Speak without Words
Chuck Swindoll suggests it's not so much what a wife says to her husband that will win him over. He's more apt to respond to her gentle behavior and her attitude.
Chuck Swindoll suggests it's not so much what a wife says to her husband that will win him over. He's more apt to respond to her gentle behavior and her attitude.
The institution of marriage has fallen on hard times—divorce rates are soaring, men and women are testing the marriage waters by living together first, to say nothing about society’s attempts to redefine marriage to include same-sex couples. But marriage is a divinely designed institution, and if marriage is to thrive in an increasingly hostile culture then we must first consult the architect of marriage…God.
Desiring to get the job done or meet other expectations, a congregation can lose its primary objective: to ascribe supreme worth to our supreme Lord. Worship is more than meditative contemplation, the passive enjoyment of great music, or listening to a well-delivered sermon. Worship requires participation…a response…praise and service, celebration and action.
What do I do when the Bible offends me? Here are a few tips that may be helpful.
Few things steal a church’s joy like discouragement…especially if that discouragement comes not from outside circumstances but from inside instigators. Scripture tells us that we are to “stimulate one another to love and good deeds” (Hebrews 10:24). But far too often we choose instead to speak words that dishearten, hinder, and deter each other from living the life God intends.
Out of every continent, country, and nation, He is reaching out to build His body, the church. But the church is not only universal in scope; it is local as well. In these places, music and message mingle to refresh sagging spirits, confront wrong, point the way, model the truth, help the hurting, hold out hope to the discouraged, rescue the perishing, and care for the dying.
We need to set our sights on ministering and making a difference to those whose paths we cross each and every day—the unbelievers we work with, who live next door, who come into our lives.
We have examined the Scriptures to find out what we are to be involved in between now and when Christ returns. But what is the Lord doing? What is He concerned about during this present time? The answer is clear, according to the New Testament. It’s the same project He’s been working on since the Holy Spirit came on the day of Pentecost. Jesus said, “I will build My church” (Matthew 16:18), and that is what He has been doing.
One of the toughest assignments in life is to communicate clearly what happened during a time when emotions were high.
Paranormal phenomena and speculation about the afterlife usually draw immediate attention. Everyone, it seems, looks with interest when the curtain of death is lifted. Books, seminars, and television programs abound with claims of out-of-body death experiences, speaking with the dead, and so on. Are these illusions or reality? In Luke’s gospel, Jesus recounts an intriguing story of one who spoke from the grave.