Your Inheritance
"We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised."—Hebrews 6:12 NIV
One of the most important legislative acts in history was the Homestead Act, which Abraham Lincoln signed in 1862. This provided qualified applicants with 160 acres of public land free of charge. By 1900, more than 600,000 homestead farmers had filed claims.…
Fruit
"Ground that … produces vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned."—Hebrews 6:7–8 NASB
The Bible describes how some people decide to follow Jesus but do not fulfill God’s purposes for their lives or receive all the blessings promised by…
Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover
Excerpt taken from Mixed: Embracing Complexity by Uncovering Your God-led Identity by Eli Bonilla Jr.
Don’t Judge a Book by Its Cover
Have you ever used the phrase, “You can never judge a book by its cover?” For the most part, it’s a lesson about prejudice of the eye. Rarely, if ever, are we open-minded enough to avoid letting any assumption, prejudice, projection, or jadedness inject…
Resurrection: A Max Lucado Story
Max Lucado’s renowned story Resurrection follows the Roman guard Claudius, who witnesses events he can’t explain and confronts their cover-up following Christ’s crucifixion. As he digs for truth, Claudius discovers the Roman government, Jewish religious leaders, and even his closest friends are hiding something. His relentless pursuit for answers threatens his reputation and his life, even as it…
Degrees of Friendship
Excerpt taken from The Whole Life: 52 Weeks of Biblical Self-Care by Eliza Huie & Esther Smith
Friendship halves our troubles and doubles our joys.
J. C. Ryle
Friendships are not created equal. Some friendships take more work than others. Some are forged through common interest; others are formed due to a shared task or responsibility; and some friendships are made unexpectedly…
The Fourth Fisherman
Excerpt from The Fourth Fisherman by Joe Kissack.
If something dark was looming, I wasn’t aware of it. Not yet. Not now. I stood on the red carpet at the Emmy Awards, wearing obscenely expensive sunglasses. It was September of 1997, and my employment contract with Columbia TriStar Television was about to expire. I’d been invited to fly out to L.A. for some important meetings that would…
How to Vacation Without Breaking the Budget
Summer’s just around the corner, which means you might be thinking about one of my favorite things ever: vacation! In fact, I always joke that vacation planning is basically one of my spiritual gifts. But we all know vacations can get expensive real fast, which makes them a lot less fun than they should be. So, here are a few tips that will help you plan an amazing vacation without hurting your…
Don’t Allow Past Sins to Limit Your Future
Do you ever struggle to forgive yourself for your past sins? Reminding us of our failures is a favorite trick of our enemy. If we wallow in the memory of our offenses, we could miss fulfilling God’s call on our lives. Don’t allow past sins to limit your future service to God.
Don’t Listen to the Devil
The devil tries to make us believe we can’t serve God because of our former sins. But why…
Persistent Faith
"In the days of His humanity, He offered up both prayers and pleas with loud crying and tears to the One able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His devout behavior."—Hebrews 5:7 NASB
In 1773 British explorer James Cook and his ship Resolution sailed south, hoping to find land and possibly a new continent. Then, he encountered an immense ice field.
Suddenly, Cook felt…
Fit for God
Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20, NLT)
Many years ago, this key verse, enlightened, then impacted, my spirit, mind and body. Have you ever had a scripture jump off the page and dive…