He had begun his journey from Babylon on the first day of the first month, and he arrived in Jerusalem on the first day of the fifth month, for the gracious hand of his God was on him. For Ezra had devoted himself to the study and observance of the Law of the Lord, and to teaching its … Continue reading The Devotion of a Priest

Her husband Elkanah would say to her, “Hannah, why are you weeping? Why don’t you eat? Why are you downhearted? Don’t I mean more to you than ten sons?”1 Samuel 1:8 For Encouragement My thoughts on how life would have been like if I had not quit graduate school and had gone on to a … Continue reading Our All-Sufficient God

When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, “Don’t cry.Luke 7:13 For Meditation Read the story carefully and see the Master’s heart for the suffering and marginalized (Lk. 7:11-17).  Be sure not to miss the critical lesson for the grieving and sorrowing. Your cry touches the heart of God, and He … Continue reading Our Compassionate God

When Eliab, David’s oldest brother heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, “Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch … Continue reading Family Intrigues

He replied, “It is not right to take the children’s bread and toss it to the dogs.”Matthew 15:26  For Meditation  Let’s check your tolerance quotient today.  You are the Canaanite woman who went to Jesus for healing for her demon-possessed daughter (Matt. 15:21-28). First, you must deal with the crowd to get to Jesus. You finally … Continue reading Tolerance Quotient

Wine is a mocker and beer a brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise.Proverbs 20:1 For Your Meditation What was King Xerxes thinking about when he called Vashti, his wife, to come and display her beauty to the people and nobles (Esther 1:11)? What was the sense in that? But that is the power and … Continue reading Maybe It Is Time to Say Goodbye

“Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathanael asked.John 1:46 For Your Encouragement Nathanael was a nobody until he got introduced to Jesus. Without Jesus will not be talking about him today. Yet, he questioned the significance of Nazareth when Philip told him about finding “the one Moses wrote about in the Law, and about whom … Continue reading Your Significance

But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God.Ruth 1:16 For Meditation Christianity is about faith and commitment of one’s life to Jesus. It is … Continue reading The Challenge of Faith (2)