“We are always complete in Christ, yet we are also in real relationship with God. By analogy, in human relationships we know something of this truth. As a parent, I am in relationship with my five children. Because they are my family, they will never be cast out; the relationship is permanent. Yet if they sin against me, or I against them, our rela

Does God Love Everyone? Let’s turn the attention of this topic to the Bible. I want to point your focus to some verses that will help us answer the question – does God love everyone?“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).This is probably one of

Is the Old Testament Still Applicable for Us Today? “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the d

Revelation 17:4: "She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries."The Bible has often alluded to the cup of God's wrath being poured out. She drinks the cup of sinfulness and adulteries without a care in the world. Without remorse. And yet, the same cup she drinks will lead to her judgment. God's wr

1. Because We Know That This Is Not How God Created it to Be “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good” (Genesis 1:31).As Christians, we have the whole story. God actually created a perfect and grand world for us to reside in. He had abundance, and goodness, and righteousness planned for humanity. As believers, we have a full perspective

What Does the Bible Say about God's Anger? “The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, ‘The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.”Exodus 34:6 is the most repeated verse in all of the Bible. It’s a point God wants us to remember, though we cannot fully understand who He is withi

Worry Has a Way of Creeping In I remember how worry crept into one of the most idyllic days of my life. My husband and I were a few days into our week-long honeymoon stay in Jamaica. We were young and in love and in paradise. It was perfection.We’d lounge by the pool for a while then throw our towels over our shoulders and wander into the bar and g

I imagine other fears also taunted Joseph. Mary was three months pregnant at this point. To take her as his wife made him look immoral. What would this do to his standing in the Jewish community? Would his carpentry business suffer? Would they be thrown out of the synagogue and shunned by family and friends?But when Joseph heard that this was God’s

“My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me all day long, ‘Where is your God?’” (Psalm 42:3).“My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me, saying to me all day long, ‘Where is your God?’” (Psalm 42:10).If we do not have a firm determination to wait on the Lord, words like these have the capacity to crush and pull from us

What Does "No Rest for the Wicked" Actually Mean? The word “shalom” appears over 200 times in the Bible, a strong indicator of its importance.“Rest” might work as a translation for shalom, but it wouldn’t do justice to the word; this is probably why “peace” was the chosen translation, rather than the word “rest” we find in the popular expression. T

A Smaller Covenant: Pay Attention and Listen In addition to these major covenants, there is also a smaller covenant promise made between God and the Israelites that can be found in the book of Exodus chapter 23. Moses penned the book of Exodus in order to tell the story of the Israelites’ flight out of bondage and it was written as a reminder to th

What are the Blessings of Praying for Leaders?When we pray for our leaders regardless of whether we agree with them or not, we benefit. God’s word say not to withhold good from someone when it is in our power to give it. (Proverbs 3:27) Praying for someone is one of the good ways we can bless someone. And when we bless others, we experience blessin

His Teaching About AuthorityJesus demonstrated his authority in many ways: over the Scripture; in forgiving sin; in healing and casting out demons; and over the creation. We might be led to believe that the exercise of authority is all about the use of power. But, in the kingdom Jesus is establishing, there is a twist. The power to rule within the

Some of these verses include:Psalm 74:19 - “Do not deliver the soul of your dove to the wild beasts; do not forget the life of your poor forever.”Song of Solomon 4:1 - “Behold, you are beautiful, my love, behold, you are beautiful! Your eyes are doves behind your veil. Your hair is like a flock of goats leaping down the slopes of Gilead.”Song of So

You see, sacrifices had to be perfect animals. Humans are not perfect from birth. He would be able to satisfy the demand for a perfect sacrifice because he was perfect from before conception. Only Jesus could pay our price, only Jesus could suffer in our place.When Jesus hangs on the cross, despised, suffering, and dying, he has upon himself the en

Thank You, Lord, for loving us and providing comfort when we are lonely.Further ReadingA Prayer for When You Feel All Alone - Your Daily PrayerA Simple Prayer When You Are LonelyAward-winning author Melissa Henderson writes inspirational messages sometimes laced with a bit of humor. With stories in books, magazines, devotionals, and more, Melissa h

What God Are We Talking About?To make sure we are all on the same page and to take nothing for granted, this is the God we are talking about. He is the God who is eternally existent in three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The God who is the maker of heaven and earth. The one who will reign forever. The one for whom nothing has b

Go to the library and watch what books they choose. Show them ones related to recent activities to see if those interest them. Be willing to let a child opt-out after giving a good try to an activity. ON some, such as a team sport, you may need to set some boundaries at the start, such as the need to complete the season to not let down the team wit

The Power of the Blood and SatanWhat is the greatest event in human history? While there are many to choose from, it is the day that Christ died on the Cross that stands apart from all others. This is because His death changed everything. Christ’s death on the Cross, the shedding of His blood, effectively “turned the tables” on Satan. We read once

How Do Other Translations Word This Verse?When you look at this verse in other translations you begin to see this verse in its complete meaning. It brings full clarity and answers the question of what a contrite heart and spirit is. Here is Psalm 51:17 in a few different translations:AMP - My [only] sacrifice [acceptable] to God is a broken spirit;