If you ignore criticism, you will end in poverty and disgrace; if you accept correction, you will be honoured. Proverbs 13:18 NLT Whenever I discover by myself that I am doing something wrong or the wrong way, I correct it. I simply treat it as an adjustment to my ways. However, when someone else points…
“This is how a king will reign over you,” Samuel said. “The king will draft your sons and assign them to his chariots and his charioteers, making them run before his chariots.” 1 Samuel 8:11 NLT Too often, I put something over my relationship with God. Other things become more important and take precedence over…
So Samuel took a young lamb and offered it to the Lord as a whole burnt offering. He pleaded with the Lord to help Israel, and the Lord answered him. 1 Samuel 7:9 NLT Samuel knew that he had a job to do, and he did it. The people had come to him in fear…
Similarly, a family splintered by feuding will fall apart. Mark 3:25 NLT So much of the world is in turmoil today because of sectarian or tribal strife. Such strife wrought havoc in Europe during and after the Reformation and I saw so much trouble in my childhood and youth, just because of Protestant and Catholic…
When all the Israelites saw the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord coming into the camp, their shout of joy was so loud it made the ground shake! 1 Samuel 4:5 NLT Eli was waiting beside the road to hear the news of the battle, for his heart trembled for the safety of the…
And the man jumped up, grabbed his mat, and walked out through the stunned onlookers. They were all amazed and praised God, exclaiming, “We’ve never seen anything like this before!” Mark 2:12 NLT The people were all amazed because they had seen Jesus perform a miracle. They had never seen anything like it, but now…
“Stop acting so proud and haughty! Don’t speak with such arrogance! For the Lord is a God who knows what you have done; he will judge your actions. 1 Samuel 2:3 NLT When the New Year honours list was announced, I found it odd that so many of the people who had been honoured day…
As she was praying to the Lord , Eli watched her. Seeing her lips moving but hearing no sound, he thought she had been drinking. “Must you come here drunk?” he demanded. “Throw away your wine!” “Oh no, sir!” she replied. “I haven’t been drinking wine or anything stronger. But I am very discouraged, and…
Then Naomi said to her, “Just be patient, my daughter, until we hear what happens. The man won’t rest until he has settled things today.”Ruth 3:18 NLT In this passage, Boaz had to be careful that he was doing the right thing. He had to check with another man that it was ok to proceed,…
Ruth fell at his feet and thanked him warmly. “What have I done to deserve such kindness?” she asked. “I am only a foreigner.” “Yes, I know,” Boaz replied. “But I also know about everything you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband. I have heard how you left your father…
But Ruth replied, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord punish me severely…
But the Lord stood with me and gave me strength so that I might preach the Good News in its entirety for all the Gentiles to hear. And he rescued me from certain death. Yes, and the Lord will deliver me from every evil attack and will bring me safely into his heavenly Kingdom. All…