Hypocrisy
“Do not judge, lest you should be judged.” (Matthew 7:1 BLB) “There are too many hypocrites in the church, so I don’t go.” That was the first sentence out of the young man’s mouth after he found out that I was a pastor. I was walking my dog and stopped to talk to a...
Advantage
“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21 NIV) The Greek word translated “gain” in this verse means “advantage.” Departing from this life actually benefits followers of Christ. It means we trade the tattered tents of our earthly bodies for...
Consolation
“He was waiting for the consolation of Israel.” (Luke 2:25b NIV) His bones ached. For the past several years, getting out of bed in the morning had been the most difficult part of his day. Today was no different. His old body protested the thought of getting out from...
Wonderful
“Today in the City of David a Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord!” (Luke 2:11 BSB) “Mary! It’s just as the Lord promised! We have a beautiful baby boy. I’ll wash him and wrap him in these strips of cloth and bring him back to you.” “Please hurry,...
Anticipation
“For the joy set before him he endured the cross . . . (Hebrews 12:2b) When I was a kid the Christmas season started around October. My younger brother, Eric, and I would break out all the department store catalogs in the house, turn right to the toy sections, and...
Living!
“I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever!” (Revelation 1:18a NIV) “Dad, is there really no such thing as Santa Claus?” My older daughter, Amy, then six years old and in the first grade, was sitting on the living room couch looking...
Miraculous
“All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel’ – which means, ‘God with us’” (Matthew 1:22-23 NIV) I was in the delivery room for the birth of...
Making God’s Love Real
By Darlene Franklin Zero percent variance. God’s love never changes. At all. If God pelts the earth with a meteor storm of His love, it doesn’t diminish. (Psalm 36:5 MSG) We don’t have the under or detour around His love. It fills every crook of the known and the...