If you ate fruits and vegetables and had a steady diet of nutrient-rich foods, BUT you dabbled in a little rat poison every once in a while, how do you think that would work out for you? It would lead to your demise, no matter what healthy foods you ate.  Do you know this applies in the spiritual realm, as well? As a little…

School teachers love summer. They get a break from the kids, the stress and the challenges of the school year. Summer allows them to get recharged and ready to make a difference in the lives of a whole new batch of kids. I wonder…give this some thought…are some of us…as Christians…on a “summer break”? Have we stepped away from our “job” as Christians of being a…

Did you know that your knee is connected to your tongue? Well, it “should” be! And in the very best way possible! In one of the most central texts in all of Scripture, Paul depicts the sacrifice that Jesus made in coming to this earth, emptying Himself and humbling Himself for our sake (Phil. 2:3-8). What should be our response? “Therefore God also has highly exalted Him…

How would you describe your disposition? How would you describe your general attitude? Are you generally a positive or negative person? What is your standard mindset? Is your default to find fault? Are you bent on being bent out of shape? If anyone had a right, from a human perspective, to be bitter and bent out of shape because of circumstances, it was Paul while imprisoned in…

James 5:16 states it rather simply, “Pray for one another.” So, do we? Who have you prayed for today?  Have you prayed for the elders of the church and their wives? What about elders of the Lord’s church all over the world? Have you prayed for the deacons and their wives? Have you prayed for the preachers and their wives? Have you prayed for those doing mission work…

Do you ever get text messages that have a string of emojis at the end? All of varying expressions? Do you ever look at each one individually and think about its meaning? I’m guessing that you don’t. I’m guessing you just see a line of emojis as a group and move on, not considering that someone took the time (usually) to intentionally select which laughing one…

We’ve heard it so often that maybe it has lost its impact—“…the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed…” (1 Cor. 11:23). What night? The night He was betrayed! That’s not just a chronological marker or a filler to make Paul’s sentences even longer! That event was tragic! After Jesus washed 24 grimy feet and explained the heart of a true servant,…

We might sometimes read the book of Ezekiel and think that the prophet was given an unfair mission. God called him and told him that he was being sent to “a rebellious nation” (2:3), who was “obstinate,” “hard-hearted” and “stubborn” (2:4; 3:7). Does it seem “fair” for God to send him to such a people? But, God gives him the message to preach to this…