So, when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate. …
Tag: strength
With Barnabas
When he [Paul] had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples; and they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him, brought him to the apostles, and described for them how on the road he had seen the Lord... (Acts 9:26-27) …
Worshipping and Praising God
Worship the Lord in holy splendor; tremble before him, all the earth. (Ps. 96:9) I recently led a workshop on Emotional Intelligence at the sheriff’s academy. Before starting to present the material, I asked the participants what it was like to be police officers these days. They were very forthcoming about all the strains, …
God’s Breath Gives Us Life
…then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living being. (Gen. 2:7) I was a competitive swimmer in high school. In order to stay in shape during the off-season, our coach encouraged us to become lifeguards. …
God’s Grace Can Heal Your Heart
Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice... (Eph. 4:31) Let me call her Eleanor. She was in her seventies. I visited her every month. We would read scripture, pray, share communion together, and then she would launch into bitterly complaining about her mother. During …
Encouraging One Another
Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing. (1 Thess. 5:11) She was a world-class athlete, who had competed at the Iron Man championship in Hawaii—which is 2.4 miles swimming, 112 miles biking, and 26.2 miles running. I had met her at the gym. If you sweat in close …
Into the Hands of Jesus
But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died. (1 Cor. 15:20) When my father died, my stepmother gave his body to medical science. A year later his ashes were returned and we set a burial date. We had the internment service, a lovely reception, …
Waiting Upon the Lord
Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted; but those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint. (Is. 40:30-31) Have your tasks ever felt greater than your …
The Sermon on the Mount
Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them. He said: “Blessed are the poor in spirit..." (Mt. 5-7) We had just finished a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee. We gathered at the bottom of a hill where …
Facing Our Inner Battles
For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. (Rom. 7:18-19) At the end of the Bible study …