The Star of Bethlehem
“After listening to the king, they [the Magi] went on their way. And behold, the star that they had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy.” – Matthew 2:9–10 The new dazzling light that appeared in the night sky, catching the Magi’s attention in the first place, rarely gets the press it deserves. This anomaly led these professional star-watchers to
Daniel: How Can We Live Faithfully in Babylonian Times?
Our next session of The Munich Bible Study on Zoom is off to a great start! We began last Wednesday, September 11, at 7:00 p.m. with the book of Daniel. What wisdom and insights can we draw from Daniel regarding living in an increasingly hostile world? The study will teach us how we can live faithfully in Babylonian times. Professor George Barna, a leading expert in church and worldview trends, states that we’ve reached a place of “Christian invisibility in our culture.” It’s
And I Will Always Love You
Surprised at how fast a close friend, someone you trusted, or someone you’re convinced is the love of your life, changes almost overnight, and you never know why? I will never forget you. We’ll stay this way forever. Have you ever heard someone promise you’d be in their heart forever and ever? The world may end, but their love or friendship will last until the end of time. And it sounds pleasing to our ears when we hear such things. However, it takes
A Bad Day?
So, you're having a bad day. A very bad day. No. You're having a bad, very long season in your life. Do you think that something horrible that happens to you could turn out to be something really good—or maybe not even really good, but one of the best things that ever happened to you? The apostle Paul thinks so. 1) In Romans 8, Paul says that God is at work in everything for good for those who love God and are called according to his
Holy Week – Day 5: Maundy Thursday: This Is Love
This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. -1 John 4:10–12 The word “Maundy” comes from the Latin “mandatum,” meaning commandment. This is in reference to the new
Invincible Joy: Oliver Asher on Finding Joy on The Walk Podcast
Oliver Asher presents us with one of the most amazing, gripping life stories we have had on our show. His struggles gave him plenty of reasons to be hopeless about life, yet he has written a book about the miraculous power Jesus Christ gives to rise above the worst of circumstances. Hear more about Oliver Asher's faith journey and his joy-fueled mission. You can find his book, Invincible Joy: Chasing God’s Dreams For Your Life, on Amazon, or read more at oliverasher.com. To hear
God of the Last Minute
Whether we study the Bible, the history of Israel, or the church, a consistent theme reappears: God likes to take his time doing his will, but he's never late. This means that often (very often), he prefers to wait until the last minute, the 59th minute of the eleventh hour, to answer our prayers and bring about his will and purposes. That God likes to do it this way is not hard to prove. Just read the hundreds of books written
God’s Love: The Best Gift
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. -John 3:16 God is love. We hear this all the time, and Scripture affirms his character is the very essence of love. Yet we make the mistake of ignoring Scripture and instead defining God's love in terms of what we think it is, rather than first understanding what his love means and then measuring ours in the light
Knowing Your Purpose
However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace. -Acts 20:24 One of the inspiring marks of the apostle Paul’s life was that he knew his purpose. He was utterly controlled by the Good News of the Gospel—believing, loving, preaching, and defending it, often at the risk of his life. In this passage, Paul is speaking
Are You There, God?
In the good times and the bad, we're always in God's hands! This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: "Go down to the potter's house, and there I will give you my message." So I went down to the potter's house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him.
