Planting Good Seeds
As a new gardener, I soon learned that uncultivated soil was resistant to seed planting and growth. But when I planted good seeds in well-prepared soil, heaven's sun and rain did their part until the harvest came. Well-prepared soil, the right seeds, and God's blessing are essential for fruitfulness, not only in gardening but also in Christian living.
An End To Revenge
The newspaper headline read: NO END TO CYCLE OF REVENGE IN MIDEAST. In the wake of suicide bombings and military retaliation, the article told of a 28-year-old man consumed with avenging his uncle's death. "When someone dear to you is killed," he said, "you can't sleep; you have to do something." But even after killing two men he considered enemies, he still had no sense of satisfaction. No one can ever win by trying to even the score.
Seasons Of Motherhood
As a pastor, I've ministered to many women during their seasons of motherhood. I have called on mothers in the hospital and rejoiced with them for their precious baby who had come into the world. I've counseled with anxious mothers and tried to assure them that God was watching over their rebellious teenager. I've stood with mothers at the bedside of an injured or ill child and felt their pain. And I've cried with them in their grief when their son or daughter died.
Awesome!
Just a few miles from New Mexico's Carlsbad Caverns is Lechuguilla Cave. Explorers who have descended into its interior describe a wonderland whose beauty is beyond almost anything they have ever seen.
Light Up Your World
My daughter Julie and her friend Jenni were driving one evening from their college to a nearby town. Along the way, they passed through a community that had an eerie darkness to it because of a power outage. It was strange—almost frightening—to drive through that blacked-out community.
Dying To Live
The cross in Roman times was designed for death. It had no other use. So what did Jesus mean when He said that anyone who wants to follow Him must "take up his cross daily"? (Luke 9:23). He wasn't saying that we must all be crucified. The "cross" to which He was referring is the act of putting to death our own heart's desires and quietly submitting to God's will.
On Our Side
A young Christian was working at his first job, the night shift at a refrigerator assembly plant, trying to earn money for Bible college. The people he worked with were pretty rough, and he was laughed at for being a Christian. The harassment occurred at every break and gradually became more and more vulgar.
Yielding Control
During a visit with a friend suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease, I asked what lessons God was teaching her as she traveled down this difficult road. Her immediate response was, "Loss of control."
