This is what real love is: … it is God’s love for us in sending his Son to be the way to take away our sins. — 1 John 4:10 You’ve had enough of human love. Haven’t you? Enough guys wooing you with Elvis-impersonator sincerity. Enough tabloids telling you that true love is just a diet away. Enough helium-filled expectations…
Who Can Fathom Eternity?
God has planted eternity in the hearts of men. — Ecclesiastes 3:10 It doesn’t take a wise person to know that people long for more than earth. When we see pain, we yearn. When we see hunger, we question why. Senseless deaths. Endless tears, needless loss… We have our moments. The newborn on our breast, the bride on our…
The Secret to Loving
Could two people be more different? He is looked up to. She is looked down on. He is a church leader. She is a streetwalker. He makes a living promoting standards. She’s made a living breaking them. He’s hosting the party. She’s crashing it. Ask the other residents of Capernaum to point out the more pious of…
Jesus — Completely Human, Completely Divine
She will bring forth a son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins. Jesus In the four gospels of the New Testament, it’s His most common name — used almost six hundred times. And a common name it was. Jesus is the Greek form of Joshua, Jeshua, and Jehoshua —…
A Robe of Righteousness
You were all clothed with Christ. — Galatians 3:27 We eat our share of forbidden fruit. We say what we shouldn’t say. Go where we shouldn’t go. Pluck fruit from trees we shouldn’t touch. And when we do, the door opens, and the shame tumbles in. And we hide. We sew fig leaves… We cover ourselves…
An Attitude of Gratitude
A grateful heart sees each day as a gift. Thankful people focus less on what they lack and more on the privileges they have. I attended a banquet recently in which a wounded soldier was presented with the gift of a free house. He nearly fell over with gratitude. He bounded onto the stage with…
Let God Define Good
God at times permits tragedies. He permits the ground to grow dry and stalks to grow bare. He allows Satan to unleash mayhem. But he doesn’t allow Satan to triumph. Isn’t this the promise of Romans 8:28: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who…
Remembering 9/11
It seems that in the dozen years since our country’s heart and skyline were ripped apart, we still struggle with how to spend this day that represents such pain and, even to this day, fear. 9/11 has come to serve as a day of remembrance for the many trials we have endured as a nation…
Empty Pockets and Bare Cupboards
Mark this down: God does not save us because of what we’ve done. Only a puny god could be bought with tithes. Only an egotistical god would be impressed with our pain. Only a temperamental god could be satisfied by sacrifices. Only a heartless god would sell salvation to the highest bidders. And only a…
He Will Not Let You Go
The Lord said to [Hosea] again, “Go, show your love to a woman loved by someone else, who has been unfaithful to you.” – Hosea 3:1 God will not let you go. He has handcuffed himself to you in love. And he owns the only key. You need not win his love. You already have…