by how easily he could have avoided being thrown into the den of lions. Daniel’s jealous rivals in the government of Babylon laid a trap based on his consistent practice of daily prayer to God (Dan. 6:1-9). Daniel was fully aware of their plot and could have decided to pray privately for a month until things settled down. But that was not the kind of person he was.
Out of the Ashes
During hardship and trouble, tough questions often arise: Where is God? How do I respond to difficulties? Is God both good and all-powerful? In the Discovery Series booklet Out of the Ashes by Bill Crowder, you’ll explore Job’s struggle with the problem of suffering. Through Job’s story, discover how you can trust God despite unanswered...
Why Did You Do That?
Why did you do that? I’m not referring to the things we do on reflex such as cracking our neck (which I do when I’m tired), but moments in life where we need to make a deliberate decision on a course of action. In the past when I applied […]
Freedom
Long ago my wife decided that driving within the speed limit gives her a wonderful sense of freedom. She tells me, “I don’t ever need a radar detector. And I never have to slow down when I see a state patrol car or worry about paying a fine for speeding.”
The Barking Lion
Visitors to a zoo were outraged when the “African lion” started barking instead of roaring. Zoo staff said they had disguised a Tibetan mastiff—a very large dog—as a lion because they could not afford the real thing. Needless to say, the zoo’s reputation was sullied and people will think twice before visiting it.
A thoughtful conversation about faith and how it influences what we think and how we respond to life’s challenges
What is faith? Is it something we believe, or something we live? Let’s answer those questions in a study of James, chapter 1. Join in this thoughtful conversation about faith.
