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Consider two prayers that are offered by the apostles of Jesus in the book of Acts and what each has to say about their confidence in God. All prayers of Scripture are worthy of our study and are worthy of our imitation, let’s examine briefly these two prayers.  Acts 1:24-25 – God who knows all hearts.  Judas has betrayed Jesus and the Lord was crucified according to heaven’s plan. The eleven, being gathered together in Jerusalem according to the instructions…

Tweets, texts, emails, etc. – the amazing thing about social media is that it is so social. At some point, we’ve all probably sent emails and texts to people we never intended. In those messages, there may have been something they considered inappropriate or hurtful. There are others who seem to delight in using social media as an opportunity to blast, bash and tear down others. The blessing of being able to communicate with so many through social media can…

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these” (Mark 12:30-31). Outside of the Lord Himself, perhaps no one exhibited the balance involved in the great commandment more than the apostle Paul. Truly loving God with our all and loving neighbor as self are so…

I guess we’ve all had “close calls” in life. Certainly, David did, and Psalm 124 is a thoughtful meditation full of praise to God for seeing him through them. Psalm 124 could well be called, “A Power Psalm” or “Omnipotence as Our Guardian” because it beautifully focuses on the truth of Romans 8:31, “If God be for us, who can be against us?” There are very troubling occasions in life when we may share the view of Jacob in Genesis…

If you want to know something about love from God’s perspective, read the entirety of Scripture and it flows from every page. In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul gives 15 present-tense verbs that describe for us who love is and is not to behave itself. The foundation of the word ‘agape’ as used throughout this chapter is sacrifice. It is doing what is right and best for others before myself. How important is this? John says, “He who does not love…

As I write these words, it’s our wedding anniversary. A few years ago (actually, it’s a little more than a few), our gracious God blessed me with the greatest treasure He’s given me outside of Jesus and the salvation to be found in Him. He blessed me with my wife and best friend. I cannot begin to count the innumerable ways her godliness, grace, and thoughtfulness have blessed my life.  Through the years, one of the things I’ve learned is…

Once upon a time, there was a Dad and a Mom who had two children, ages 2 and 5. Those children were loved – but they were a handful! They got up early and stayed up late. They loved to jump on their beds and on the couch. They fussed a lot when they didn’t get their way. And they couldn’t remember to obey what they were told from one moment to the next. At night you could find Dad…

We must never lose sight of the joy that is to be ours as the people of God. While Satan and his forces will do everything in their power to rob us of the joy of being in Christ, God’s word gives us a number of remarkable assurances that should ever lift us up when we are down and out. Christians have—  THE JOY OF SALVATION. As we trust and obey God, we do not have to lose the joy…

Have you ever heard an expression that made you stop and think? An advertisement on the radio caused me to stop and think about things the other day. I don’t remember the name of the company, but it was likely was in the field of security. The advertisement spoke of keeping people out a home they did not belong in it. The man ended by saying that even the best door lock a person can buy is no good unless…

Nothing is more important for God’s people than adding what really counts in life. To have seen Jesus was to see what the Father is like (John 14:7-9), and to see Christians should be to see the beauty and character of Jesus in us (Galatians 2:20; Colossians 1:27). There is something tremendously challenging and humbling about that thought! In 2 Peter 1:5-11, Peter deals with the character and integrity of those who have come to know the Lord.  The qualities…

Near the conclusion of their first missionary journey, Paul and Barnabas retraced their early steps. That is, they went back to visit again with Christians they had taught the gospel. Instead of going home a different route, perhaps to other cities to share the gospel, they went back to cities already visited. Luke records the reason when he says they were, “strengthening the souls of the disciples, exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, ‘we must through many…