Where does this saying come from? Some believers think if God calls you to serve Him somewhere dangerous, you will be protected from harm because He has called you and you are obeying.
Abraham Lincoln’s childhood is legendary. Born into poverty with a travelling father and a simple mother who taught him to read and died when Lincoln was 10. Take a moment to ponder the question: where would Lincoln be without his mother?
We have an incredible opportunity to shape our children no matter our situation.
At the end of the year, many Christians, brimming with optimism and motivation, assess their walk with Christ and resolve to turn over a new leaf by cultivating their spiritual life. Sadly for many, the leaf wilts, the resolution dissolves, and the motivation stalls as their lives become complicated.
For some, devotions are like a placebo. People go through the motions but since there are no active ingredients, the effect is minimal.
One hero of the faith who encountered adversity throughout his life is German pastor, Martin Luther. Luther faced many trials as he led the charge for the reformation of the Catholic church.
To illustrate how God uses ordinary people, let’s travel back in time to a period of history called the Reformation. The Reformation’s heroes and battlefields may not be as recognizable as the American Revolution’s George Washington and Valley Forge. Yet the soldiers who led a religious revolution from the 1300s to the 1500s made a tremendous difference in what matters most to us—our understanding of God, the Bible, and salvation.
Longfellow captured the tragedy of the Civil War through his words. You can almost hear the cannons firing and see the smoke filling the air. He found a confident hope amid the chaos of a horrific war and personal grief.
What is it about human nature that just has to disobey the signs? We see the words “Do Not Touch” and we have this unexplainable urge to do the opposite. Obedience is not something that comes naturally to us—that’s human nature. The good news is God gives us the power to overcome our sinful inclinations.
Rather than lamenting our culture’s failure to acknowledge our great and powerful God, let’s turn our full attention to Him who is enthroned above us, who reigns over us, because He alone is our shalom, shalom.
Some of us are fearful of silence. If we stop we may have to think for ourselves. If we listen we may not like what we hear. We find solitude synonymous with loneliness. And so we miss the quiet whisperings of God.
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