And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near. Hebrews 10:25 Certainly there is more to encouragement than a smile and a quick pat on the back. We need to realise just how valuable it really is. […]
Read MoreCategory Archives: Christian Living
Love with Authentic Affection
Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honouring each other. Romans 12:9–10 As I search God’s Word for reasons to break with the isolationism of this age, I find two inescapable facts: God […]
Read MoreFour Areas of Involvement
“So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” John 13:34–35 Our aimless, lonely generation has great difficulty understanding such concepts as the interrelatedness of humankind. […]
Read MoreA Style That’s Authentic
We reject all shameful deeds and underhanded methods. We don’t try to trick anyone or distort the word of God. We tell the truth before God, and all who are honest know this. 2 Corinthians 4:2 Listen to the way Paul talks about himself in 1 Thessalonians. For a moment he shifts the emphasis from […]
Read MoreA Biblical Mentality
You know how badly we had been treated at Philippi just before we came to you and how much we suffered there. Yet our God gave us the courage to declare his Good News to you boldly, in spite of great opposition. So you can see we were not preaching with any deceit or impure […]
Read MoreContradictory Truths, Part Two
God often delivers His best gifts to us in unexpected ways . . . with surprises inside the wrappings. Through apparent contradictions. Somewhat like the therapy He used when Elijah was so low, so terribly disillusioned. How did the Lord minister to him? By an earthquake? In a whirlwind? Through a scorching fire? You’d expect […]
Read MoreThe Shores of Lake Contentment, Part Two
What a beautiful scene in the soul is Lake Contentment! Undisturbed by outside noises brought on by the jackhammers of exaggeration, those who enjoy the lake know what relaxation is all about. They know nothing of any winter of discontent—or spring or fall or summer, for that matter. Such an existence breeds security and happiness. […]
Read MoreThe Shores of Lake Contentment, Part One
A number of years ago I read that, believe it or not, the average American is exposed to about three hundred advertisements a day. Today that number has very likely increased! The magazine in which I read that fact had more pages dedicated to advertisements than articles of interest to the reader. Shiny, slick, appealing […]
Read MoreReading, Part Two
Due to the tragic problem of ignorance and passivity in our world today, I’ve been extolling the benefits of reading. Yesterday, we talked about number one: reading sweeps the cobwebs away; it expands us. Today, I’ll note three additional benefits. 2. Reading increases our power of concentration. Through this discipline, the mind is programmed to […]
Read MoreReading, Part One
The three Rs have stood the test of time as reliable criteria for a dependable education. They are poised like disciplined sentinels against one of man’s greatest enemies: ignorance. The original blocks of granite, unimpressed by educational styles, unmoved by change, these three solid friends are trustworthy to the end. Like salve on an open sore, they reduce the fever of panic, giving stability when so many voices demand obedience.
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