when faith is weak
To say my Christian faith is unflappable would be untrue. It’s to the contrary. For even though I write devotions, engage in work on behalf of the poor in East Africa, and long for my confidence in Jesus Christ to be strong—often, too often, my faith is pathetically, embarrassingly weak. In the midst of personal hardships, I find it more…
alone
I saw this quote on a friend’s Facebook page: “It’s not that I feel alone because I have no friends. I have lots of friends. I know that I have people who can hold me and reassure me and talk to me and care for me and think of me. But they can’t be inside my head with me all…
waiting for rain
Competing against the thwap-thwap sound of the windshield wipers, the rain beat a rhythmic pattern against the car. Driving out of town for a retreat with our youth leaders, I was thankful for the chance to spend time with them.
The rain outside, however, fell in contrast to the desert condition inside my heart. His presence real, I felt that Jesus…
david and the dwarf
The towering enemy strides into the Valley of Elah. He stands more than 9 feet tall, with shining armor made of several hundred small bronze plates that glimmer in the sunlight. His spear is several inches thick, with a 15-pound spearhead (1 Samuel 17:7). It’s wrapped with cords so it can be thrown farther and more accurately through the air.…
déjà vu
David was caught in a living nightmare. Once again, Saul was hot on his heels. The king had taken 3,000 of Israel’s elite troops and was hunting David down in the wilderness of Ziph. The events in 1 Samuel 26 have a sense of déjà vu about them—they’re remarkably similar to what took place in chapter 24.
In the first…
frantic
I was just a few minutes away from major surgery. Nurses circulated through the room and I was hooked up to all sorts of monitors. Suddenly, a computer screen started blipping wildly. What was happening? Would I be all right? A nurse glanced at the readout and announced that it was monitoring my heart rate.
I needed to calm down! I’m…
what are you waiting for?
In 2009, my corner of the world had one of the coldest summers on record. Then snowflakes fell early in the fall. My friends and I joked that we don’t know about global warming, but we’re all for it. We’re threatening to buy larger vehicles and any product that comes in aerosol—whatever it takes to expand the greenhouse effect and…
complete integrity
If Jesus were to identify one thing He appreciates about you, what would it be? Nathanael, whom some scholars say was also known as Bartholomew, heard the following words from Jesus, “Now here is a genuine son of Israel—a man of complete integrity” (John 1:47).
What is a “genuine son of Israel”? Romans 2:29 states, “A true Jew is one…
chameleon
Nicodemus is a man I can relate to. You may recall him as the religious leader who came to see Jesus “after dark one evening” (John 3:1-2). Some scholars say the time of his visit is simply how meetings were done back then. Others say he wanted to keep the meeting hidden from his colleagues, men who saw Jesus as…
that special
My mother is one of the most quotable people I know. Her quips usually make us laugh while poking us with a bit of truth. For example, when one of us spouts off about a minor achievement or takes on a me-first attitude, my mom is sure to say (with a smile), “You’re not that special.”
Jesus had a similar message…
uncertainties
Due to the recent economic downturn, the university my brother-in-law attends will no longer provide any paid academic teaching or research opportunities for students who have been in the program for more than 5 years. This change has affected him big- time. He was set to graduate with his doctorate degree next year. But now new plans have to be…
one-hit wonders
A recent TV special on one-hit wonders—pop music performers who had one hit and then disappeared—fascinated me. Old footage from their prime showed them to be arrogant, bold, confident, outrageous, and young!
Now, 20 to 30 years later, the TV crew caught up with many of them. Some had moved on with their lives, raising families and enjoying obscurity. But…
loss and found
It’s likely that several people you know have been laid off this year. Recently I learned that another good friend had lost his job. This would be bad news for anyone, but it was especially brutal for my friend because his wife’s position had been eliminated just a month before!
King David knew what it felt like to lose his…
watching your wait
A Fitness magazine poll of 1,000 women found that women are willing to take drastic steps to reach their ideal weight: Twenty-three percent said they would spend a week in jail. Twenty-three percent would shave their head. Twenty-two percent would wear a bikini on TV. Twenty-one percent would trade 10 years of their life to lose some pounds.
It’s apparent that…
bold faith
Recently, a 6-year-old boy missed his morning bus to school. Determined not to miss his school breakfast or gym class, the tyke grabbed the keys to his parents’ car, crept out of the house as his mother slept, and drove nearly 6 miles toward his school. The Associated Press report gave amazing detail of the boy’s remarkable jaunt: “He made…
