The purpose of this article is to strengthen our courage and confidence by helping us to see our temporary physical lives as a pathway to fulfilling what God's eternal plan is for us. The Book of Ecclesiastes reveals the thorns in our life, the paradoxes, and the quandaries that hit us. Solomon talks about the dilemmas which we all face, the difficulties, predicaments and roadblocks that affect us all (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8). And that everything that happens in our life is not … [Read more...] about Let God Prevail
Conflict Resolution
Handling Conflict
We all deal with conflict daily, in many forms. Even the church has conflict, internal and external, from time to time. With the Bible as our guide, which biblical examples can teach us about a specific quality that foils conflict? Where does this quality come from? What does it lead to? Let’s consider Gideon’s example to identify this quality. Chosen by God as a judge of Israel he was assigned to defeat a threat from neighboring Midian (Judges 6:1-8:21). He assembled an army of 32,000, but … [Read more...] about Handling Conflict
2024 Relationship Challenges
Due to the natural proclivity of the human mind to focus inward on self, relationships in “the world” are deteriorating. Nations are turning inward as are the communities that form a nation. We see the emergence of what is being called “Identity Politics” and the “New Tribalism.” This is a form of polarization which has as its underpinning an emphasis on self. This should not surprise us as we know the god of this world is a self-promoter. At the personal level, our present cancel culture is … [Read more...] about 2024 Relationship Challenges
Our Old Man
In assessing the many aspects of the body of Christ, the thing that stands out to me is that we have a personal responsibility to the body. We cannot sidestep that. We could summarize that responsibility as: “But the manifestation of the Spirit (or the fruit or the expression of the Spirit) is given to each one for the profit of all:” (1 Corinthians 12:7). To be able to express the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), obviously one must first have it. This is where our individual … [Read more...] about Our Old Man
Adjusting Our Focus
All around us the world is coming unraveled. Many elements of our society believe right is wrong and wrong is right. Morality of any form is out the door as a basis for all our institutions. Our economies have been pushed into the worst recession in a generation, with our government convinced that they can spend their way out of debt. Food supply disruptions causing shortages could result in millions of deaths this year alone in the poorest of countries. It is easy for … [Read more...] about Adjusting Our Focus
Overcome Evil With Good
Life’s difficulties, as many have experienced, arise from various possible angles. Sometimes we cause our own difficulties through poor decisions. However, trials also come through other people. Not necessarily from something we did to deserve it. But, wham! We get hit hard because of what somebody else does to us, often because their way of life is in opposition to ours. It becomes a tangled web, a path of carnage. People get caught in the middle and have profound effects on … [Read more...] about Overcome Evil With Good
Conflict Resolution
We can’t get around the fact that in this world we’ll have conflict. How many times have we said the wrong thing or displayed the wrong attitude, knowing that it has caused offense? Conflict stems from a lack of understanding the different things that motivate each of us: “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?” (James 4:1 ESV). God’s Holy Spirit can’t come to its fullest when we’re divided, and that disunity corrupts … [Read more...] about Conflict Resolution