Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavens, in Christ; for He chose us in Him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and blameless in His sight. In love He predestined us to be adopted through Jesus Christ for Himself, according to His […]
If your first response to someone wanting to discuss a problem or mistake is to declare that the issue was not your fault, I suggest that is a fault. Most things that go wrong in the real world are not the result of intentional destruction or deciding to do something stupid instead of something smart. Most mistakes are caused by […]
Unmarried motherNo vehicleNo incomeForeignerAlone with her son in the desertCursed by the only people who knew her Hagar was forced to bear her owner a son. Then she was thrown out of the camp by her owner, into the desert to die. Yahweh loved her, though. He also loved her son. She had previously run out of the camp to […]
Fear of the Lord can also be the result of effective ministry – I’m praying that it begins to follow us. After many days had passed, the Jews conspired to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul. So they were watching the gates day and night intending to kill him, but his disciples took him by night and […]
Every religion has as its primary reason for existence promotion and increase. The secondary reasons are related to the desires of the adherents: power, wisdom, knowledge, self-control, protection from evil, and a list of others. Yahweh has a different agenda: reconciliation of humanity to Himself. The secondary benefits include much promotion and increase. Our relationship with Him can draw us […]
Every religion spends time teaching its adherents how to manipulate its god to grant them help or favor or security. Islam, Voo-doo, Hinduism, Buddhism, Rasta, Roman mythology, both ancient and currently through the Vatican, Socialism, Mormonism, much of the church. “Here’s how to get your god to do what you want:…” The opposite is what we should be learning by […]
“The fear of the Lord” is a phrase that is used over 30 times in the Old Testament, and once in Acts of the Apostles. The Hebrew word for “fear” in the phrase is translated a few ways – from “frightening” to “reverential awe.” As a reminder, “awful,” “full of awe,” and “awesome” are directly related. We need to learn […]
What must have passed through Eve’s mind during her first pregnancy? How many different and crazy ideas did she have as guesses? How often are our guesses about what our God is up to just as misdirected? Spend less time guessing and more time asking. He wants to reveal some of the mysteries to us that He has been covering […]
Culture dies when we die. Our human values and rituals and fears and prides and clothing styles and economic statuses and properties all get snatched out of our hands when we take our last breaths. If we are watching someone die slowly, we may have the misperception that their hands’ grip is loosening slowly, but at any point at which […]
“The fear of the Lord” is a phrase that is used over 30 times in the Old Testament, and once in Acts of the Apostles. The Hebrew word for “fear” in the phrase is translated a few ways – from “frightening” to “reverential awe.” As a reminder, “awful,” “full of awe,” and “awesome” are directly related. We need to learn […]