“ I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die. Do you believe this?” So spoke Jesus to Mary in the moments before he raised his beloved Lazarus from the dead. This …
Obstacles to abundant life offered by Jesus come to us all. How we respond to them is determined largely by our perspective. One of my favorite things is retreating to a quiet setting with a small group of women who love the Lord and want to know Him better. It …
Today marks the conclusion of what Jesus’ Jewish culture called The Great Feast. Also known as the Feast of Tabernacles, or Sukkot, a week-long celebration that coincides with the beginning of the harvest season. God instituted this feast by a law given to Moses, described in Leviticus 23. The law …
As I write this, we are in the middle of what worshiping Jews call “The Days of Awe,” observed during the first ten days of every Jewish New Year. Observant Jews focus on reading Scripture, dedicate extra time with God, and examine one’s heart and life in light of God’s …
Are you one of those reluctant to read the Old Testament prophet books like Jeremiah and Ezekiel, and those pesky little guys like Obadiah and Nahum? Many are, which is why I wrote a Bible Study course called Finding the Heart of God in Every Book of the Bible. I …
One year, preparing to lead a women’s retreat in Michigan, the Holy Spirit taught me something new about surrender. Our concept of surrender to God is giving everything up and yielding entirely to Him, which is accurate. The voices in our Bible — inspired by Holy Spirit — encourage us …
A.W. Tozer is one of my favorite authors. He published a wonderful book in 1950 entitled “The Divine Conquest,” in which he identified a common problem among Christians that still exists today. Quoting a few excerpts: “Is it not true that for most of us who call ourselves Christians there …
God has called me to write, but it doesn’t always come easy. I’ve gone through a season of really struggling with the writing lately. Even after clearing my schedule to make more time for it, and my dear hubby throwing all of his support behind me in this, I kept …
Lord, increase our faith! Luke 17:5 When the disciples cried out to the Lord in this way, was it because they hadn’t been able to heal someone or drive out a tormenting spirit? No…. it was because he had just told them that forgiveness should be continually extended to those …
Are you living by the energy of the Spirit? It is heartbreaking to see believers living in frustration, anxiety and even resignation over sharing life with their indwelling Lord. People shrink back from stepping out in their gifts. Often they just can’t get over their own perceived inadequacies. They may …
“Sometimes I wonder if marriage is overrated.” When the talk show host said this to me on live TV, I saw real anxiety in her eyes. It was the day after Valentines, when love was still “on the air.” She and her co-host — both single and youngish — had …
When you spend years teaching, counseling and mentoring folks, you learn a lot about the desires of people’s hearts. For many years Ron and I did just this, first as local pastors and later via traveling around the U.S. and overseas. I loved getting out of my normal life “bubble,” …
