From the Blog
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A Psalm for the Angry
Anger is a powerful emotion, and if we let it control us, it can destroy relationships and cause harm to our souls. In Psalm 4, King David had received help from the Lord for his anger towards those who had betrayed him and he sought to advise them how they might rightly handle their anger…
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A Psalm for the Discontent
Are you content? Happy with your life, your job, your house, your marriage, your kids…? Or do you struggle with discontentment? Does a constant restlessness plague you, so that you never feel fully satisfied and at peace? We go to a doctor when our bodies are sick, but where do we go when we need help for our souls? Go to the Psalms. They are God’s medicine for the soul!
In Psalm 131, David wrote of how he overcame his discontentment by finding contentment in the Lord. We can overcome our discontentment by finding contentment in the Lord. -
Facing End Times
Do you fear death? Do you wonder about life after death? How do you face life, death and eternity? With confidence? Or do you avoid thinking about it?
The Lord wanted Daniel to think about it. But only so that he would know how to live in view of the end. Any wise person who takes a trip must think about the destination and how to get there. In the final chapter of Daniel, the Lord instructed Daniel how to live in view of the time of the end. -
God’s Appointed Times
Do you ever worry about the future? You watch one of the 24 hour news channels and all you see is war, terrorism, school shootings, natural disasters… “What’s this world come to?” you ask. Perhaps you don’t worry about yourself, but you worry about your kids’ future? But what if you could trust God with…
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He Touched Me
As exiles in this world, we often need strength and encouragement for the journey. Some of us are in mourning for the loss of a loved one or the loss of some other precious thing to us. Some are weak in body and need healing. Others are weak in spirit and need encouragement. Some are afraid and need someone to alleviate their fears. Some of us are lonely and have gone all week without the touch of another person.
But what if we could experience the touch of the Master’s hand? His touch to strengthen and to guide. His touch to heal and wipe away our tears. His touch to know that He is with us no matter what storms may lie ahead. We have a very basic human need for touch, especially for the touch of our Creator hands.
In chapter 10 of Daniel, the Lord responded to Daniel’s mournful prayer for understanding by touching him and strengthening him with a revelation of things from God’s heavenly perspective. We can be strengthened in our understanding of things from God’s heavenly perspective. -
The Covenant Keeping God
Why do we need a “covenant-keeping” God? Because our world is full of broken covenants and broken promises. We sign contracts and promissory notes, but we over-extend ourselves and don’t pay what we owe. We make promises to our children, but something more important comes up and we don’t keep our promises. We promise to “love and to cherish til death us do part,” but our world is filled with broken marriages and fractured families. We even make promises to God to change, to do better, maybe even to join a church, but we are a covenant-breaking people. We want to change, but only a covenant-making, covenant-keeping God can save us from our brokenness.
In the book of Daniel chapter 9, Daniel called on the covenant-keeping God of Israel to forgive and restore His people and His city, Jerusalem, and God not only answered his prayer, but also revealed to Daniel details about the coming of the Messiah and His eternal kingdom. We can be encouraged because our covenant-keeping God still answers prayers for forgiveness and restoration through the promise of His Messiah, Jesus Christ, and His eternal kingdom. -
How Long?
Do you remember when you were a kid and your parents took you on a trip, you always wondered, “How long before we get there?” I would drive my Dad crazy asking, “Dad, how much longer?” We’re still asking the Father, “How long?” How long must I endure suffering? How long will I hurt? How long before I am reunited with my loved ones? How long will I be lonely? How long must I pray for my marriage is healed? How long for a a prodigal child to faith? How long, Lord, before you make things right?
In the eighth chapter of Daniel, he recorded a second vision that contained greater prophetic detail about the next two world kingdoms and specifically about a ruler that would severely persecute his people for a short time before the Lord removed him and restored their worship to its rightful state. This vision was fulfilled within 385 years. Although Daniel’s vision has already been fulfilled, we can still let it give us confidence in God’s plans for our future, for it foreshadows an ultimate fulfillment of a time of tribulation that the Prince of Princes, our Lord Jesus, will return and bring to a close. -
Behold the Empty Tomb
The word “behold” is in the text three times. It means to “look upon with understanding, to see with the mind, to see with inward spiritual perception.” What do you see when you “behold the empty tomb?” In the gospel according to Matthew, he recorded the instructions that both the angel and Christ Himself gave…
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Rightly Responding to Jesus
When Jesus made his entrance on that day, it was the first day of Passover Week. Great numbers of Jews had traveled from all over the Roman Empire to celebrate this annual Jewish festival. A great crowd greeted Jesus as he entered Jerusalem responding to him with chanting and waving of palm branches. They greeted him in a manner befitting a king, but before the week was out, the crowd would curse him as a criminal.
Did you know that your response to Jesus is the most important decision you’ll ever make? You can follow the crowd, or you can make a decision based on the witness of the Scriptures and of those who follow Jesus, or you can make decision based on what the crowd says. But be sure of this: There is a right way and a wrong way to respond to Jesus, and how you respond makes all the difference in the world, and in eternity.
In the gospel according to John, John wrote about how the people responded to Jesus as He made His triumphal entry into Jerusalem on the first day of passion week. We can rightly respond to Jesus as we consider how He fulfilled what was written about Him. -
Thy Kingdom Come
Today, we’re in chapter 7, which begins a huge shift in the book of Daniel, moving from the narrative history of the first six chapters to what students of the Bible call “apocalyptic” or prophetic writings. Moving from chapter 6 to chapter 7, is like turning the TV from the History Channel to the SYFY Network–– we’re going to have to adjust to understanding images and concepts that are out of this world! Because in this chapter, God pulls back the veil on the future activities of this world’s kingdoms and the activities in heaven that culminate in God’s everlasting kingdom.
Most of us know the Lord’s Prayer. It’s really the Lord’s model prayer for He was teaching His disciples to pray. Remember how it begins? “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven” (Matt. 6:9-10). Ever wonder why He taught His disciples to pray that God’s kingdom would come? It’s because we tend to pray, “my kingdom come” and “my will be done” prayers. We want to be king or queen. We want to be in control. How’s that going for you? How’s your kingdom doing?
In Daniel chapter seven, God gave Daniel a vision that revealed His plan to ultimately bring all the kingdoms of this world to an end and to establish His everlasting kingdom for His saints through the divine Son of Man, Jesus Christ. We can be encouraged by God’s plan to ultimately bring the kingdoms of this world to an end and to establish His everlasting kingdom for His saints through the divine Son of Man, Jesus Christ.