Consider the words of Psalm 130:3-4.  3 If you, O LORD, should mark Iniquities,       O LORD, who could stand? 4 But with you there is forgiveness,       that you may be feared. Three important truths stand out in this short passage: First, everyone is guilty of sin and worthy of […]

You may be grieving the death of a fellow believer who was close to you. It might be a dear family member or cherished friend. Whether in the distant past or more recently, they passed away, and you began the natural grieving process. God does not want you, as a follower of Christ, to grieve […]

Has God answered prayer in your life recently? Do you have any specific stories to tell about God’s faithfulness? And be honest: do you almost always take the “safe” option in life? John and Betty Stam served with China Inland Mission (founded by Hudson Taylor in 1865), first as single people, and then as a […]

“I felt like a load of guilt just left me,” reported a friend who had just come to Christ in the hospital chapel. He had gone there in confusion and anguish over his wife’s illness, but also because of his wife’s pleas. He didn’t know what to do. For the first time in his life, […]

A single individual’s salvation is part of a much bigger story about God’s activity in eternity past to save sinners. Paul wrote, “He chose us in him before the foundation of the world” (Eph 1:4a). A believer can say, “God knew me and chose me freely and unconditionally before he ever created anything — before […]

“Each one of you must give as he has made up his mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Cor. 9:7). These words from Paul are often misunderstood to imply that one should give only when he feels an inner sense of joy prompting him to give — or […]

A well-known Christian philosopher, Francis Schaeffer, was asked this question: if you had only one hour on a train to tell someone about Christ, what would you do? He answered that he would spend forty-five minutes showing him the problem, and fifteen minutes showing him the solution. Do you have a problem? Perhaps it is […]

Two ladies named Mary went to Jesus’ tomb early Sunday morning (Matthew 28:1). They weren’t expecting to see a risen Jesus, but to anoint his dead body with spices. First, they would have to figure out how to get that giant stone rolled away from the tomb’s entrance.  Before they arrived, some dramatic events took […]

The wife of Charlie Kirk, Erika, said with much emotion that she forgives her husband’s assassin. “I forgive him” were words which powerfully impacted the thousands in the arena and millions streaming during the memorial service for her husband.  She meant, surely, that she would not personally avenge herself of her husband’s blood. That would […]