John’s disciples came to him and said, “Rabbi, the man you met on the other side of the Jordan River, the one you identified as the Messiah, is also baptizing people. And everybody is going to him instead of coming to us.” John replied, “No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven. You yourselves know how plainly... READ MORE >
I say to you, among those born of women there is no one greater than John; yet he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he. When all the people and the tax collectors heard this, they acknowledged God’s justice, having been baptized with the baptism of John. But the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected God’s... READ MORE >
“The Kingdom of Heaven can be illustrated by the story of ten bridesmaids who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. The five who were foolish didn’t take enough olive oil for their lamps, but the other five were wise enough to take along extra oil.” Matthew 25:1-4New Living... READ MORE >
For we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, of the affliction we experienced… . For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. (2... READ MORE >
A soldier, far from home on a moonscape of rock and sand, prays to be a good warrior without hardening his heart against the loving and gracious Spirit of his God. He presses hard in prayer to the Maker and Humbler of nations to be the husband and father he cannot be while he follows the life he believes is... READ MORE >
We are fast approaching the season of Lent. My denomination does not formally observe this season of fasting, but we do appreciate the value of spiritual disciplines. I appreciate them, but I don’t find them any easier to keep than many of you. I have spent as much of my working life sitting in the pews as I have standing... READ MORE >
Several years ago during Advent, I decided to purchase a set of little clay lamps instead of candles for the Advent “wreath” on our communion table. They were replicas of the sort of lamp that was common in Jesus’s day. I found an exporter in Palestine on the Internet and for just $40 I was able to get five little... READ MORE >
Fear. We all deal with it. At its best life is full of accidents that can fall on us like a meteor; the unforeseeable “black ice” on life’s highway. At its worst there are malicious people and forces out there that see us as prey to exploit; thugs, thieves, scam artists even nations of terrorists. I used to keep chickens.... READ MORE >
Tomorrow’s freedomis today’s surrender,we come before Youto lay our burdens down.We look to You asour hearts remember,You are the only God.You are our only God.Stu Garrard andDavid Leonard This is the chorus from a worship song that has been stuck in my mind because the words are powerfully true and moving. First, there is very little of real value for... READ MORE >
One of our day trips off the Mercy Ship last March was to an infant orphanage or crèche run by a government agency. The children were infants up to preschool toddlers. The infants are often malnourished and abused or profoundly neglected by their parents. At the crèche they are fed, kept clean and given medical attention, but the staff is... READ MORE >
