small things
Last year, a tech firm in South Africa demonstrated that a carrier pigeon could carry data faster than the nation’s premier Internet provider. Unlimited IT strapped a data card to the leg of a pigeon named Winston and sent him off on his 50-mile flight from their headquarters to the coastal town of Durban. At the same time, they began…
Love Notes . . . a postsript
After the recent post “Love Notes” went up on ODJ last week on August 11th, I received a kind email from the father of the little girl who left little notes of affection behind for her family before she passed away from cancer. No one here at ODJ had any idea that the day the article went up was the anniversary…
spiritual unity
Segregating ourselves along ethnic and social lines is a common human practice. We’re simply more comfortable around “our kind” of people, and we tend to keep our distance from those who seem different from us.
In his letter to the church at Philippi, the apostle Paul addressed the challenges faced by a group of people from mixed backgrounds. Within this…
be silent
Recently a friend said to me, “I used to fear how people perceived me. Then I discovered that Satan’s deviousness is something even greater to fear. Later, however, I learned that to fall under God’s wrath is to be feared the most.”
Zephaniah describes the day when God’s anger will be poured out as “a day of terrible distress and…
compartments
I was talking with a friend the other day about how easy it is to live our life compartmentally. For instance, on Sundays we can enter the compartment of going to church and worshiping God. But the rest of the week we might ease out of church-mode and enter compartments that deny God’s presence and His commands.
The prophet Jeremiah,…
who you are
A confused, middle-aged man flagged down a bus driver in Seattle. He wore expensive clothes and spoke French, German, and English, but he did not know who he was. He remembered slices of his life: living in Slovakia, teaching English in China, and last night’s sleep in Discovery Park, but he could not remember his own name.
The authorities researched…
August 16, 2010
What's something amazing that God has done in your life this summer?
taking God for granted
My wife and I have been married for 16 years. But, to my own embarrassment, there have been times when I’ve taken her for granted. I’ve been so familiar with her presence that I’ve been insensitive to her needs and wants.
Just as it’s not healthy to take our spouses for granted, King David would say it’s not healthy to…
hopeful
Carefully patting the dirt around the base of the seedling, we stepped back to observe our work. Six years old, I was helping my dad plant a small weeping willow in the center of our otherwise barren backyard. When we moved soon afterward, I didn’t understand why the tree couldn’t go with us. I thought it was for me. Ten…
Your kingdom come
When Jesus taught the disciples how to pray (Matthew 6:9-13), the Jews were under Roman rule. God had promised them a deliverer—the Messiah. A Jew praying, “May Your kingdom come soon” (v.10) would have had in mind the end of Roman rule, for the Messiah was to come and establish a new kingdom (Luke 19:11), and for David’s descendant to…
uncovered
I remember how nervous he was, how fearful. Our friend came in and sat on our couch. He had something to tell us, but he couldn’t get the words out. He carried a weight he had held alone, a burden he couldn’t hide anymore. The hiding had nearly buried him.
Most of us have something we try to hide, some…
premarital counsel?
Had the privilege of attending my nephew’s wedding last Saturday. The couple, both in their early twenties, radiated love and joy as they said their vows. They stated that it was their desire for God to be at the center of their relationship. Their faith and commitment to Him and each other was evident.
But what will keep their marriage strong…
read this! from a youth pastor in South Africa . . .
I am a youth pastor in South Africa and have really been looking for a devotional and was recommended by an employer in South Africa to take a look at the ODJ. I cannot put it down and I have actually put aside all my other devo's and only use this one—it has really helped me huge. Such relevant stuff…
coyote wild
I live in a neighborhood where people mow their lawns, plant flowers, and clean up after their dogs. But sometimes at night, we hear eerie noises. I’m not talking about the neighbor’s beagle yelping at the moon. This is creepy howling that is totally untamed. For our neighborhood is plagued by coyotes.
Sometimes when they wake me up, I lie…
