We don’t know her name, but we know her situation. Her world was midnight black. Grope-in-the-dark-and-hope-for-help black. Read these three verses and see what I mean: A large crowd followed Jesus and pushed very close around Him. Among them was a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years. She had suffered very much from…
Let Your Father Fight for You
With us is the Lord our God, to help us and to fight our battles. — 2 Chronicles 32:8 NKJV Nadin Khoury was thirteen years old, five foot two, and weighed, soaking wet, probably a hundred pounds. His attackers were teenagers, larger than Nadin, and outnumbered him seven to one. For thirty minutes they…
Water Into Wine
Water Into Wine Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” Then he told them, “Now draw some out.” The master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He called the bridegroom aside and said, “You have saved the best till now.” — John 2:7-10 It’s a simple…
It’s a New Day: The Choice Is Yours
It’s quiet. It’s early. My coffee is hot. The sky is still black. The world is still asleep. The day is coming. In a few moments the day will arrive. It will roar down the track with the rising of the sun. The stillness of the dawn will be exchanged for the noise of the…
Begin Again: Settle Down Deep in His Love
May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. — Ephesians 3:19 NLT Pipín Ferreras wants to go deep, deeper than any person has ever gone. You and I are content with 10 or 20 feet of water. Certain risktakers descend 40, maybe 50. Not Pipín. This legendary…
God Will Help You Get Through Grief
We don’t discuss graveyards to brighten our day. Cemeteries aren’t typically known for their inspiration. But an exception was found in a graveyard near Bethany. And that one exception is exceptional. A man named Lazarus was sick. He lived in Bethany with his sisters, Mary and Martha. This is the Mary who later poured…
Your Christmas Story
Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. — Luke 1:26-27 What if Joseph and Mary had shown up in furs with a…
Because of Bethlehem: God Has a Face
The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. — John 1:14 MSG The celebration of Advent is possible only to those who are troubled in soul, who know themselves to be poor and imperfect, and who look forward to something greater to come. — Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Christmas Sermons Video: God…
The Present-Tense Christ
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. – Hebrews 13:8 I am God’s Son. – John 10:36 I am the resurrection and the life. – John 11:25 I am the way, and the truth, and the life. – John 14:6 I am the true vine. – John 15:1 The present-tense Christ. He never says, “I…
Seeing Jesus Clearly
For Kids What will it be like to finally see Jesus face-to-face? How will it feel? I believe it will be greater than anything we could ever imagine. But I like to imagine anyway. And I imagine it will be better than Christmas morning, better than a birthday, better than an ice-cream sundae —…