Henry Ward Beecher once said, “A helping word to one in trouble is often like a switch on a railroad track… an inch between a wreck and smooth, rolling prosperity.” There are proverbs that convey the very same principle, but the image of a horrific train wreck being averted by mere words is very powerful…

In the book of Matthew, Jesus Christ reassures His followers: “…and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). The question that we need to ask ourselves is, “Do we have the confidence in Christ and in God the Father to really believe His promise to be with…

God’s word instructs us to be very aware of what other members of the body are going through in their lives. “… members should have the same care for one another. And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it …” (1 Corinthians 12:25-26). Many members suffer negative experiences in life. James did…

We always reflect on the death of Christ at this season of the year. Movies have been made about that pivotal point in mankind’s history. A lot of focus, and rightly so, has been put upon the gruesome beating and resulting disfigurement that finally ended Christ’s physical life. Isaiah said this of it. “Just as…

What does the word “overcome” evoke in you? Does the thought of overcoming seem negative and uninviting in your mind? On the other hand, does it fill your mind with eager anticipation of something new, deeper, and more fulfilling than ever before? The natural man doesn’t get any uplift with the idea of overcoming. The…

As one political commentator observed this week, “Clearly, the West is in serious trouble.” I read it this way – clearly, the modern-day nations of Israel are in serious trouble! We, as God’s people, are being prepared to work with Christ in serving humanity as it crawls out from under a time that has never…

Have you ever wrestled over the term, “God’s true Church”? Surely it is either God’s Church or it is not. If it is God’s Church, then it would be true. “… the living and true God” (1 Thessalonians 1:9). However, we all know that the real issue is that many different churches of varying beliefs…

The natural function of man’s mind is to limit God. It is a human proclivity to try and put a box around God – using human intellect to attempt to define God’s invisible attributes. A recent article posed a question that was originally attributed to Einstein: “If there is a God who created the entire…

The prophet Zechariah paints a word picture for us of a time ahead that we can anticipate. In particular he speaks directly to the city of Jerusalem as the place where God will dwell. It will not be like the city of Jerusalem we know today. Jeremiah lamented over the sorry state of the city…

It is sobering in many ways to see prophecies that we have talked about for decades suddenly taking form right in front of our very own eyes. We have been well informed through scripture and the teaching of it, but the sudden reality we see around us is still startling. The most sobering aspect of…

There seems to be no respite from the avalanche of information pouring over us every day. Regularly we hear news that causes consternation – not only from the information but because we are forced to question its veracity. Some “unbelievable” news turns out to be true, so we are left to wonder what is true…

Someone once said, “We like to see politicians pray with uplifted hands. It keeps their hands where we can see them.” That is somewhat humorous but still a very telling statement. But also telling is this one, “If the statements of opposing political candidates are true, none of them is fit to hold public office.”…

In 1849, French writer Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr wrote, “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose” — “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” Without the context for his making this statement, we are left to ponder his intended application. But it takes very little thought to see the application for where we are some 170…