Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray. Is anyone happy? Let them sing songs of praise. — James 5:13 The day I met Rebecca, she invited me over to her house for egg salad and raspberries. We were coworkers, the only two squeezed into a ten-foot-by-ten-foot office like two college roommates. Within hours…
Christian Life Is Infused with Joy
The Christian life is marked by notable milestones, and you’ll find joy in every one of them. Remember, just because something is important and serious doesn’t mean it can’t also be filled with joy and the beauty of deep, abiding contentment. Salvation The moment of salvation is inexpressibly joyous. This is our eternal, spiritual delivery…
Death Is Temporary
Death has been swallowed up in victory. — 1 Corinthians 15:54 NIV Barring the return of Christ, you will have one final moment… a last gasp, a final pulse. Your lungs will empty, and your blood will still. What will you be after you die? Answers vary, but Christianity posits a startling idea: “Death has been…
Jesus: The Lamb of God
A person is not held accountable for operating-table thoughts. The same rule goes for dental chairs and delivery rooms. On any occasion when people stick needles in your arm, fingers in your mouth, or scalpels into your skin, the patient is not penalized for bizarre imaginings. At least that is the justification I give to…
The Upside: Purpose
One cool Saturday night in September 2015, my mama hung the next day’s church clothes on her closet door. She placed a cup of water on her nightstand next to my novel and climbed into her plush bed. Sometime during the night, while my mother slept, her soul went to be with Jesus. I watched…
Imperfect Faith
What Joy Davidman’s Spiritual Journey Teaches Us Today “If we should ever grow brave, what on earth would become of us?” This question asked by Joy Davidman does more than beg for an answer, it might also set us off on a spiritual journey that irrevocably alters our lives, which is exactly what happened to…
Six Hours One Friday Online Bible Study Week Four — Your Death Is Not Final
Anchor Point 3: My Death Is Not Final O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? — 1 Corinthians 14:55 Don’t cry? Don’t cry? What kind of request is that?.. It’s a request only God can make. ~ Max Lucado Welcome back to another week of the Six Hours One Friday…
Praying to Forgive Yourself, God, and Others
I struggled with forgiving my mother for years. Even after I became an adult she continued to be abusive, and I had to forgive her on a daily basis. Sometimes I stayed away from her and just let my dad deal with her by himself. Unfortunately she turned her anger toward him. When he became…
Through All The Seasons. . . God Is Loving and Powerful
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 — Why has this passage endured the ages as one of the oldest philosophical poems in our literary canon? It’s certainly among the most pensive passages of God’s Word, a beautiful meditation that casts a near-hypnotic spell over readers of any generation. The author was the wisest and wealthiest man who ever lived, and…
Loving Someone Who is Dying
My mother is dying from cancer. Scratch that: she’s living with cancer. She’s quick to point it out; she’s still here. And while cancer is winning the battle, my mother claims victory. The spoils? “Apples.” But not McIntosh or Fuji. Let me explain. It’s not easy to find the right words to say to a person nearing…