We All Worship SomethingI will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them. They are turned back and utterly put to shame, who trust in carved idols, who say to metal images, ‘You are our gods.’Isaiah 42:16-17In the words of Bob Dylan, you gotta serve somebody.[1] It’s true—we all worship something. The only que...  Read More

The Lord Be With You!And behold, Boaz came from Bethlehem. And he said to the reapers, ‘The Lord be with you!’ And they answered, ‘The Lord bless you.’Ruth 2:4You can learn a lot about a person from their hellos.When Boaz entered his field (and the book of Ruth) and greeted his workers, the depth of his character and of his relationship with God became clear.Boaz lived with the awareness of God’s ...  Read More

Freedom From Ourselves Mark 9:33-3533 And they came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?” 34 But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. 35 And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”Rivalry is part a...  Read More

Living in the Spirit’s FullnessEphesians 5:18-1918 and do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing  one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart,At certain times in life, such as the birth of a new child or a cross-country move, a lot seems to happen all at once. The beginning of a ne...  Read More

The Tapestry of God’s Providence What often appears to us to be a mess of knots is just the back view of the tapestry God is weaving.Naomi and Ruth had experienced their share of frayed threads in life. They arrived in Israel widowed and penniless—a perilous position for women in a lawless society (see Judges 21:25). In Old Testament Israelite society, the law allowed for the poor to enter the fie...  Read More

Responding to Another’s Success “Then he had another dream and told it to his brothers. “Look,” he said, “I had another dream, and this time the sun, moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind.”‭‭Genesis‬ ‭37:9, 11‬ ‭CSB‬‬Envy is a feeling common to humanity. It is also a monster—a giant that can eat anyone alive.How do ...  Read More

Perfect JusticeC.H. Spurgeon once said to his congregation in London, “If, my dear friend, you make it a rule that nobody shall ever insult you without having to pay for it, nor treat you with disrespect without meeting his match, you need not pray God in the morning to help you carry out your resolve.”[1] His point was simple: defending our reputations and getting even with those who cross us com...  Read More

Be of Courageous SpiritOnly be strong and very courageous.Joshua 1:7The tender love of God for His servants makes Him concerned for how they feel inside. He wants them to be courageous. Some people think it is okay for a believer to be vexed with doubts and fears, but God does not think so. From this text it is clear that our Master does not want us entangled with fears. He desires for us to live ...  Read More

An Awesome PrivilegeIn Jesus, we have access to the Father's presence and confidence that He hears our prayers.Hebrews 7:11-28Prayer is a truly remarkable privilege, and we must be careful to treat it as such. Have you ever paused to consider why a holy God would condescend to even listen to our petitions, let alone answer them? The Lord is so perfect that the smallest hint of sin is incompatible ...  Read More

Amos 2:9-19"Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorite before them, Though his height was like the height of cedars And he was strong as the oaks; I even destroyed his fruit above and his root below.  It was I who brought you up from the land of Egypt, And I led you in the wilderness forty years That you might take possession of the land of the Amorite.  Then I raised up some of your sons to be proph...  Read More

Lord Over AllI am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last.Revelation 22:13 Recommended Reading: Revelation 1:17-18“He knows everything from A to Z about football!” You have likely heard that phrase—“from A to Z”—before. The technical term for that phrase is merism—using two contrasting parts of a whole to refer to all the separate parts. Instead of describing eve...  Read More

Supreme LoveAll our works for the Lord mean nothing if they're not done in love.1 Corinthians 13:1-7Today’s Scripture is commonly known as the love chapter. Interestingly, Paul didn’t spell out a definition of love but instead described its importance and expression.This type of love isn’t human in origin; it comes from our heavenly Father and is part of His very nature (1 John 4:16). What the apo...  Read More