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It is better to be patient than powerful; it is better to have self-control than to conquer a city. – Proverbs 16:32

Many years ago, a French company decided it was going to mine the desert. It brought in its machines, pushed aside the huge dunes building in their place an airstrip and a building complex. They hooked up huge diesel-powered generators and began digging.

But the Sahara has been around a while and is unimpressed by our civilization. After all, it has seen many human empires come and go. Like a dragon sleeping on its hoard, it jealously guards millions…  ( Click for more )

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path…My heart is set on keeping your decrees to the very end. – Psalm 119:105

Men are notorious for not reading instructions. They don’t want to read the map or ask directions. We laugh and many sitcoms have used this premise as the basis for a comic situation. “How foolish of him to be so arrogant as to think he can go it alone!” we think. What is it that makes us feel this way?

We learn as children that to learn something, we must ask someone older, wiser than ourselves. Ideally, this lesson…  ( Click for more )

Your duty is to go and preach the coming of the Kingdom of God. – Luke 9:60

There is a village on the Gold Coast of West Africa, called ‘Achimota’. It lies seven miles from the infamous Christianborg castle where slaves were held for the slave ships. Across a wooded hill above the village runs a path trod by thousands of slaves headed for a life of misery. This hill was the last chance of escape before they reached the dungeons from which they would be shipped across the Atlantic. Sometimes slaves would manage to escape the chains and would be cared for by villagers.…  ( Click for more )

Stay away from the love of money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never fail you. I will never forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5

A small fish caught in a net said to the fisherman, “I am too little to be a good meal. Even if you boil me or roast me – I won’t be enough to truly satisfy your hunger for long. Let me go and keep growing. I promise to return to you two years from now. You will find me in this same spot, large and seven times as fat. If you wait till then to eat me, it will be like a great feast in your house, and…  ( Click for more )

The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. – Psalm 18:2

A Christian warrior was separated from his unit during the course of intense fighting. In the smoke and haze of battle, he had lost touch with his comrades. Alone in the jungle, he could hear enemy soldiers coming in his direction. Scrambling for cover, he found his way up a high ridge to several small caves in the rock and quickly crawled into one. Although safe for the moment, he realized that the enemy soldiers…  ( Click for more )

“If you look for me in earnest, you will find me when you seek me.” Jeremiah 29:13

How many times have you tried to pray only to find yourself thinking of something else instead? How many times have you caught yourself asleep when you intended to meditate? We are so easily distracted. We are like babies whose eyes follow whatever is moving without true understanding. A fly buzzes and we are distracted from our conversation with the Sovereign God. A drip from a faucet can ruin our meditation.

God promises that in the great game of hide and seek He will be…  ( Click for more )

“Now which of these three would you say was a neighbor to the man who was attacked by bandits?” Jesus asked. The man replied, “The one who showed him mercy.” Then Jesus said, “Yes, now go and do the same.” - Luke 10:36-37

God began with a man named Abram. The Lord told him to leave his homeland and to follow Him to a promised land. If Abram did, the Lord promised, “I will bless those who bless you and curse those who curse you. All the families of the earth will be blessed through you.” (Genesis 12:3). The world pretty much…  ( Click for more )

Long ago the Lord said to Israel: “I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.” - Jeremiah 31:3

They say hind sight Isaiah 20/20. We look back on our lives and see God at work. Those situations that we thought would be the end of us turned out to be our finest hour. Those people that we mistakenly thought were our best friends or the loves of our lives, ended up being jerks. We were heartbroken when we lost them and shook our little fists at God and cried “Why, God? Why are you doing this to me?”…  ( Click for more )

…Because of your faith, it will happen. Matthew 9:29

I read a story about a church that was located in an area beset by drought. At last, they decided to pray about the matter. Isn’t it funny how we don’t start out praying? We always wait until the situation seems hopeless then yell out, “God! Help!” Anyway, only one person showed up to the prayer meeting with an umbrella. They were all there ostensibly to ask God for rain, but only one among the congregation actually believed God would answer. When you pray, do you carry an “umbrella”…  ( Click for more )

Yahweh M’Kaddesh - 'The Lord Who Who Makes Holy'

Keep all my laws and obey them, for I am the Lord, who makes you holy. - Leviticus 20:8

At the village church in Kalonovka, Russia, attendance at Sunday school picked up after the priest started handing out candy. One of the most faithful attendees was a pug-nosed, pugnacious lad who recited his Scriptures piously, pocketed his reward, and then fled into the fields to munch on it. The priest took a liking to the boy and persuaded him to attend church school. This was preferable to doing household chores from…  ( Click for more )

This command I am giving you today is not too difficult for you to understand or perform. – Deuteronomy 30:11

Naaman was a celebrated, powerful officer in the Assyrian army, who had a huge problem: leprosy. He heard of an Israeli prophet with the power to heal him, so he asked for and received permission to travel to Israel (a considerable effort in the day) to find this prophet. The Assyrian king tried to help with a letter of introduction to the king of Israel, asking him to heal Naaman. The Israelite king thought that Naaman was trying to provoke a war. The prophet,…  ( Click for more )

He said, “I came naked from my mother’s womb, and I will be stripped of everything when I die. The Lord gave me everything I had, and the Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord!” Job 1:21

Once, a fox discovered a vineyard. It was completely enclosed by a wall, except for one small hole. When the fox tried to enter the hole, he discovered he could not. It was too small. So he decided to fast for three days until he became thin enough to enter through the hole. He began fasting and, after three days, was scrawny enough to make it. He entered the…  ( Click for more )

Just as the body is dead without a spirit, so also faith is dead without good deeds. – Js. 2:26

Nehemiah had a great job. He worked for the king and got to eat like one. He had an easy job and didn’t particularly suffer from any want or persecution. But he got a burden for Jerusalem. He prayed and prayed and the burden only became greater. Finally, he did something about it. It was risky. It was foolhardy. It was downright foolish. But God answered amazingly and provided.

Nehemiah was able to go to Jerusalem and start building. The book…  ( Click for more )

I know the Lord is always with me. I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me. Psalm 16:8

Is this verse a reality in your life? When someone is right beside you, don’t you tend to think about them more? Don’t you address them in conversation? How often have you addressed the Lord in the last hour? How prominent has He been in your thoughts?

Some of the best times I have spent with the Lord have not been in a church. I have felt His presence while sitting high in a pine tree, listening to the wind sigh in the needles, feeling it sway from side to side,…  ( Click for more )

…Be earnest and disciplined in your prayers…Pray at all times and on every occasion in the power of the Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all Christians everywhere. 1 Peter 4:7; Ephesians 6:18

Most girls, when they fight, flail away wildly – hair falling in their eyes, eyes closed, they swing with great energy, but with little accomplishment. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve seen some phenomenal female warriors, but most girls fight like – well, girls!

We Christians are often guilty…  ( Click for more )

For whatever is in your heart determines what you say. A good person produces good words from a good heart, and an evil person produces evil words from an evil heart. – Matthew 12:34b-35

A blind man once sat in a very popular park. He loved to sit there and listen to all the activities in the beautiful place. One day, there was a sudden influx of noise as though a great crowd was gathering. He overheard some people say, “Oh, the food is delicious! I’m stuffed! This is the best I’ve eaten in a while!”

The blind man thought to himself, “A…  ( Click for more )

But then God our Savior showed us his kindness and love. He saved us, not because of the good things we did, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins and gave us a new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us because of what Jesus Christ our Savior did. He declared us not guilty because of his great kindness. And now we know that we will inherit eternal life. – Titus 3:4-7

There once was a rich man who had all the world could offer. But the pride of his life was his son. He arranged a marriage for his son to a beautiful young…  ( Click for more )

“And I assure you of this: If anyone acknowledges me publicly here on earth, I, the Son of Man, will openly acknowledge that person in the presence of God’s angels. But if anyone denies me here on earth, I will deny that person before God’s angels. – Luke 12:8-9

Two hundred years ago, in the southern French town of Aigues-Mortes, a young girl named Marie Durant was dragged before the court and charged with heresy. Marie was a Huguenot. She was bright, attractive and only fourteen years old. In those days, fourteen was marriageable. She was commanded…  ( Click for more )

The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham: - Matthew 1:1

A tzaddik was called to be the elder of a wealthy church in a large metropolitan city. Shortly after his arrival, some of the more prominent members invited him to lunch. Hoping to impress their new elder, they each began listing their various exalted positions within the social strata of that great city. As the conversation progressed, they started discussing their heritage. “My ancestors came over on the Mayflower” claimed one. “I list Robert the Bruce as…  ( Click for more )

Let me hear of your unfailing love to me in the morning, for I am trusting you. Show me where to walk, for I have come to you in prayer. Psalm 143:8

Prayer can be like a compass. It is a time to ask God for direction in your life. It is a time to ask Him to show you the way. If you ask honestly and in faith, He will always show you. Don’t expect Him to show you the next twenty years, for they are in a large part yet to be determined by your obedience. He will show you, however, the next step, the next goal. You must be satisfied with that and trust Him to take care of…  ( Click for more )

When Jesus had tasted it, he uttered another loud cry, “It is finished! Father I entrust my spirit into your hands!” With these words he bowed his head and breathed his last, releasing his spirit. – Luke 23:46; John 19:30

A man had a son who was the commander of a tank artillery division. The son was so anti-religious that he would even complain about a photograph of his grandfather praying over a meal that hung in his father’s house. “That man was an idiot! Take that embarrassing picture down!” he would shout.

But one day, he converted!…  ( Click for more )

When arguing with fools, don’t answer their foolish arguments, or you will become as foolish as they are. When arguing with fools, be sure to answer their foolish arguments, or they will become wise in their own estimation. – Proverbs 26:4-5

Have you ever had to deal with a fool? You know – bull headed, ignorant, unteachable, absolutely convinced of the rightness of their cause contrary to all evidence and good sense, easily angered, thin skinned, and self-righteous – a fool. Of course you have – we all have. The Bible has sound advice for dealing…  ( Click for more )

Once when Jesus had been out praying, one of his disciples came to him as he finished and said, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” Luke 11:1 “Teach us to pray.” This disciple had a flash of insight. He realized that there were hidden depths, unrealized complexities to prayer that were eluding him. When audiences who are not familiar with the art of grappling watch two master wrestlers, they often think not much is happening. Because they have not tried wrestling themselves, they don’t see the nuances. They don’t…  ( Click for more )

I will honor only those who honor me, and I will despise those who despise me. I will put an end to your family, so it will no longer serve as my priests. – 1 Samuel 2:30b-31a Eli was a good man with bad sons, a frequent phenomenon in the Bible. Eli’s two sons were supposed to assist him at the temple, but they began to take for themselves meat that was supposed to be sacrificed to God. As if that was not enough, they took the meat by force and they also slept with women who came to worship at the temple! Eli tried halfheartedly to rebuke them but was…  ( Click for more )