It was a phone call I’ll never forget. It was from a young woman whose life lay shipwrecked on the California beach from where she was calling. She had a terminal disease, leukaemia. Her husband had left her. Her child had recently died at only two and a half months old. Her friend had just […]
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How Do I Overcome Anxiety?
Question: Last month, I thought I was having a heart attack. My pulse was racing, my palms were sweating, and I started breathing heavily, as if I were going to pass out. I went to the hospital, and they said my heart was fine—what I had experienced was a panic attack. Now I have anxiety […]
Read MoreEncouragement Takes the Sting Out of Life
All of us need encouragement. We need somebody to believe in us. To reassure and reinforce us. To help us pick up the pieces and go on. To fuel our flame of determination as we face the odds against us. I don’t care how influential, secure, or mature a person may appear to be, an […]
Read MoreDoes God Care about Our Suffering?
Agonizing in prayer over a difficult leader who was causing conflict in my church, I asked God to remove him and to protect my family and me. As senior pastor, I became the target for a few disgruntled people that this man had secretly poisoned against me. Eventually they demanded my resignation, threatening to disrupt […]
Read MoreThink Theologically, Not Logically
I confess to you, at times I doubt God’s purpose and promise. I say that to my own embarrassment. When things haven’t worked as I thought they would, when I received a no instead of a yes or a yes instead of a no, when I couldn’t unravel a situation and fit it with the […]
Read MoreLet’s Be Thankful for Angels
As I’ve said for years, it’s thanksgiving, not thankskeeping. So, let’s go there. Autumn…harvest…it is the best time of year to give thanks . . . to count our blessings. Have you counted your blessings lately? If not, allow me to prime the pump. Start with broad categories, such as family members, close friends, and […]
Read MoreHow Can I Get Started Reading the Bible?
Question: I’m a new Christian, and I want to learn more from the Bible. I have an old Bible that belonged to my grandmother, and it’s difficult to understand. Where do I begin? How can I get more out of reading the Bible? Answer: It’s great to hear about your desire to read God’s Word. […]
Read MoreSurviving “Survival Mode”
The book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst is a humorous children’s story about a boy named Alexander who has “one of those days.” Nothing, I mean nothing, goes right for him. From the time he pops out of bed in the morning until he crawls back into […]
Read More“Lord, Are You Sure?”
Recently, my son Jonathan began asking a particular question after almost everything I said. He asks his question, then follows my answer by asking, “Are you sure?” “Mom, can I go outside?” “Sure.” “Are you sure?” “Yes.” “Mom, can I eat breakfast?” “Absolutely; dive in.” “Are you sure?” “I’m sure.” “Mom, can I play X-Box?” […]
Read MoreMoral Purity
Holiness sounds scary. It need not be, but to the average person it is. Our tendency is to think that holiness would never find its way into the office of a salesperson—certainly not that of an aggressive and successful athletics coach. Nor would a mother of small children be that concerned about holiness, nor a […]
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