READ: JOHN 13:31-38; 15:1-17; 1 JOHN 3:16-18; 4:19 Have you ever heard the expression, “They talk the talk, but don’t walk the walk”? It’s a way of saying that people’s actions don’t match their words. For example, if somebody talks all about how important recycling is but constantly throws their plastic water bottles into the [...]

READ: MATTHEW 13:1-9; JOHN 15:1-17; 19:41–20:18 John 20 contains one of my favorite scenes in all of Scripture. On Easter Sunday, Jesus’s disciples discovered His tomb was empty, but they had not yet seen the risen Lord. They were probably confused and concerned, suspicious that something terrible had happened. In the midst of all this [...]

READ: MATTHEW 18:21-35 Many of us love a good revenge story. In movies, books, and TV shows, we love the story of someone who takes matters into their own hands and gets back at the bad guy—we want to see the bad guys get what they deserve. Many of us have been on the receiving [...]

READ: 1 JOHN 2:1-29 Recently, I was buying some pizzas, and when I handed the cashier my money she did something that made me freeze: she held up the dollar bills to the light, examining them closely. She was trying to see if they were authentic. At that moment, I thought to myself, Oh great. [...]

READ: GENESIS 1:6-10, 14-19; PSALM 19:1-2 Have you ever been overwhelmed by the beauty of the sky? Whether it’s the rolling clouds on a summer day, a golden sunset, or the twinkling stars at night, the skies above our heads are beautiful. Artists and painters try to imitate the beauty of the sky, but even [...]

When my alarm clock first went off, I did not want to rise; I laid within my bed awhile; It held me like a vice. A blackened cloud hung over me, Of doubt and fear and pain; I shut my eyes and thought I would Not open them again. It felt like I could not [...]

In James 3, we are given metaphors for what our "tongue" (or the words we say) is like. James says our words have inherent power, and that power can be used either for good or evil. He explains the power of the tongue with two analogies: the bridle of a horse (verse 3) and the [...]

Imagine you wake up one morning and begin to get ready for the day. When you look at yourself in the mirror, you are horrified by what you see: you have a massive case of bedhead, eye crust is piled up in your eyelids, last night's dinner is stuck between your teeth, and you look [...]