About midnight, Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God (Acts 16:25, ESV) Paul and Silas were singing after being beaten and thrown into prison. They’d cast a fortune-telling demon from a slave girl, eliminating her owner’s profit potential. In anger, they stirred up a crowd against Paul and Silas, with the crowd […]
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Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content (Philippians 4:11, ESV) It’s difficult being content. Most of us just endure the frustrations of paying bills, broken relationships, ill health, and the rising price of groceries. But when I read Philippians 4:11 and hear
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The Lord is like a father to his children, tender and compassionate to those who fear him (Psalm 103:13, NLT). Great daddy-daughter relationships are essential for the self-esteem and emotional health of daughters. Recent research has shown that the father’s influence on his daughter’s life shapes her self-image, confidence, and opinions of males. A girl’s
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Three interesting facts about 1 Thessalonians: First, this book was perhaps the earliest book written by Paul; second, it was written to new believers; and third, the book gives more practical insight about the “coming of the Lord” than any other book of the Bible. Paul writes to these new believers. . . For what
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Psalm 69 is one of the most complicated Psalms. As we delve into the layers, let’s remember the conclusion. . . Let heaven and earth praise him, the seas and everything that moves in them. For God will save Zion and build up the cities of Judah (vv. 34-35, ESV). Almost every verse of Psalm 69 has
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And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing? (Mark 4:37-38, ESV) In 1986, during a drought in
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I’ve wondered about the Apostle Paul’s emotional state when he wrote, “Jesus came to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost” (1 Timothy 1:15b, ESV). Most people experiencing discouragement spiral downward in doubt and despair through the years, getting increasingly worse. And Paul expresses this negative spiraling in his writings. In the early years
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But divide your investments among many places, for you do not know what risks might lie ahead (Ecclesiastes 12:2, NLT). Forty-five years ago, an investment strategist suggested that for a solid financial future, I should invest in three areas: my personal skills, real estate, and the stock market. He called them the “trifecta” of investment
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For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth (Matthew 12:40, ESV). In the Bible, the number “three” means completeness. Those who study Scripture will see “three” throughout. There’s the Godhead
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John Wimber, the founder of the Vineyard Movement and the author of one of my all-time favorite books, Power Evangelism, used to say that the Gospel of Luke progresses from one miracle to another. Luke records the job description of Jesus when Jesus says. . . The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he
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