Psalm

By Debra Ayis, Nigeria Oh Lord my God Who will comfort me? If not you Who shall I turn to? If not you If you do not come to my aid What shall become of me? For I trust in you only I rely on you alone Therefore if you leave me Who shall I [...]

Confronting someone who’s in the wrong

Tuesday, June 5, 2012, Part 3

“Moreover, if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother. But if he will not hear you, take with you one or two more, that by the mouth of two or more witnesses every word may be established. And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector. Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am there in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:15-20).

IDEA: When we decide what a passage does not mean, it’s important to establish what it does mean.

PURPOSE: To help listeners realize that there is little value in being critical unless we can also be helpful.

Getting It Right On The Inside

Ilove the story of Jonah! It’s full of drama and important life lessons. After stubbornly refusing to do God’s will, Jonah finally preached a revival service in Nineveh that would have made him one of the most successful missionaries of his time. When the people repented and turned from their wicked ways—and when God relented and turned from His anger against them—you would have expected Jonah to rejoice. Instead, he was angry that God was merciful. Why? Although he was finally obeying God by doing the right thing in the right place, he was deeply flawed on the inside.

A New Journey

By Koh Siang Kiang, Singapore Remember the first time you travelled out of your country? I was ten when I first went on a long journey, five hours away from home. The night before the trip, my cousins and I were so wound up! We were looking forward to seeing new places. We woke up [...]

Careless Speech

When my wife and I were visiting a church for a special musical program, we arrived early to get a good seat. Before the program began, we overheard two members seated behind us complaining about their church. They criticized the pastoral staff, leadership, music, ministry priorities, and several other things that made them unhappy. They were either unconcerned about or oblivious to the presence of two visitors in their midst.

Fights and Quarrels

By Caroline Poon, Singapore One day, while I was waiting for my family to gather for devotions, I decided to flip through the devotions book. While I was doing so, I came across a story that sounded very smilar to mine. It was about two boys who were always fighting. On one occasion, the mother [...]

Faulty Thinking

Four people—a pilot, a professor, a pastor, and a hiker—were flying in a small plane when the engines died. The pilot said, “There are only three parachutes. Since this is my plane, I’m taking one of them.” He put it on and jumped out. The professor said, “I’m brilliant and the world needs me, so I’m taking a parachute,” and he jumped out.

God’s Wheelchair

Jean Driscoll is a remarkable athlete. She has won the Boston Marathon eight times. She has also participated in four Paralympic Games and won five gold medals. Born with spina bifida, Jean competes in a wheelchair.

Giants in the Promised Land

By Charles Christian, 23, Indonesia The story told in Numbers 13-14 is not unfamiliar to us. Twelve spies were sent to check out the land of Canaan—the land that God promised to the Israelites (Numbers 13:17-20). After 40 days, they returned with both good and bad news—the land was fertile but the inhabitants were strong [...]

A Hideous Monster

By Jasmine Priya, India Lily: Jane . . . erm, I’m sorry to say this, but, er . . . you might want to consider using a deodorant? Jane: Whaaat?! But I don’t have body odor. Do I? Pride is like body odor. It is difficult to detect by oneself but is utterly noticeable to [...]

Conversion

Before my husband and I travel, we go to the bank and trade in our US dollars for the currency of the country we’ll be visiting. We do this so we can pay for expenses while we’re away from home.

No matter what we’ve done; God will continue to pursue us with an everlasting love

Friday, May 25, 2012, Part 3

“When the Lord began to speak to Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, ‘Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry and children of harlotry, for the land has committed great harlotry by departing from the Lord.’ So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son” (Hosea 1:2-3).

IDEA: God commands the prophet to marry a promiscuous woman. People in our culture are not upset by her sexual looseness, but that God commanded it.

PURPOSE: To help listeners grapple with the fact that God seems to commend what we think He should condemn.

Perseverance

By Gareth Rennie, South Africa We are struggling Christians trying our best to stay pure. Constantly battling against temptation, resisting its allure. Sin seeks to plunge us back, making us more distressed. Its pull and push cannot be easily suppressed. Pleasing God I know will take more than just living by His Law. For He [...]

Discover how Hosea’s life mirrored God’s message to His people

Wednesday, May 23, 2012, Part 1

“When the Lord began to speak to Hosea, the Lord said to Hosea, ‘Go, take yourself a wife of harlotry and children of harlotry, for the land has committed great harlotry by departing from the Lord.’ So he went and took Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son” (Hosea 1:2-3).

IDEA: God commands the prophet to marry a promiscuous woman. People in our culture are not upset by her sexual looseness, but that God commanded it.

PURPOSE: To help listeners grapple with the fact that God seems to commend what we think He should condemn.