“Our God is in the heavens, and he does as he wishes.” Psalm 115:3 Nothing is a surprise to God, not even our slightest trials. His plan may seem unfair, but that’s because we dwell in the here and now. We lack the vertical view. In fact, we sometimes quarrel with God, as the prophet […]
Read MoreTag Archives: Isaiah
God’s Decreed Plan
“I am the one who made the earth and created people to live on it. With my hands I stretched out the heavens. All the stars are at my command.” Isaiah 45:12 It may seem to many that the One who made us is too far removed to concern Himself with such tiny details of […]
Read MoreHope Beyond Bitterness
Look after each other so that none of you fails to receive the grace of God. Watch out that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many. Hebrews 12:15 If God has called you to be a Job—a rare calling—remember that the Lord is not only full of compassion, He is […]
Read MoreFree to Worship God
The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is upon me, for the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed. He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time […]
Read MoreA Tender Shoot
My servant grew up in the LORD’s presence like a tender green shoot, like a root in dry ground. There was nothing beautiful or majestic about his appearance, nothing to attract us to him. —Isaiah 53:2 (NLT) What did Christ look like to the men, women, and children who met Him? To be completely honest, […]
Read MoreSuperstition
The Great Plague stretched across London like a thick, drab blanket. It came as a thief in the night . . . unannounced, treacherous, silent. The mortality rate was astounding. Someone came up with the foolish idea that polluted air brought on the plague. So people began to carry flower petals in their pockets, superstitiously thinking the fragrance would ward off the disease.
Read MoreFear
We were rapidly descending through a night of thick fog at 200 miles per hour, but the seasoned pilot of the twin-engine Aero Commander was loving every dip, roll, and lurch. At one point he looked over at me, smiled, and exclaimed, “Hey, Chuck, isn’t this great?” I didn’t answer. As the lonely plane knifed through the overcast pre-dawn sky, I was reviewing every Bible verse I’d ever known and re-confessing every wrong I’d ever done.
Read MoreGrowing Old
Growing old, like taxes, is a fact we all must face. Now, you’re not going to get me to declare when growing up stops and growing old starts—not on your life! But there are some signs we can read along life’s journey that suggest we are entering the transition (how’s that for diplomacy?).
Read MoreStaying Alert
Your mind is a muscle. It needs to be stretched to stay sharp. It needs to be prodded and pushed to perform. Let it get idle and lazy on you, and that muscle will become a pitiful mass of flab in an incredibly brief period of time. How can you stretch your mind? What are some good mental exercises that will keep the cobwebs away? I offer three suggestions: READ.
Read MoreGod’s Control
The bitter news of Dawson Trotman’s drowning swept like cold wind across Schroon Lake to the shoreline. Eyewitnesses tell of the profound anxiety, the tears, the helpless disbelief in the faces of those who now looked out across the deep blue water. Everyone’s face except one—Lila Trotman. Dawson’s widow. As she suddenly walked upon the scene a close friend shouted, “Oh, Lila . . . he’s gone. Dawson’s gone!”
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