We all have pages of our stories that we’d like to rip out, sentences we’d like to block out, and chapters we’d like throw out. Know this sister: The splinter of your story that you hate the most does not define the entire narrative…no matter how bad it is. You are more than your worst pages. Why? Because of grace.
I set a goal to write a devotion on all the “3:16s” in the New Testament. Our verse for today in Romans 3 contains only part of its context. The Apostle Paul was telling us it’s important to know how sinful we are. Destruction and misery always follow them. Romans 3:16 Some folks in Paul’s day … Continued
There were six things that caused division and strife between Jews and Gentiles. Paul discusses these in Ephesians 2:11-12. These same six things are found in various ways today in our culture and country. As we learn how Paul wanted the Ephesian Christians to respond to these sources of division, we can learn to live … Continued
It's important that you know how sinful you are. But know God will forgive you when you tell Him that you are committing your life to Him.
Seeing no alternative, Peter disowned his king. Jesus never gave up on him. Why did Peter deny Jesus? Was he just sitting at the wrong fire, in a crowd where he didn’t have the gumption to admit he was Jesus’ follower? That isn’t how this story works in Matthew’s Gospel. Peter was the first to … Continued
When God talks about a nation being revived, He gives a road map to recovery in 2 Chronicles, where He says, “If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their … Continued
It’s a horrific story. A woman is thrown to a crowd by the man who was supposed to protect her. She is gang-raped, dies, and then cut into pieces and sent to the tribes of Israel to generate …
This series was first published during September 2014. –ed. Overconfidence is a sure way to fall into temptation and sin. To assume you’re beyond the world’s grasp, immune to its enticements, and free to do whatever you like is often the first step toward the harsh realization that you’re not. Many believers in Corinth felt perfectly … Continued
It was the second time it happened. The first was a few months earlier. We live in a peaceful city, right in the middle of about 100 cities in Southern California. It’s so law abiding that we don’t even have our own police department. There is a station, but if there’s trouble it’s dealt with … Continued
Peter thawed his cold hands by the warm fire. He said that he would never be ashamed of Jesus. But he was about to deny Him…to a maid. He was about to go through a fiery trial and three times be found guilty of being ashamed of the one he called his Lord. Peter made … Continued
