Editor’s Picks: Top 5 Articles | Giving
In a matter of weeks—or even days—streets will be lined with dazzling displays, shops will be brimming with holiday gifts and Christmas carols will reverberate through the air. For many of us, it’s a welcome change.
The View from 400 Miles
“My perspective on earth changed dramatically the very first time I went into space,” says Space Shuttle astronaut Charles Frank Bolden Jr. From four hundred miles above the earth, all looked peaceful and beautiful to him. Yet Bolden recalled later that as he passed over the Middle East, he was “shaken into reality” when he considered the ongoing conflict there. During an interview with film producer Jared Leto, Bolden spoke of that moment as a time when he saw the earth with a sense of how it ought to be—and then sensed a challenge to do all he could to…
What’s Your Perspective?
Through our own narrow lens of experiences, our viewpoint is often unclear and unreliable. We can feel confused and in the dark. When we realign our perspective to God’s vision, we can see clearly.
Humbly accepting the “tension of mystery”
Being finite beings, we’re limited in how much we can understand. And that’s why some Bible passages really challenge us. Today on Discover the Word, the team will discuss 1 Peter 3:18–20 where Peter talks about Christ’s spirit “preaching to the spirits in prison.” It’s another one of those strange texts that remind us that sometimes […]
"By the Grace of God I Am What I Am"
The way we continually talk about our own inabilities is an insult to our Creator. To complain over our incompetence is to accuse God falsely of having overlooked us. Get into the habit of examining from God’s perspective those things that sound so humble to men. You will be amazed at how unbelievably inappropriate and disrespectful they are to Him.
Diseased Hearts
During excavations of an ancient French convent in 2011–2013, archaeologists made a discovery regarding the ancient nature of heart disease. They came across five heart-shaped urns made out of lead, containing embalmed human hearts. Of the four well-preserved hearts, three showed severe signs of atherosclerosis—a heart disease that’s very common today. According to one of the researchers, the fact that humans had atherosclerosis 400 years ago is one of the most important findings of the study. But, then again, human beings have been dealing with spiritually diseased hearts for a long time. . .
What Are You Worth?
There is a story that in 75 bc a young Roman nobleman named Julius Caesar was kidnapped by pirates and held for ransom. When they demanded 20 talents of silver in ransom (about $600,000 today), Caesar laughed and said they obviously had no idea who he was. He insisted they raise the ransom to 50 talents! Why? Because he believed he was worth far more than 20 talents.
What a difference we see between Caesar’s arrogant measure of his own worth and the value God places on each of us. Our worth is not measured in terms of monetary value but…
Joseph’s story is one that speaks of God's redeeming love, sovereignty and faithfulness, that saved a despairing man from the gallows and encourages us to live for Christ. Find inspiration to grow your faith—in life’s storms or in calm waters—through Our Daily Bread daily devotionals (email), mobile app, or free print subscription.
Grasping the “good gifts” Christ died to give us
This week on Discover the Word, join a series of conversations that examine some mysterious texts in the Bible. Today, we will discuss Ephesians 4:8–10, where the apostle Paul quotes Psalm 68 with all its strange talk about “ascending” and “descending” and conquering kings who either take or give gifts. It sounds almost like a […]
The Supremacy of Jesus Christ
The holiness movements of today have none of the rugged reality of the New Testament about them. There is nothing about them that needs the death of Jesus Christ. All that is required is a pious atmosphere, prayer, and devotion. This type of experience is not supernatural nor miraculous. It did not cost the sufferings of God, nor is it stained with “the blood of the Lamb” (Revelation 12:11). It is not marked or sealed by the Holy Spirit as being genuine, and it has no visual sign that causes people to exclaim with awe and wonder, “That is the work of God Almighty!” Yet the New Testament is about the work of God and nothing else.
To Make Them Better
After the initial performance of Handel’s Messiah in Dublin on April 13, 1742, George Frideric Handel received acclaim much greater than any expectation he could have imagined. The Dublin News-Letter gushed how the oratorio “far surpass[ed] anything of that Nature which has been performed in this or any other Kingdom.” In a letter Handel penned to a friend soon afterwards, however, he wrote, “I should be sorry if I only entertained them. I wished to make them better.”
I’m Rich!
Perhaps you’ve seen the TV ad in which a person answers the door and finds someone who hands over a check for an enormous amount of money. Then the amazed recipient begins shouting, dancing, jumping, and hugging everyone in sight. “I won! I’m rich! I can’t believe it! My problems are solved!” Striking it rich evokes a great emotional response.
In Psalm 119, the longest chapter in the Bible, we find this remarkable statement: “I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches” (v. 14). What a comparison! Obeying God’s instructions for living can be just as exhilarating…
Getting Cancer in My 20s
The most difficult decision I’ve had to make was in late 2014, when I found out I had stage four breast cancer. It all started when I felt a lump and the doctor recommended that I undergo some pathology tests.
I’m Rich!
Perhaps you’ve seen the TV ad in which a person answers the door and finds someone who hands over a check for an enormous amount of money. Then the amazed recipient begins shouting, dancing, jumping, and hugging everyone in sight. “I won! I’m rich! I can’t believe it! My problems are solved!” Striking it rich evokes a great emotional response.
In Psalm 119, the longest chapter in the Bible, we find this remarkable statement: “I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches” (v. 14). What a comparison! Obeying God’s instructions for living can be just as exhilarating…
