And she wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them at the inn. (Lk. 2:7) I’d received a phone call from a distraught mother. Her 30-something daughter had disappeared. The mother feared that her daughter—let me call her Abby—could have committed suicide. A …
Tag: forgiveness
Forgiving Someone From Our Heart
So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart. (Mt. 18:35) The man was a respected leader in town. The man also had a secret life. During business trips he indulged in risky behavior. In time, he contracted a …
Answering God’s Call
During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’ (Acts. 16:9) Paul dreamed about the “man of Macedonia pleading” with him while he was in Asia Minor. Although the distance between Asia Minor and Macedonia was only a few …
…and a Little Child Shall Lead Them
“The wolf shall live with the lamb, the leopard shall lie down with the kid, the calf and the lion and the fatling together, and a little child shall lead them.” (Is. 11:6) Let me call him Fred. He didn’t like the changes I was making at church. He made an appointment to express his …
A Kingdom of God Moment
Jesus said, 'The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.' (Mk. 1:15) At the end of each session at the jail I always ask the inmates what subject they would like to talk about for the coming week. On one occasion they decided to …
Room For All
He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.’ (Lk. 4:17-18) One of church’s receptionists buzzed to tell me that she had a woman on the phone that demanded to talk with …
Jesus’ Love Makes All Things New
“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” (Heb. 13:8) One of my least favorite expressions is “same-old, same-old.” When I ask someone how they’re doing, and they say “same-old, same-old,” I’m tempted to do an “encouragement-intervention” on them. The expression sounds so dreary, sullen, and bored. One of the ways I sometimes …
Our Resurrected Life
'In the resurrection, then, whose wife of the seven will she be? For all of them had married her.’ Jesus answered them, ‘You are wrong, because you know neither the scriptures nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage but are like angels in heaven.’ (Lk. …
Saved, Delivered, Freed, or Healed
Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. (Ex. 14:30) The Hebrews were running away from the tyranny of Pharaoh. At some point along the escape route, they looked back and saw the Egyptian army in murderous pursuit. They thought they were doomed to …
Taking Responsibility for Your Life
Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you not to eat? The man said, ‘The woman whom you have to be with me, she gave me the fruit from the tree, and I ate.’ (Gen 3:11-13) Recently I was asked to help resolve some serious conflicts between two colleagues. I planned …