wonders and whispers
Scene 1: Elijah is on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18:16-39). The prophet has declared a test. He and the prophets of Baal will each erect an altar and call to their respective gods. The one who sets the altar on fire will be revealed as the one true God (1 Kings 18:24).
bread of life
I’ve never known true, life-threatening hunger. There have been occasions where my stomach gnawed for food and where I felt the ragged edge of hunger pains. I’ve never known, however, the kind of hunger you see when you visit slums in Sierra Leone or refugee camps in the Sudan. That hunger is palpable in a place where people are barely…
end of the world?
If the premise of the movie 2012 is correct, then we have less than 12 months to live. Our world will come to a catastrophic end on December 21 of this year—the day when the ancient Mayan calendar officially expires. Yeah, right . . .
Christians in every generation have believed that Jesus would come back in their lifetime because they…
imperfect prayer studies
A 1988 study by Dr. Randolph Byrd found coronary care patients were 11 percent more likely to recover when they had received the prayers of others. A 2006 study led by Dr. Herbert Benson suggested there was no improvement for patients at all. A more recent study (September 2010) by Candy Gunther Brown at Indiana University reported significantly positive results…
red sky in the morning
[caption id="attachment_7897" align="aligncenter" width="524" caption="—pic submitted by Sherry Metzger, US"]
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[Jesus] replied, “You know the saying, ‘Red sky at night means fair weather tomorrow; red sky in the morning means foul weather all day.’ You know how to interpret the weather signs in the sky, but you don’t know how to interpret the signs of the times! (Matthew 16:2-3).
perhaps today
When will all this happen? What sign will show us that these things are about to take place?” (Luke 21:7). Over the centuries, Christians have asked these two questions. And in every generation they’ve believed that Jesus was coming back in their lifetime because of signs and events that they observed during their day. Yet, 2,000 years later, we’re still…
the spirit, the kingdom
One of the many juggling acts parents perform is deciding when to give information to their children. If I know a trip or a family fun time is on the horizon, I want to tell our boys early enough so they can enjoy the anticipation. If I tell them too soon, however, their agony of waiting (and my agony caused…
from the dust
"Your father Abraham rejoiced as he looked forward to My coming. He saw it and was glad. The people said, “You aren’t even fifty years old. How can You say you have seen Abraham?" Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, before Abraham was even born, I Am!” At that point they picked up stones to throw at Him. But Jesus was…
feel
My friend has a habit of asking God for signs. In doing so, His prayers tend to seek confirmation of his feelings, as in “God, if You want me to do ‘X,’ then please do ‘Y,’ and I’ll know it’s OK.”
Not surprisingly, this has created a dilemma. For my friend feels that he should get back with his ex-girlfriend,…
