Devotionals

Over the years I've learned that the difference between sin and no sin is about one extra minute of self control. Take doughnuts for example. Whenever I eat them I pay a terrible price "digestively" speaking...

One of my more selfish prayers has always been that God would spare me the experience of death. Talk about wanting your cake and eating it too, I want to go to Heaven and I want to avoid death in the...

People of faith…great faith, were those who continued serving God even though they couldn't see the bigger picture. For example, Noah couldn't understand the ultimate results of the great flood...

In Romans 6:17-18 Paul says, But thanks be to God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from...

I never do enough. I mean that as a parent or husband or minister, I never do everything that needs to be done or ought to be done. Even though the basics get covered and I manage to get enough done to...

Then Pilate took Jesus and had Him flogged. - John 19:1. When I try to imagine the reality of these words, I become indignant. What impudence, what arrogance, what monumental ignorance for a godless petty...

I once heard of an interesting method of capturing monkeys by African hunters. They would empty a large plant shell called a "calabash" and drill a hole in its side just large enough for a monkey's hand...

Men like to watch. They like to watch sports or sit on the porch and watch cars go by. My father-in-law used to like sitting in his rocker and watch his children talk and interact with each other while...

I gave up on forced exercise at the age of fifty-four. It might have been because my laziness finally overcame my pride but I suspect that the main reason was guilt. I became tired not of the effort of...

The idea of taking the communion in order to "remember" the sacrifice of Jesus is a safe spiritual idea. It only requires us to commemorate what someone else has done for us, and not what we might be...

Most gardeners will tell you that there's no growth without rigorous pruning. Dead or unproductive branches, vines, and growth need to be cut away so that the healthy plants can bloom. This same process...

It is always harder to give up tomorrow's sin. Today's challenge is, well, here today. We are facing it and have the resources and presence of mind to focus on it and overcome it if we want to. Today'...

One twenty in the morning and I still cannot sleep. I have been in prayer for over two hours reviewing before the Lord the possible dimensions of our new building. Of course what is keeping me awake is...

By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world,- Hebrews 11:7a In discussing Noah and the...

In 2006, American evangelist Ted Haggard admitted publicly that he had carried on a secret affair with a male prostitute. This news rocked his 7,000 member "New Life" church and caused great shock and...

The recent suicide bombings in Israel continue the rapid disintegration of both the Israeli and Palestinian people. The bomber surely caused a moment of malevolent satisfaction among the oppressed Palestinians...

One day you pick up a box or a book and "snap", you join the legions of back pain sufferers. I experienced the usual therapy and advice from my doctor who said, "manage the pain as best you can". This...

A great exercise to get your life into perspective is to ask yourself if you are really happy or not. Since this is a private thing, you can be brutally honest and in so doing, take inventory of your...

After David, the king Israel, had consolidated his kingdom he desired to build a permanent temple for the Lord in Jerusalem.We read in I Chronicles 17:1-4, however, that the prophet Nathan revealed to...

The fact that Solomon was the wisest man ever is not a conclusion drawn from reading his books, it is a declaration about him made by God (I Kings 3:10-13). The Lord gave Solomon a measure of wisdom that...

Psychologists often use the method of "role-play" in order to help their patients understand themselves and others better. This counseling tool works well because there is the "actor" in all of us and...

Think of your worst sin. It could be that you aborted a child long ago. Perhaps you secretly harbor shameful thoughts or desires. Your worst sin could be a treachery against a loyal friend or partner....

In Genesis 18:19 the Lord said to Abraham that He had chosen him to lead his descendants in the way of the Lord by doing what was right and just. It is a privilege (not a burden) to be chosen by God to...

After witnessing death so often, I have come to notice that many people often neglect an important part of this very natural part of life. Sudden, accidental death notwithstanding, the probability of...