Is there a God-honoring objective? A plan to take you there? A commitment to follow through? The issue at hand was too serious to leave to their whims. Nehemiah wanted their verbal agreement memorialized in a vow. “Then I called the priests, and required an oath from them that they would do according to this promise” (Neh […]
In the life of faith, it’s impossible to enrich others without ourselves becoming soul-enriched. Hard to believe, some of the “Jewish brethren” (Neh 5:1) were using the crisis in Jerusalem to enrich their pockets and impoverish their souls. When Nehemiah heard, he “became very angry” (v 6). But Scripture warns, “Be angry, and do not sin: do not let the […]
True brothers never take advantage of you. They grieve your difficulties and celebrate your success. Unusual times demand unusual sacrifice. As Paul would say during the “killing times” in the first century, “Because of the present crisis, I think it is good for a man to remain as he is” (1 Cor 7:26, BSB). He didn’t consider […]
A young man wanted to know the old man’s secret for keeping his 5 a.m. appointment with the Lord every morning. Here it is… […]
I’d rather stand with God and be judged by the world than stand with the world and be judged by God. Here’s a progress report: “The walls of Jerusalem were being restored and the gaps were beginning to be closed” (Neh 4:7). Of course this stirred up a hornet’s nest with their detractors, “and all of them conspired […]
Imagine a Canadian, living in the U.S., but visiting in Northern Ireland. There he is invited by a stranger into his home in a city across the border in the Republic of Ireland, to speak to a roomful of people whose hearts are also open to hear God’s Word. How does this happen? Who opened […]
The antagonists talked down to the workers. The workers talked up to God—then kept on working. What are the entryways into God’s blessing? 1. Salvation at the Sheep Gate. 2. Testimony at the Fish Gate. 3. Obedience at the Old Gate. 4. Humility at the Valley Gate. 5. Confession at the Refuse Gate. 6. Filling […]
My father and I were both fascinated by the printing process. How ideas from one mind could be spread to others through black marks on a page intrigued us. That’s how we ended up at McCormick Place in Chicago for an international print exhibition. One company featured their gold stamping machine. A salesman was handing […]