The Lord God created the sun, the moon, and the stars to give us the precious gift and commodity of time.  From His eternal, incontrovertible presence, time was set into motion.  And though He is not bound by time, nor subject to it, His omnipresent qualities permit Him to exist within the calendar of our world while simultaneously existing in the world eternal.  What a profound thought: God is not in eternity; rather, eternity is in God.  Therefore, all things exist for His ultimate glory, even time.  The Lord initiated the clock of history, and humanity has heard the perpetual …

God did not design us to be spiritual hermits who congregate with other spiritual hermits once a week in religious cathedrals.  No, He employs us to live out our Christianity in a world that desperately needs to see His love, His power, and His grace.  The believer is called to a daily, cross-bearing lifestyle, one that overtakes every area of our lives – even our jobs.

God has placed us in secular surroundings for His own glory and purpose in the world. Not everyone mounts a pulpit on a Sunday morning to proclaim an alliterated outline; but all of us, …

How many friends do you have?  Before you check your list on some social media page, let me rephrase the question: How many real friends do you have?  The list probably just got smaller.  Before you finalize those numbers, let’s try one more question: How many real friends do you have that consider you a friend?

That list of thousands probably shrunk to a handful of names.  The number of authentic friends that you have is in direct relation to the number of people you are a friend to.  Or, as the writer of Proverbs put it, “A man that …

I don’t know why it surprises me when my heavenly Father answers prayer; but, in all honesty, sometimes it does.  It shouldn’t.  He has promised to provide for my every need.  As a matter of fact, He has invited me to lay aside the most miniscule of necessities on the altar of His provision.  “Take no thought for your life,” He says…but I occasionally think.  “Take no thought for your food, or shelter, or clothing,” He declares…but I often ponder.  In the midst of my troubles and cares, He graciously and daily reminds me that He is Jehovah-Jireh, this is …

Criticism is like a shot in the arm: It hurts but it eventually helps.  To think you are above it is folly.  To think you don’t need it is arrogance.  The reason we find criticism so difficult to deal with is because it touches the area of our heart that is often guarded and relentlessly defended: the area of pride.  We may never admit it, but failure to embrace criticism is an attempt to claim perfection.  Granted, not all criticism is substantiated, warranted, or deserved; but our response to the criticism is often the measuring rod of our character.

Knowing …