He Is Able
Innumerable voices in the media relentlessly tell us, “You can do it!” But if we are honest with ourselves, we know deep down that we can’t. We fail often. We are not invincible. Life’s challenges reveal to us that we
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Mourning for Sarah
Sarah lived 127 years; these were the years of the life of Sarah. And Sarah died at Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. (Genesis
Continue readingJesus Is An Understanding Priest
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. (Hebrews 4:15) Genuine sympathizers are not a dime a
Continue readingStrength Equal to 2019
This brief post is from C. H. Spurgeon’s devotional Checkbook of Faith. I was encouraged. I hope you will be, too. “Thy shoes shall be iron and brass; and as thy days, so shall thy strength be” (Deuteronomy 33:25). Here
Continue readingGod’s Way to Success
The Bible is an intimidating book. Let’s not deny it. But it’s also a simple book—a book we receive by faith, and act upon in obedience. In his book entitled The Good Book, Deron Spoo says it this way, The
Continue readingSix Admonitions from Deuteronomy
Picture this. You are among the 40 years old and younger in Israel. You have watched your parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles all die in the wilderness because of their unbelief. You don’t wish to repeat their lack of faith
Continue readingThough We Are Faithless, God Remains Faithful
When I got saved in the early months of 1984, I met my wife a few months later. That fall we sang in a group called Lightshine. It was the musical outreach of a local Youth for Christ kind of
Continue readingLiving By Faith with No Regrets
Sunday mornings, our church is tracing the master story-line of the Bible, through the Bible—the promised redemption brought about in its fullness by the person and work of Jesus Christ. I’ve entitled this sermon series From Garden to Garden, since
Continue readingExercising Faith Muscles – Personal Bible Study for this Weekend
This week, another pastor and I were talking about the analogy of faith as a muscle that needs to be regularly exercised in order to grow. This is based upon the simple understanding that true faith is living faith, as
Continue readingRERUN: Trust in the Lord with All Your Heart
Trusting God is one of those challenges we as Christians talk about, but may not necessarily define. We encourage one another to “trust the Lord,” but we are not sure what it really means. We also tend to view it
Continue readingIf You Truly Know God, Then You Will Love
There are many virtues we see in the Scriptures, but the highest and grandest virtue is love. Faith, hope, and love are Christian virtues, but the greatest is love (1 Cor. 13:13). Jesus summarized all the commandments of God in
Continue readingThe Finest Gold Is Yet to Come
“Psalm 73 contains one of the most rhapsodic [emotionally expressive] and uplifting passages in the whole Psalter, and, indeed, there is hardly need for anything beyond letting their rhythms and sentiments sink into our souls.” So writes Alec Motyer in
Continue readingKeep Walking by Faith in Christ
The Christian life is about walking with God, with our Savior the Lord Jesus Christ. But how do we walk with Christ? How do we walk with One whom we cannot see? We walk by faith. In 2 Corinthians 5:7,
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4 Lessons from the Bronze Serpent
The book of Numbers contains the account of a strange event which took place during Israel’s time of wandering in the wilderness. It is most often referred to as Moses and the Bronze Serpent. Let’s take a few minutes to
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Three Sleep Aids from Psalm 3
It’s 4:00 a.m. and I’m awake, my body still recovering from jet lag. This is to be expected after teaching Common Issues Addressed in Biblical Counseling in Ukraine, last week. Unexpectedly, however, counseling people with sleep problems generated more class
Continue readingThe Effects of Hostility and Betrayal upon the Mind and Body
Last week, I spent several days in Psalms 3-7 as part of my study through Alec Motyer’s devotional translation of the Hebrew songbook we know as the book of Psalms. Whether or not all agree that Psalms 3-7 belong to
Continue readingGod Could Have Decreed to Create Nothing
This morning, my heart craved some time with the Puritans. Therefore, one volume I pulled off my shelf is The Christian’s Reasonable Service. My post-it note bookmark was in the middle of the chapter on general observations concerning the decrees
Continue readingFreedom from the Performance Treadmill
In 1994, I was given Transforming Grace by Jerry Bridges. Immediately, I read the first few chapters and set it aside for no memorable reason (Providence had another plan to use it later). There it sat until 2006 when I
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