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How to Suffer Effectively
Suffering has been effective when you are more Christlike (i.e., more obedient) at its conclusion.
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God’s Thoughts and Ways Part IV – (Balaam)
If you continually plead with God will He give you the desire of your heart even if it is not His perfect will and even if it means certain judgment will follow? The answer to that question will be discovered as we study what the Bible records concerning Balaam, a prophet of God.
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God Continually Looks for You
A long time ago there lived a king in the southern kingdom of Judah. His name? King Asa. He took the throne after his father Abijah died. Like most people facing a great challenge, he pursued his moment in history with great zeal. His outstanding achievements proved him successful. Look at what he did! He got rid of the things that got in the way of true worship for himself and his kingdom. When things got tough—surrounded by a million enemy soldiers—he turned to God and prayed, “…O Lord, there is none like you to help, between the mighty and the weak. Help us, O Lord our God, for…
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23 Books Reviewed in 23 Minutes
“The love of learning, the sequestered nooks, And all the sweet serenity of books” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. “A book lying idle on a shelf is wasted ammunition” – Henry Miller. Here is my exhaustive review of all but one of the books I read in 2014. Skim the list to see if something piques your interest. Peruse as you please. Skip what does not interest you. For my reading list reviews for the past few years click on any of the following: 2011, 2012, or 2013. Now here we go, set your timer to 23 minutes. Go! 1. “Save Me From Myself” subtitled “How I found God, quit…
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When the Holy Spirit Speaks
Last Friday the Holy Spirit spoke to me. He probably speaks to me a lot, but this time I heard him. I had been mentally prepping for the upcoming Sunday school lesson that I was slated to teach in place of my absent husband. Ironically enough, our topic was—yes, you guessed it—the Holy Spirit. Our recently completed series on the Nicene Creed had spawned a secondary discussion on the Spirit, who gets short shrift in that ancient text. Our class had asked for more teaching and discussion on the mysterious third person of the Trinity. The previous week my husband had taken us through the Old Testament, showing how the…
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“Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see!” An Autobiography
Journal excerpt 2012: “Do I look like a Christian? If I’m a follower of Christ, then why is my life so compromised? Why is there so much sin, so much fear, so little faith? Dare I stand up and identify myself with Christ? Will I not shame Him and shame myself?” I was beginning to doubt my own salvation. Everywhere I turned I saw flashing lights and warning signals. “Put yourselves to the test to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize regarding yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you – unless, indeed, you fail the test!” (2 Corinthians 13:5). I’m not…
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What’s My Purpose in Life?
A dear younger friend of mine recently posted this question on a forum: “Do you feel that you have a great mission or purpose in life? “I do feel like I’m made for something more than this, but whatever it is I can’t reach it, or find out what it is. I do feel as though I have a great purpose or mission in life—I’m sure I do!!! Why can I just not figure it out? “Was I born in the wrong time? My roommate says that I’m like a young person who thinks they were meant for more. She says hardly anyone here has a great life of purpose…
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Is it Time to Change Your Filter?
Life doesn’t just happen to us; we experience it and interpret it through a filter. That filter, like a pair of glasses, consists of beliefs and values we might not even realize we hold. The same event could be experienced and interpreted in different ways by different people because of their different filters: for example, getting a flat tire. One person might get out of the car, see the flat, and start to rage: “What the **** is this? Why does this kind of **** always happen to me? You stupid tire!” This response is the result of a filter that believes life should be good and easy, that nothing…