you choose Q: what advice would you give to a single person who's feeling lonely at church?
Q: What advice would you give a person who is the only single person in her entire church and is feeling left out and lonely? —Lisa
A: A single person is popularly defined as “one who is above 30 and unmarried.” I would prefer to see a single as “any person who is not in a marital relationship.” This would include…
doing good things
My neighborhood in Uganda was relatively quiet until a businessman disrupted our peace by opening an outdoor bar across the street from my home. Now loud music blares the entire night, with the bar owner refusing to consider the residents he’s disturbing. He tells us that he’s a good man, and since he gives money to the poor people shouldn’t complain.
holy living
“Our Father in heaven,” Jesus taught us to pray, “may Your name be kept holy” (Matthew 6:9). We affirm today that Your name, Yahweh, already is holy because it describes You—pure, perfect, far removed from evil, error, and corruption.
boys to men
Studies of children who grow up in fatherless homes reveal that they often face major challenges in life. The statistics are alarming: Youths who grow up in fatherless homes are twice as likely to end up in jail as those who come from traditional two-parent families. Eighty-five percent of children who exhibit behavioral disorders and 71 percent of all high school dropouts come from fatherless homes. Ninety percent of homeless and runaway children are from fatherless homes—32 times the average!
new kind of father
Many people struggle in their daily life due to a poor relationship with their earthly fathers. I’ve counseled some who tend to humanize and view God through the lens of their negative experience. Many believers in Jesus also get tripped up in their relationship with their heavenly Father. If their earthly dads have failed them, it’s hard for them to believe that God won’t do the same.
commoner to royalty
The New York Times estimated that 3 billion people watched Prince William, heir to the throne of England, marry Kate Middleton. If true, nearly one out of every two people on the planet tuned in to watch the well-dressed duo tie the royal knot. While the actual number of viewers was probably much less, still the London wedding was watched by millions across the globe.
carried
When my boys were smaller and it was time for bed, they would often ask if they could “be a sack of potatoes.” I would pick them up by their legs, sling them over my shoulder and climb the stairs to their room. I’d fling them into their bed the way a farmer tosses a 50-pound bag of spuds onto the back of a truck. They loved it.
Jesus’ Father
I was recently reading through the book of John when my eyes fell on these words: “I am ascending to My Father and your Father, to My God and your God” (John 20:17). This is the amazing declaration Jesus made to Mary Magdalene, just moments after she came to the stunning realization that He had risen from the dead.
you are owned
It’s devastating to be owned by another human. Slaves suffer unimaginable heartbreak and abuse because their lives are not their own. Another person tells them where they will live, what they will do, even whom they will marry. They have no say. Being owned is so harsh that even today, when we want to express the domination of one person over another, we are apt to say something like “Susan owns Tom,” meaning that he pretty much does whatever she wants.
8d dad
What great joy to have a father
to honor, uphold, and treasure
before he leaves us forever
and we mourn him beyond measure.
1st D : Dedicated
Dad’s dedication,
to resilient fatherhood
is without question,
always for the greater good.
2nd D : Disciplined
By using a bit more discipline,
dad has succeeded in bringing me thus far;
by using a lot more discipline,
he and I shine brighter than the brightest star.
3rd…
promises, promises
I was once dragged into a highly charged discussion about the failure of certain politicians to keep their campaign promises. The discussion veered into a theological one when someone simply asked: “How many promises did God make in the Bible?” For many years, it was believed that there were 30,000 promises in God’s Word—that every verse is a promise. In…
prayer
How’s your prayer life? Mine has been rocky to say the least. I don’t always know how to do it, I don’t always want to do it and usually , and I’m ashamed I don’t do it more often. Prayer can be intimidating. It was to me. Just using the word “prayer” invokes a sense of religious ceremony and sanctification…
phantom lions
When I was a child, my dad would scare my brother and me by hiding in a thicket and growling like a lion. Living in the bush country of Africa, the possibility of encountering a carnivorous feline was real to us. Regardless, we would laugh delightedly whenever we heard the growl—thrilled by Dad’s act.
One day, a young friend came…
one lost son
This story of the prodigal son is one of the most famous and familiar of Jesus’ parables. And the most personal. For it touches an area that is often the most painful—our children.
In the parables of the lost sheep (Luke 15:3-7) and lost coin (Luke 15:8-10), the emphasis is on the lostness and the relentless efforts of the owners to…
