“Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path.” (Psalm 119:105 NLT) A God Who Speaks From the very first pages of Scripture, we discover that our God is a God who speaks. He spoke the earth into existence. He walked and talked with Adam and Eve. And thousands of years later, He…
Philippians 1:1–11 What to Pray When You Don’t Know What to Say From a young age, most of us were taught the basics of kindness. Say please and thank you. Be considerate. And always, always write a thank-you note. Paul, writing from a prison cell, did exactly that. His letter to the church in Philippi is unlike his…
But Martha was distracted with much serving. Luke 10:40 ESV The Enemy of Intimacy How often do you get your cup of coffee, light a candle, turn on some peaceful worship music, and crack open your Bible… only to grab your phone and check a quick email, respond to a text, or see how many likes your…
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. Psalm 23:4, ESV A few years ago, one of my teenage sons had emergency spinal surgery to remove a lemon-sized tumor, that mercifully ended up…
Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. John 12:3 NIV From Nearness to Extravagant Worship At the beginning of Jesus’s public ministry, Mary and Martha invited Jesus…
Don’t be afraid. Just stand still and watch the LORD rescue you today. . . . The LORD himself will fight for you. Just stay calm. Exodus 14:13–14, NLT When anxiety tries to overcome us, it can feel much like it did for the Israelites as Pharaoh’s army chased them after they left Egypt. We look at…
“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and they shall call his name Immanual” (which means God with us).Matthew 1:23 Hope Deferred It was Christmas Eve thirty years ago, sixteen months after my wedding. Sixteen months of unanswered prayers for a babe in my womb. Sixteen months of hope deferred when only one…
What comes to your mind when you hear the word patience, or be patient? Perhaps a groan or a response, “that’s easy for you to say but I…” Patience is not a pleasing thought, but a longed-for character trait. We have so little of it. The lack of it shows up early. Our toddler stomps…
Who has despised the day of small things?Zechariah 4:10, NKJV When I came to pastor the Brooklyn Tabernacle decades ago, we had just a handful of people. At first I had natural enthusiasm. I wasn’t seminary trained, and my sermons were bad, and the offerings were pitiful—the first one I collected was eighty-five dollars—but I…
“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.” I Thessalonians 5:11 (ESV) I don’t know why I hadn’t picked up on it earlier. But one early Friday evening, I looked out to see my husband walking by with his shoulders slumped and his stride too slow. He moved as…
Bess and Gary couldn’t wait for the empty nest. Raising their kids had been tough. They had different approaches to discipline, they’d struggled on a tight budget, and they’d postponed many of their dreams in order to be with their kids. Now the last one was leaving the nest, and they felt they had done…
“May the Lord cause you to flourish, both you and your children.“Psalm 115:14 NIV It’s been a minute since I’ve done the back-to-school thing, but whether you’re sendinga toddler to preschool with a nap mat under her arm or a teenager to college with a new mattress topper and a whole bed-in-a-bag, I imagine you…
“But because the LORD loved you and kept the oath he swore to your ancestors, he brought you out with a strong hand and redeemed you from the place of slavery, from the power of Pharaoh king of Egypt.“Deuteronomy 7:8 Have you ever struggled to make a decision? For me, I struggle to know if…
When joy fades, we can rediscover it by focusing on God’s promises, reaching out to others, and gaining a fresh perspective. Do you sometimes feel like your joy is slipping away, eroding or stale? I do too. It happens to each of us at different times and for a variety of reasons. I remember standing…
Even without fully understanding someone’s pain, we can carry our friends to Jesus, offering the love, comfort, and support only He provides. “Then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic who was carried by four men.”Mark 2:3-5 (NKJV) “Mom, you need to come see this!” My daughter’s muffled voice rose over the steam of my…
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