Visiting the church for the first time, a couple heard a guest speaker that day teach about the kingdom of God. Not being especially convinced of the priority of the kingdom of God message myself, I visited them in their home the next week. Much to my surprise, they were fascinated and intrigued by the message, and had a multitude of questions concerning it. They had discovered the valuable treasure of the kingdom of God, and were instrumental in my discovery of it as well.

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Tears in a bottle. That's a descriptive phrase.

"You have taken account of my wanderings; Put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in Your book?" (Psalm 56.8)

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Influence is the capacity to have an effect on the character, development, or behavior of someone or something.

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It seems like an almost daily occurrence to learn of the sexual indiscretion of some well-known male celebrity. The #MeToo movement has facilitated the unleashing of a flood of accusations. A prominent ancient king named David would undoubtedly be singled out by one Bathsheba for such an accusation. Rather than resigning in disgrace, David did that which few men seem to be doing today: confessing and repenting.

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Big things start small. Corporate giants Microsoft and Apple began as garage businesses. But, their phenomenal growth is nothing compared to this:

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He was a good friend, and his death hit me hard. As a young pastor, he had often prayed with me, and modeled a passion for prayer and compassion for the lost. Shortly after we moved, we learned of his death. Few things have been as difficult as mourning his loss.

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In what was a legacy of "the Red Scare" of the fifties and sixties, I remember, as a child, seeing brightly-colored signs on certain public buildings with the text, "Fallout Shelter," emblazoned on them. In the event of a nuclear blast, this was a place of refuge.

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The battle was won without conventional weapons. No sword was drawn, or arrow spent.

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I'll let you in on a little secret: I'm not a big fan of adversity. I much prefer life when things are going well and relatively trouble-free. But, as you full well know, life doesn't always go that way.

"Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?" (Job 2.10)

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Elderly people often comment, "I never thought I would get this old this fast." With the passing of time, I'm beginning to see that comment with greater clarity. I'm prone to think I'm really the age of my children, but then I look in the mirror.

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If I asked you what was new with you, you would have every reason to answer, "everything!"

"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come." (2 Corinthians 5.17)

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What's your dream and vision? What has God, through His Spirit, revealed to you?

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To hope is to be human. But, real hope is divine.

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Sin boldly. Let me quickly clarify that this isn't my advice, but rather a perspective that some have concerning sin and God's grace.

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I recently read that one of the characteristics of successful people is that they take action. Rather than imagining that good things will happen to them, they see opportunities and seize them.

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A roadblock to sharing the gospel with others is not knowing exactly what to share. Thus, Bible passages that give us a gospel summary are especially helpful and important. One such passage is Acts 10.34-43. Here we find the truth that the gospel is available to all people

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How productive are you? This isn't a question about your efficiency at home, school, or work; it's about something much more important.

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