A certain stage of maturity has to be reached before we are willing to accept our own vulnerability. But what a liberating experience when we reach that point! The “willingness to remain vulnerable” is one of the finest fruits of honest living.
We are creatures who dream and aspire. We set goals and reach toward them. We are not content to stay put. That being true, it’s all the more strange that many of us do stay put! What we need is a more powerful appreciation of “movement.”
Thoughtfulness involves not only stopping to think of others but anticipating their needs and wishes. Thoughtful people are those who think of others with a noticeable degree of wisdom and sensitivity. Deep down, this concern is a product of love.
Relief is “the easing of a burden or distress, such as pain, anxiety, or oppression.” Our burdens may not be physical, but they are no less oppressive, and when one person provides relief for another, something happens that is wonderful indeed.
Philanthropy is not just for the rich. Our means may be more limited than the rich, but we’re still responsible for doing what we can. Also, philanthropy is not just about money. Things like time and effort are often more needed than financial help.
One of the most ennobling things in life is to aspire to the making of a positive contribution, one that will add a little quality or excellence to the world’s output. When we labor toward that end, good things can be expected to happen.
We must be those who not only receive security but also give it. It is, after all, more blessed to give than to receive. And there are few gifts any better than when we say to someone, “In every possible way, I want to help make you secure.”
Without integrity, life is worth little. If we violate our principles to acquire fame, fortune, power, security, or social acceptance, what have we gained in the long term? We must guard our integrity even when it is hard. ESPECIALLY when it is hard!
A lifetime of painstaking effort to become trustworthy can be thrown away in a moment of carelessness, and once lost, credibility is extremely hard to regain. So if we want others to listen when we speak, let us tell the truth carefully and kindly!
In the story of the Good Samaritan, the “attitude” of the man who helped the injured traveler is not commented on. What made him different is that he acted on the impulse to give aid. As the saying goes, “a little help is worth a great deal of pity.”
Sin is no ordinary problem, and its cure will not be ordinary either. Only Jesus Christ, the very embodiment of God Himself, has the power to get rid of the ...
If our present position is that we have said no to Christ, we’re on the side of the enemy. But Christ invites us to change our minds and obey the ...
Fervent and faithful, at least to the best of his understanding, Apollos needed to be shown “the way of God more accurately” (Acts 18:26). And to his credit, when Priscilla ...
As Paul reminded Timothy, the Scriptures are able to make us “wise for salvation” (2 Timothy 3:15). Whatever may seem right to us, we would do well to listen humbly ...
“There are two freedoms: the false, where man is free to do what he likes; the true, where a man is free to do what he ought.” Freedom is not ...
Paul described the Christian’s new life in Colossians 3:1-17. We have new goals, thoughts, and habits. With Christ as our Lord, we live under a new authority. And having been ...
The stability of the promised kingdom would be such that it “shall stand forever.” The ups and downs of history would not faze it, and no enemy could conquer it. ...
God said to David, “Your throne shall be established forever.” The kingdom of which God spoke would not be geographical but spiritual (John 18:36) — and this is the very ...
The path to heaven passes through the territory of repentance, and that is a painful place to be. But the horror of our sins has to become real to us. ...
It is in the gospel that God has revealed His plan. The righteousness He is willing to provide is based on faith in His Son. We might have preferred some ...
Real faith involves more than accepting the facts of the gospel intellectually. As it grows to maturity, faith turns into confidence and trust — a trust that will risk everything ...
Whether in the operation of his intellect, emotions, or will, Abraham’s point of departure was always this: what has God said? And he continues to be the spiritual forefather of ...