Many Christians View the Old Testament law negatively. But the apostle Paul also wrote, “the Law is holy” (Rom. 7:12) and “the Law is good, if one uses it lawfully” (1 Tim. 1:8). There’s nothing wrong with the Old Testament law. It’s just that the law, strictly speaking, is limited.…
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In his letter to the Philippians, Paul told his friends to practice what they’d seen him do. This is a common encouragement from Paul, who wrote to the Corinthians and told them the same thing, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1). If Paul…
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Years ago, one of my sons worked with a person who was demeaning, nitpicky, and didn’t know anything about kindness, encouragement, or vision. Every day was a drudgery, and my son lost heart over time. The light went out of his eyes. He prayed. He forgave. He started each new…
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I have friends who have adopted children born in extreme poverty. It’s not uncommon for these children, now living in safe and loving homes, to hoard and hide food. Some of these babies had gone directly from their mother’s womb to a street corner, where they were left for dead.…
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Many years after the life of Job, there was another man in the narrative of Scripture named Jesus, who shared many of the same qualities. Like Job, Jesus was good and blameless before God. Like Job, raiders came and brought pain to His life. But what makes Jesus’ life different…
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We all face various trials and difficulties. Sometimes they hit hard and fast; other times they park and set up shop. What are you dealing with right now? Do you have a strenuous workload that leaves you exhausted beyond reason? Are you studying long hours in college while also working…
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The Lord is constantly looking for people He can use to be a blessing to others. The thing you are holding on to may be the answer to someone’s prayers. There is no greater joy than to be the person God uses to fulfill someone else’s prayer request. Several years…
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Sin starts as a worship problem. We give non-God things God-like weight in our hearts. Eric Geiger, reflecting on the work of the Christian counselor David Powlison, groups our primary idols into four basic categories, calling them “root" idols: Approval: We want to be accepted by others, so we become…
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It took a third cancer diagnosis to force me to let go of my life. Not that I had much choice in the matter, but for the year before, I’d been tirelessly attempting to control my fate. I changed my diet, eating less sugar and more cruciferous vegetables. I ran…
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One week ago today, I boarded an airplane in Bujumbura, Burundi, to return home with our missions team after spending a week in the poorest nation on earth. Later this year, you will see the stories we captured. Stories of pain, hardship, sickness, and death. You will also see how…
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