you choose Q: what can you do when you've lost all hope?
Q: What can you do when you’ve lost all hope? —Joseph
A: Scripture gives numerous examples of people who’ve struggled with feelings of hopelessness (1 Kings 19:4; Psalm 22:11; Isaiah 53:10; Lamentations 1:12; Jonah 2:1-5; Matthew 27:46; 2 Corinthians 1:8; Hebrews 11:35-40).
When the apostle Paul struggled with profoundly disappointing circumstances and anguished over personal struggles with sin to the point…
Jesus changes everything
If Jesus hadn’t entered our world, two things would be true. First, those with the most _________ win. (Fill in the blank with whatever you or your culture happen to value most.) In ancient times, it was those with the most camels, wives, or gold. Today it includes those with the most cash, toys, or Facebook friends. Either way the goal is the same: Get all you can while you can.
indicted or invited?
There are two ways most people tend to read the Bible. One is to read it mostly as an indictment of the human race. In other words, we’re sinful rebels who are bent on finding life apart from God.
made new
She embodies beauty, both inside and out. But she also carries the burden of deep shame due to the actions of a selfish man. Far from harmless, his hands not only touched her, but they robbed her of security and honor. Perhaps he saw it as a game—simply sacrificing her innocence on the altar of a sex-saturated culture. But, to her, it resulted in a painful, lifelong wound of the heart and mind.
divine invitation
The best party invitation we ever received featured a picture of a little boy wearing funny yellow sunglasses. His smile extended from ear to ear. It was a photo of my son’s playmate, and the text read: “Please join us for Daniel’s first birthday.” Every time I glanced at that invitation, I felt a twinge of joy. Recently, I had…
off-limits
James Pell and three of his buddies wandered into treacherous territory while snowboarding in the French Alps. Reflecting on the incident, Pell said, “We came to a cliff ledge and quickly realized [we would not] be able to ride out of the area. But by [that] time . . . we were stuck.”
If you’ve ever wandered off spiritually, you…
lost
Soon after Charles Lindbergh completed his monumental transatlantic flight in the Spirit of St. Louis, the US Ambassador to Mexico asked Lindbergh to make another flight in order to foster positive US-Mexico relations.
Taking off from Washington DC on December 13, 1927, Lindbergh began the 24-hour flight to Mexico City. After navigating through dense fog, Lindbergh lost his bearings. With only…
loving enemies
Naaman, the powerful general from Aram, was suddenly powerless. Beneath his glamorous and impenetrable armor, a disease was slowly killing him. He had contracted leprosy (2 Kings 5:1), and now his political might and military abilities couldn't help him. He would soon lose all worldly power and possessions, including even his life. He was helpless and hopeless.
Then a Hebrew…
God's visit
If you take a trip to Israel, will you plan to visit Nain? Probably not. This ancient village (now known as Nein) isn't located on any major roads running through the Jezreel Plain. It's not likely that many tourists visited this off-the-beaten-path destination during the time of Jesus either. But it was in this small, obscure village that the Savior…
above the mud
Bog snorkeling is a popular sport in Wales. Competitors wear flippers and diving masks with snorkels attached and try to squirm through trenches cut through peat bogs without using their arms! While I have no idea how bog snorkeling got started, I know that getting "stuck in the mud" is nothing new.
David was in that spot—emotionally speaking—when he wrote,…
