Dive Deeper

Years ago, I watched a superhero movie with a rather unique premise.  A wizard in another dimension was suffering through old age and looking for a successor.  His search took him to Earth, where he was charged with finding a child who is pure of heart.  He searched for some time but could find none.…

I remember being new to Christianity and having a million questions I never had before.  There was a lot to learn, and some of it was difficult for me to understand or imagine as being so.  The first time I went to a Sunday service I thought that everyone in there surely was a Christian. …

Being successful in our Christian walk is all about understanding.  Sometimes it can be difficult to reconcile the truth of God’s word with the reality we see in our own lives.  We might read about the way we are commanded to live and really try to get there but ultimately fail over and over.  The…

On a recent mission trip, I was asked to lead a morning devotional for a youth group outing.  Being young and impressionable, at that stage of life when one must figure out who one is, I knew that I wanted to speak to these kids about identity.  I reviewed scriptures I knew on the subject,…

Before Jesus Christ came to Earth to fulfill the requirement for our eternal redemption, many pictures of salvation were painted in scripture by the hand of God as He saved his people in one way or another.  One of these pictures occurred very early in our history when the Lord saved Noah, his family, and…

Some see the first day of a new year as nothing special.  To them, it is just another Sunday or another Tuesday.  The life they led before that day does not change simply because the clock has struck twelve.  For others, the new year brings hope for a positive difference.  Whatever problems or issues they…

There are many things which distinguish our one true God from the plethora of false gods out there.  Whether his love, his mercy, his truth or anything else about him, the biggest distinction from other gods is his permanence.  He is the God who endures, and everything about him endures as well.  His precepts never…

One of the clearest and most compelling statements made by Jesus was that He did not come to abolish the law and the prophets but to fulfill them. [Mt. 5:17-20]  This statement should have perked the listeners’ ears and made them look for how He could fulfill prophecy.  We know now that Jesus fulfilled hundreds…

A central theme in the book of Jeremiah is idolatry. Through his prophecies and prayers, he begins to flesh out the intricacies of this sin. In reading this book, we learn the roots, purposes, and consequences of placing any idol before God. A critical component to our remaining faithful to him is having a right…

It is a goal to which we all aspire.  In reviewing scripture, we see that God speaks to his people, and we want him to speak to us as well.  It is this direct guidance that gives us confidence that we are on the right track in life.  However, hearing from God does not always…