Christian Living

It is wonderful that Jesus Christ blessed those He saved with the indwelling of the Holy Ghost, Who has come to meet all of our needs and to work through us to meet the needs of the world! What an amazing truth! He is a well of living water that springs up to satisfy our inner thirst forever. Let us not lose our grip on this wonderful metaphor and the truth it pictures.

For the Bible-believing Christian, anything that could be called a true advancement will be in a direction leading to basic, New Testament Christianity. So in a sense, it will be going back.

The best part of most new year’s goals is the first week of January. Adrenaline runs high, and success seems just within reach. And then the second week of January comes. And the adrenaline-based enthusiasm wanes.

I can’t think of anyone who had more trials and battles than the Apostle Paul. I also can’t think of anyone who finished better than he finished. However, if we believe what most writers tell us, very few spiritual leaders finish well.

If we can learn anything from the first-century churches of Asia Minor, it is the propensity of Christians and churches toward decline.

You’ve probably heard the old fable of the man and his son bringing their donkey to market. En route, they encounter so many people who give their opinions as to who should ride the donkey and who should walk that by the time they reach the market, the man and his son are carrying the donkey.

There are a lot of different opinions—some that can be very strong—concerning the matter of “loyalty to the pastor.” One extreme is pastor-worship and the other extreme is no loyalty to the pastor at all.

The eyes are said to be the most sensitive parts of our body. Eyesight is a precious gift from God! If our eyes are most sensitive to physical light and pain, how much more are they sensitive to what enters into the heart. Proverbs 7:2 says, “Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye.”

I can hardly imagine a more difficult task than the one Eliezer, the servant of Abraham, was given. Eliezer was to find a bride for Isaac. He was given the full trust and confidence of his master Abraham in this important mission. The way he handled the request is instructive to those of us who want to be faithful servants to our Master.

No one begins the New Year with aspirations to quit. We want to finish the year well, and we want to finish our life course well.

In truth, we serve a God of miracles (hello, just read Luke 2), but our tendency when peering into the future is to predict it based on the rate of past progress. We pray desperately for God to do what we can’t, then we rise from our knees, look at the date the prayer request was first entered, and sigh. “Not gonna happen, at least anytime soon,” we feel, even if we don’t say.

It’s a strange thing about Christmas. We celebrate Jesus’ birth, and we use the celebration to further our efforts in sharing the gospel. But somehow we seem to easily lose focus this time of year more than any other.

Christmas is coming! It is the most wonderful time of the year! Even the unsaved are singing about the Lord! During this season, you are able to freely say, “Merry Christmas,” to everyone you meet! Use this season to tell of the Reason for Christmas.

One of the blessings of the Christmas season is people’s openness to talk about Jesus. In my experience, it’s one of the best times of the year in terms of tender hearts and responsiveness to gospel invitations in the community.

What single word best describes your walk with the Lord? I think all of us would love for that word to be passion. And not just today, but every day. We’d like consistent passion in our walk with God.

There are so many areas for parents to invest themselves in raising their children. And there are many resources available in learning to be godly parents. But there is one resource that is more powerful than any book, seminar, or method.

When I was a freshman in high school, I had P.E. class first hour (which was 7:30 A.M.)! My class had over one thousand students, so a large percentage of us joined students from the other grades for first hour P.E. each morning.

All of life is a stewardship. It’s not about what happens to us, but what we do with what happens to us. Of all the things we cannot control, there are two things we can—our mind and our mouth.

We all know there are plenty of situations in which good people differ. But why do good people differ? And how can we understand and benefit from these differences?

Attitudes regarding money are learned, and children learn theirs primarily from their parents. You’ve seen it: Families that charge themselves into deep debt often see new debt perpetuated in the next generation. Likewise, families that are inconsistent in giving often see similar inconsistencies in the next generation.