Christian

In the Old Testament, forty-three kings ruled Israel and Judah from circa 1025 to 586 BC. Four kings ruled the United Kingdom of Israel from approximately 925 to 1025 BC before the kingdom was split. There was one evil king, two good kings, and one king who started as good but then turned evil. Nineteen […]

The Book of Isaiah is also known as the “Little Bible” because it has sixty-six chapters, the same number as the books in the Bible. This book was written between 739 and 681 B.C. The prophecy of the Messiah’s coming is the most significant fact in the book of Isaiah. The savior of the world.

Grace and mercy are important elements of salvation.  It is by God’s grace and mercy that we are forgiven and saved. However, why is the last sentence of the Bible about grace? In the New Testament, this grace is attributed to our Lord Jesus Christ (Revelation 22:21 ESV). God is the orchestrator of this grace

Second Timothy 3:1-5 is a powerful description that can describe almost any generation and nation of this world. Are we truly in the last days as described, given that it so clearly encompasses many eras of the past and the present? We are currently experiencing difficult times in almost every corner of the earth. These

There are many Bible stories about being courageous, brave, and daring. Some of them were courageous, acting despite their fear of the difficulties of their circumstances. Others were more spontaneous, acting without acknowledging the danger or difficulty of the situation. Finally, some dare to step out of their comfort zone to be bold, adventurous, and

Our Heavenly Father is a God of grace and mercy. God wishes to receive everyone in His heavenly kingdom. It is a difficult time when our loved ones die, and we are not sure if they will enter eternal peace. We pray that they will make it to heaven so that we will see them

The entire Bible is filled with powerful verses. I have read various Bibles over the past 20+ years. When I left the Catholic Church I had no idea what I was seeking. I landed in a nondenominational church. It was the first time I had ever attended a fully Bible-based church.  The Pastor opened my

The words joy, joyful, joyed, joyfully, joyfulness, joying, and joyous are mentioned throughout the Old Testament and the New Testament over 430 times in the ESV Bible. We are encouraged to seek the joy of the Lord to find true joy. In fact, joy is part of the fruit of the spirit. The Bible encourages

There are many Bible verses about God’s promises.  Many of these promises required folks to have patience. Whether from the Old Testament or New Testament these Bible stories required people to wait on the Lord.  Noah built the ark patiently waiting for God to bring the rain.  Job waited patiently for God to come and

The Book of Lamentations in the Old Testament was written between 586 and 575 BCE. It describes the events during 586 B.C.E. of the destruction of Jerusalem by Babylon and the Jewish people taken into captivity. The main character is the Prophet Jeremiah. In this book, Jeremiah describes the people’s circumstances using his own experiences.

The Word of God tells us a lot about the heart of man. It is filled with evil thoughts and actions even when we want to do good. However, God has promised a new heart to replace the human heart. God wants us to have a pure heart and to walk in His ways.  I

The Book of the prophet Isaiah is about redemption. God’s purpose is to receive His people back. It is God’s plea for His people to return to Him. The only God of Israel.  In this book, God is comforting His people. He tells them they have nothing to fear for He is with them even

When sharing in a Christian environment the written and unwritten law is to not share without the person’s permission.  What is shared in any Christian group setting should remain in that group.  Each group has to foster and enforce trust to allow people to feel comfortable sharing. Whether it is a terrible thing that has

We serve a God of hope. Therefore, by the power of the Holy Spirit that dwells in us, we can overcome hopelessness. The Father of our Lord Jesus Christ had a plan to bring us this hope. Christ Jesus was sent to give us this hope. He died so that the former things would be

When we talk about God’s mercy we almost always talk about God’s grace and the difference between the two. The mercy of God is not receiving consequences for our sins, such as death. Grace is receiving something we do not deserve, such as God’s forgiveness and life. Mercy and grace are nearly opposites of each

Every year or so I begin to read a new version of the entire Bible. It has been my goal to consistently read the Bible from all the Old Testaments to the New Testaments to continue to grow in my walk with the Lord.  Praying allows me to talk to God and reading the word

How honest are most people that you know?  Like me, I am sure many of you struggled with honesty before you turned your life to Christ.  We lied out of fear, and embarrassment, to show confidence, or to try to fit in. Regardless of the reason, it was by the power of Jesus that I

Like many Believers, I feel close to God when I am close to nature.  I bought my second house because it overlooked the mountains of Hudson Valley.  I walked into the house, saw that beautiful view of nature, and knew that I had found my place. There was also an abundance of small creatures to

I began reading the Bible cover to cover for the first time as a new Christian in 2002. It was not what I expected.  I did not think I would see God’s wrath so vividly displayed.  Therefore, I had many questions about God’s anger and actions. I have often thought about why God was going

We must look beyond just the beauty of flowers.  Many gardeners, including my husband, spend a great deal of time making their gardens beautiful.  I am in awe of how beautiful my husband’s garden is each year.  However, it does not just happen. He spends time irrigating and fertilizing the soil, growing seeds, buying plants,

Marriage is between two imperfect people in an attempt to form a perfect union. Our soulmates are expected to complement all our shortfalls. To be our ying to their yang. However, that is not always the case.  Most times we bring a set of ideals to the table that could complement or bring us to

It has always been God’s desire for us to love and work together to do good works according to His purpose. The Bible advises us that our lives would be better if we worked together in peace and harmony. Therefore, we should take into consideration the bible verses for teamwork and working together to heart.

Discouragement is the playground of the devil. It is his desire to discourage us so much that we abandon the plan God has for us. Discouragement can cause us to fall away from every good thing in our lives. We oftentimes lose the will to simply keep trying. The beginning of discouragement finds its origin

We have all been here.  The feeling of being stuck in our circumstances without a way out can be frustrating and lead us to anger. The testing of faith when we cannot see a way out on our own can lead us to sin. The Bible verses about anger and frustration are numerous. However, we

Thanksgiving Day is a day to gather with family and friends. With a grateful heart, we express how happy we are to spend time together, enjoy a great meal, and catch up with the happenings in our lives. As we gather this holiday season to express our love to one another we know that Christ

There are many verses about the unity of the Church in the Bible. From the Old Testament to the New Testament God was all about unity. The unity of the spirit is a bond of peace (Ephesians 4:3 ESV). God was in unity and peace with The Word and the Holy Spirit.  God also wanted

I believe the world would be a better place if we could all exercise a little more humility in our day-to-day living. However, humility requires us to think just a little less of ourselves when dealing with others. In a world that tells us to be the best regardless of the cost. Also, encourages us

Waiting for anything is one of the things I least enjoy doing. No matter where I go, if I must wait, I become annoyed. If my appointment is at 11 am I want to be seen at 11 am.  Better yet if I am early come out and get me before my appointment time.  I

Life can be tough sometimes. Difficult situations can come from all directions all at once.  They can come from your business life, personal life, or both. In any case, when we have too many things coming at once or one big situation it can make us feel overwhelmed. Especially, if we don’t have a way

Peace is the one thing that we all desire. Whether it is at home, school, or work.  We all want to live a life filled with tranquility. However, this peace is hard to obtain unless we shut out the world. Which is near impossible based on our day-to-day activities. Finding limited peace can be found

I love to talk. It is a great opportunity to learn new things. I love interacting with people.  Getting to know people through sharing information about our lives leads to finding common ground which can lead to lasting friendships. However, too much talking can lead to trouble.  I was always admonished for talking too much

There are many stories in the Bible about redemption. What is redemption? Why do we seek God’s redemption as Christians? It all started in the Old Testament when sin entered the world. Adam and Eve walked in the glory of God for just a moment while in the Garden of Eden. After they ate from

The story of Ruth in the Bible is one of my favorite books of the Bible. The Book of Ruth is a beautiful love story that begins with tragedy and ends with the commitment of a man and a woman. The book of Ruth speaks about the generosity, faithfulness, devotion, courage, and dedication it takes

Pride can be the biggest issue for most Christians.  From the day we are born when our parents look at us with pride, we learned that pride may be a good thing. Throughout our lives, we are told to take pride in our work, our appearance, and our accomplishments. However, what the Bible says about

Kindness and compassion work together so that we can work for the good of God. Kindness comes from the fruit of the spirit. Compassion is the feeling that arises when you are confronted with another’s suffering and feels motivated to help. Kindness is the quality of being friendly, generous, and considerate.  In The New Testaments

The Bible speaks a lot about new beginnings. This is something we all need from time to time.  It can correct a situation, redirect our priorities, or act as our spiritual do-over.  In my journey to follow Christ, I experienced many new beginnings. The most important one is the beginning of my new life in

The word holy has two meanings.  One refers to the holiness of God and the second refers to someone or something that has been set apart for the glory of God. They are meant for a holy life serving the perfect will of God. God’s holiness is who he is, and it is laid out

Unconditional love sounds like something we can only imagine.  Who wouldn’t want someone to love us for who we are? We are full of flaws, jealousy, sin, hate, envy, vindictiveness, and are overall shallow. I could go on about how mankind has certainly not been kind to one another.  However, we have our moments when

Forgiving someone can sometimes be hard.  It can be even harder when we must forgive a trusted friend, a spouse, or a close relative.  Sometimes we may even have to forgive a stranger or ourselves. Regardless of whomever, it might be, forgiveness is important to our well-being. Forgiveness is important to our physical as well

I love parables.  There are over 40 parables in the bible from Jesus in various lengths and meanings. Parables have a wealth of wisdom to help us understand God’s vision for his people.  Most often they can be interpreted in a variety of ways.  In Matthew 25 there are two parables. The parable of the

Jesus sometimes uses our finances to speak to our hearts.  Money is one of the main ways people gauge success or failure.  Therefore, speaking about money in parables makes them a perfect vessel for teaching important lessons.  Every man can easily relate to lessons on money.  Therefore, the Parable of the Ten Minas and other

The Trinity Part Three is the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost. The Trinity is made up of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.  Yes, the Holy Spirit is just as much God as Jesus is.  However, this part of the Trinity is talked about or discussed the least.  Could it

I was raised as a Catholic but my understanding of why Jesus is important was woefully ridiculous.  Having attended Church most of my life how did I miss this most important game-changing concept.  How could I know God but be utterly ignorant of the importance of Jesus? Yes, I knew he died on the cross

The Christian walk has never been easy nor without trials and tribulations.  When we seek God, we have to turn our backs on the world. We must surrender to God which includes our will and our purpose. We have to learn to live out God’s will and purpose for us.  Not an easy thing to

How do faith, hope, and Trust work together? Let’s start with faith. Faith is provided by God which we must decide to exercise.  We must decide that with our faith in God, He will provide for all our needs.  Our faith will allow us to be in the Kingdom of God. However, we must also

God will always meet us where we are.  Be it literally or spiritually.  Reading God’s word speaks to each of us differently.  Take the parable of the talents.  On the surface, it means to be a good steward over what you have been provided.  Or it could mean spiritually to share the gospel with others

During my younger years, I was led to believe that you need debt to establish a credit rating.  To develop a good credit score you had to establish a credit history.  However, they neglected to share the pitfalls of buying now and paying later. Since becoming a Christian, I have found several important bible verses

Let’s jump right in.  What is tithing?  Biblically it is giving a 10th of the first fruits. The first tithe in the Bible was from Abraham and was given to the high priest Melchizedek.  Melchizedek is from the Old Testament and reference by the New Testament in the Book of Hebrews. Melchizedek was both a

The holidays from Thanksgiving to the New Year had always been a wonderful time of the year for me and my family. It was a time to gather, eat and make merry. With all its sounds, smells, and the taste of the holidays. A time filled with love, moments to cherish, and my belly filled

God has a lot to say about giving, lending, and borrowing.  My views on giving and lending have always warred with my desire to save.  I believe I have a bent towards being miserly or I am just plain selfish.  It was only through the grace of God that I began to see the need

The Name Jesus Is Loved, Hated, Misunderstood, Disdained, Judged, and Invokes Many Other Feelings. For me, I just did not know him, what his death meant or why it was so needed. Yes, I understood in my mind that he died for our sins, but I did not understand this in my spirit and soul.

I have encountered many who profess to be Christians but have never read the Bible or have only read certain parts of the Bible. My question is how can you be a follower of Christ without reading about what Christians are called to do? Christians and the Bible go hand in hand.   Stating that

Jesus Came To Fulfill The Law Each year I try to read a different version of the Bible. Mainly to change it up a bit but also to get a different perspective of the writings. The doctrine is the same, but some Bibles are easier to read. Some versions let me see a passage clearer

But Test The Spirit To See Whether They Are From God, 1 John 4:1 Per Frances Chan in his book Letters to the Church, “encouraging signs of growth is when people rarely talk about a great ‘sermon’ but often discuss what they’ve discovered in their Bible reading.” While reading this book in my Bible Study

Be Still And Know That I Am God. Psalm 46:10 As we face the uncertainty in our life due to the Corona virus, I am comforted by knowing that God is in control. The Lord has set us down. He wants us to be still and know that He is in control. I for one

God speaks about money more than 800 times in the Bible.  Money and our possessions are the 2nd most important topic after God’s Kingdom and how to get there. However, the Bible teaches us that debt is not good and should be avoided. In fact, the Bible likens it to slavery. We are a slave