Have you ever breezed right past the long lists of names that sometimes occur in scripture? It’s certainly tempting. (I’ve been guilty of it myself!) However, all of those names teach us something important about great moves of God: They all start with people obediently getting up off the couch and getting to work. That […]

No one has more experience with conflict management than a mom with a bunch of kids. (By now, I should be an expert.) When my kids are fussing they will tell you that I always remind them: You do not have to attend every argument that you are invited to. That’s good advice for all […]

If you are looking for practical wisdom on living the Christian life well, you can toss entire libraries of self-help books because the book of Nehemiah has you covered. When Nehemiah and the Jews rebuilding the wall in Jerusalem undertook this vast building project, they “worked with all their hearts.” (Neh. 4:6) Even though they […]

When I was in my college Master’s program, I was constantly annoyed that my professors kept assigning “reflection journals” and “debriefing cohorts.” Anytime we had a class discussion, or did even the most minor activity, we had to sit for an hour with our classmates and “reflect” (aka: chat about our feelings, complain, argue) about […]

Sometimes God sends an answer to our problem before we even know we need it. While attempting to reconstruct the broken-down temple in Jerusalem, the Jewish people faced obstruction from every side. Opposition persisted past the tenure of King Cyrus, who had originally commissioned the venture. When King Darius the Mede came to power, their […]

Last year I attended a training event for young women in ministry. It was fabulous! We were prayed over and taught and commissioned. It was a powerful experience. On the way home, my mind was bursting with plans of all of the things that I was going to do in order to more effectively serve […]

Math isn’t usually my thing. (I’d rather scrub the bathroom than help my seventh grader with her math homework.) However, math in the Bible will blow your mind! Check this out. The book of Ezra opens with these words: “In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of […]

Did you know that 66% of Americans say that they want to know more about what the Bible says? That’s fantastic news, and here’s why. Scripture has the power to change everything. In Second Kings 22, Judah was a royal mess. One evil king after another, people worshiping idols and sacrificing their children on alters […]

Yesterday, I met the most extraordinary woman named Leann. She and her husband (who is 90) have worked very hard over their lifetimes and have become quite wealthy. I suppose that she could have chocked their success up to their work ethic, their intelligence or good fortune. Instead she said, quite seriously, “When God entrusts […]

At a recent annual meeting of the American Heart Association, three hundred thousand doctors, nurses and researchers gathered to discuss, among other things, the importance that good diet plays in healthy hearts. Interestingly, however, during the mealtimes, these heart experts consumed fat-filled fast food, such as bacon cheeseburgers and fries, at the same rate as […]