The Voice of the Encourager
When we read the beginning of Luke in the Bible, it can be easy to skim over the parts with John the Baptist’s parents. However, his mother, Elizabeth, is a really remarkable person. First off, when we’re introduced to Elizabeth and her husband, the Bible says, “They were both righteous before God, walking blamelessly in…
A Love Letter to the Broken and Hurting
The gospel of Matthew starts with Jesus’ genealogy, and it probably seems like a very strange place to start for most modern readers. This trail of families leading to Jesus, however, is Matthew’s subtle way of pointing out the frail, sinful people who would have been considered a ‘black mark’ on his family tree. Not…
Where the Action Is
These are some of my favorite verses: “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy…
God’s High Calling for Ordinary People
I think the majority of Christians would like to escape to some safe, quiet hideaway in the mountains to keep from being tainted by all the iniquity surrounding them. Many despair, saying, “What can one Christian do about all this moral degradation? What can one church do in a wild and wicked city?” Others think,…
Handcuffed to Jesus
Paul often refers to himself as “the prisoner of Christ Jesus .” In Ephesians 4:1, he says being a prisoner of the Lord is actually his vocation, his calling! He considered this God’s gift of grace to him (see Ephesians 4:7). Paul wrote to Timothy: “Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our…
He Will Restore Your Wasted Years
How many years did you waste before you repented and surrendered all to Jesus? How many years were eaten up by the cankerworm of sin and rebellion? Now you know you are forgiven, but wouldn’t you love to get back those years and live them for the glory of the Lord? In his final days,…
Just for the Family
“Now his heart yearned for his brother; so Joseph made haste and sought somewhere to weep. And he went into his chamber and wept there” (Genesis 43:30 NKJV). This is the heart of our Savior, even toward the sinful. Joseph and his brothers were eating and drinking in the same room, but he sat alone.…
The Joy of Sharing Your Faith
Many Christians in the Western world feel uncomfortable sharing their faith. Some don’t evangelize because they feel like everyone more or less knows about Jesus. Others say that they live out their faith without needing to preach it. However, Jesus told his followers, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole…
God Goes Beyond What’s Fair
Inevitably when someone well known dies, I get asked, “Do you think that person is in heaven?” Before I respond, I always think of John Newton, the eighteenth-century former slave ship captain who became an abolitionist and clergyman. He said, “If I ever reach heaven I expect to find three wonders there: first, to meet…
Family and the Power of Forgiveness
Joseph’s brothers had no idea how much they were loved until God used a crisis to show them. “The famine was over all the face of the earth, and Joseph opened all the storehouses and sold them to the Egyptians. And the famine became severe in the land of Egypt. …When Jacob saw that there…