“My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me.” – John 10:27 An Englishman tells a true story of his encounter with a Muslim man while walking in the country. The Englishman wanted to share the gospel with this man but knew little of Muslim beliefs. The two men talked as

“I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” – John 12:24 The goal of the Christian life is death, not success. A popular teaching says that if we follow God, we will prosper

“So he said to me, ‘This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: “Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,” says the Lord Almighty.”‘” – Zechariah 4:6 Your greatest obstacle in fulfilling God’s purposes in your life is the skills you have acquired to perform well in your work life. One

“So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.” – Genesis 32:24 All that Jacob had lived for was coming down to one event – his reunion with Esau. More than 20 years had passed since Jacob had manipulated his father’s blessing away from his brother Esau. During these years God

“In this way the man grew exceedingly prosperous and came to own large flocks, and maidservants and menservants, and camels and donkeys.” – Genesis 30:43 Jacob left his homeland after suffering a broken relationship with Esau for stealing the family blessing. He went to work for his uncle Laban where he stayed for 20 years.

…”Surely the Lord is in this place, and I was not aware of it.” – Genesis 28:16 Jacob was forced to flee his family after receiving the blessing of God from his father, Isaac. He ran as a result of his broken relationship with his brother, Esau, who threatened to kill him. He was alone

“All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their leader. About four hundred men were with him.” – 1 Samuel 22:2 Have you ever felt that you could accomplish a whole lot more if you had more talented people around you? Perhaps you are in an

“Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright.” Genesis 25:34 Esau was brother to Jacob. One day he came back from hunting in the fields. He was hungry and tired. His brother Jacob was preparing some stew and

“But everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.” – Matthew 7:26 There were two kinds of people in the days of Jesus. Some heard the words that Jesus spoke and were awed by His wisdom and understanding,

…”I tell you the truth, I have not found anyone in Israel with such great faith.” – Matthew 8:10 The centurion came to Jesus and told Him of his servant who was paralyzed and in terrible suffering. He came to Jesus because he believed He could heal him. He told Jesus of the matter, and

“Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy.” – Psalm 126:5 The most difficult place to keep moving in faith is the place of extreme pain. Extreme pain, especially emotional pain, can become immobilizing to the human spirit if it is allowed to overcome us. The psalmist tells us there is only

“Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah.” – Judges 11:29a We’ve all heard stories of individuals who have overcome extreme hardship during their childhood years. Children of alcoholics, orphans who never have parents, loss of parents to a fatal crash, childhood disease – these are all difficult circumstances to overcome. Jephthah was a

“He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being taught.” – Isaiah 50:4b The prophet Isaiah describes his relationship to God as a relationship that has two-way communication. Have you ever felt that your communication with God was only one way – you to Him only? Isaiah tells us, “The

“You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.” – James 4:14b A group of workplace believers meet at my office every week for fellowship, study, and prayer. One man attended our group for several years. Jim was well liked and in good health. One Thursday he showed up as usual.

“Man is like a breath; his days are like a fleeting shadow.” – Psalm 144:4 Every time I fly over a large body of water, I imagine opening the window of the jet and pouring out my coffee into the immense body of water below. I imagine the time that I spend on this earth

“So I was left alone, gazing at this great vision, I had no strength left, my face turned deathly pale and I was helpless.” – Daniel 10:8 Daniel received a vision that troubled him greatly. He wanted understanding of this vision. He set himself out to understand the vision by fasting for three weeks. Three

“And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death-even death on a cross!” – Philippians 2:8 Society today has duped many of us into believing that the world owes us. It owes us a good living, a loving spouse, good health throughout our whole life, sexual pleasure when

“Also in Judah the hand of God was on the people to give them unity of mind to carry out what the king and his officials had ordered, following the word of the Lord.” – 2 Chronicles 30:12 A major corporation conducted a study on the flight of geese. In their study they found that

“Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income….” – Ecclessiastes 5:10 Workplace believers are especially susceptible to a trap in their spiritual lives – one to which others may not be so susceptible. That trap is wealth. Scripture tells us that if we are having our basic

Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.” – John 8:34 “I hate being late,” my friend lamented. “It has been a problem for me all my life.” “Do you really want to change that?” I asked. “Yes, I do.” “All right. Every time you are late to

“And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” – Matthew 5:36-37 Imagine for a moment that you are living in Jesus’ time. It is before Jesus has begun

“Why, O Lord, do You stand far off? Why do You hide Yourself in times of trouble?” – Psalm 10:1 One of the great mysteries of God is His ways. Some of His ways almost appear to bring us into the most difficult places, as if He were indifferent to our circumstances. It would appear

“But He answered, ‘You give them something to eat.’” Mark 6:37a Has anyone ever asked you to do something that seems totally ridiculous? The very suggestion of their instruction may have brought laughter or even anger for proposing the idea. I imagine that the disciples may have felt this way when Jesus responded with this

“Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” – 1 Corinthians 15:58 There is a paradigm shift going on among a remnant of workplace believers today. That paradigm shift is

“His pleasure is not in the strength of the horse, nor His delight in the legs of a man; the Lord delights in those who fear Him, who put their hope in His unfailing love.” – Psalm 147:10-11 Do you ever feel so skilled in what you do that you require little help from others?

“For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake…. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.” – 2 Corinthians 4:11-12 It is the great mystery of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Death gives life. Jesus’ death on the cross gave life.

“We live by faith, not by sight.” – 2 Corinthians 5:7 Over the years I have run into many businessmen who make the statement, “Whenever I get things in order in my business, I want to get more involved in ministry.” What are these men really saying? They are saying that as soon as they

“All the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron are sacred to the Lord and must go into His treasury.” – Joshua 6:19 One of the earliest examples of the practice of giving God the first fruits of the increase was when Joshua and the people entered the Promised Land for the

“Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep His commands.” – Deuteronomy 8:2 Has God performed a heart test on you lately? There are

…”Shouldn’t you walk in the fear of our God to avoid the reproach of our Gentile enemies?” – Nehemiah 5:9 Nehemiah was the cupbearer to King Artaxerxes in Babylon. Jerusalem’s walls had been destroyed and word had come to Nehemiah that the remnant of his people left in Jerusalem were distressed over the plight of

“Then all the people of the region of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them, because they were overcome with fear. So He got into the boat and left.” – Joshua 5:8 Jesus did many miracles when He lived on earth. One of those miracles involved the deliverance of a demon-possessed man. The people of