Awaken in Case of an Emergency

And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered with the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep. – Matthew 8:24, NASB When you are surrounded by a raging storm in your life, how do you respond? Are you like Jesus, asleep in the boat while the waves […]

Compassion in Grief

When we suffer loss, the grief can be overwhelming. Jesus felt that same pain when he learned that his cousin John the Baptist was beheaded by Herod. “Now when Jesus heard about John, He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself (Matthew 14:13).” It’s hard to see God’s purpose in […]

A Heart Captured by God

There are times when the bad news someone gives us touches our heart in a deep and profound way. We can’t get it out of our mind. Nehemiah shows us what we should do when God touches our heart with empathy for the struggles of others. When Nehemiah learned that the remnant in Jerusalem “are […]

Collateral Salvation

I was sitting in the booth in a restaurant telling the person sitting across from me about my faith in Jesus. They were not a believer and it seemed they were more determined to oppose me than listen to what I had to say. Our discussion seemed pointless until we slid out of the booth […]

The Fire Within

For throughout all their journeys, the cloud of the LORD was on the tabernacle by day, and there was fire in it by night, in the sight of all the house of Israel (Exodus 40:38, NASB). You are not alone on this journey called life. God is with you every step of the way, guiding […]

Are You Ready to Receive?

Then He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed them, and broke them, and kept giving them to the disciples to set before the people. Luke 9:16, NASB There’s a line in Luke 9:16 that caught my attention: “and kept giving them.” Jesus took what the disciples […]

Following the Water Jugs in our Life

A few months ago I went to park my car in a lot a few blocks from my hotel. When I walked back after parking the car, I ran into someone I hadn’t seen in years. We ended up talking for almost two hours about some serious life issues and were able to encourage one […]

God Working Through Us

There are consequences when we take things into our own hands instead of waiting on God to work through us. Moses is an example for us. In his younger years, God saved him from being killed as a baby and placed him in Pharaoh’s household (Exodus 2:1-10). He was strategically positioned by God to save […]

Keep Silent While I Fight for You

You’ve left the life you’ve known for years to follow God. As you embark on your journey of faith, your adversary pursues you, determined as ever to stop you. It appears they will over power you with a force more powerful than you think you can muster. The fear that stirred in the Israelites as […]

What You Really Need to Live

How much do you need to live? In Exodus 16, the Israelites have just left Egypt and are complaining about their lack of food. “You have brought us out into this wilderness to kill this whole assembly with hunger,” they tell Moses (3, NASB). God told Moses that he would provide “bread from heaven” for […]