Focal Passage: John 3:19-21, 8:31-36  President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863. Part of this document reads, “All persons held as slaves are, and henceforth, shall be free.” The opposing perspectives on slavery between the north and south is, in part, what led to the southern states to secede from the Union and a bloody, brutal war to break out.  Until the end of the Civil

Focal Passage: Daniel 10:1-3, 10-13, 16-19  The term “prepare for battle” steers my imagination toward the greatest movie franchise of all time, “The Lord of the Rings.” There is a particular scene in the second movie, “The Two Towers,” where the people have taken refuge in a fortress as an enormous, mighty, evil army bears down upon them.  On the eve of battle the fighting force that receives their weapons

Focal Passage: Daniel 9:3-10, 17-19  God did not destroy the world in the days of Noah because the people were sinful. Genesis 6:5 says, “The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”  God destroyed the world because the people were only sinful. Everyone sins, including Noah. Noah was spared by God

Focal Passage: Daniel 6:6-13, 16-17, 21-23  The word “courage” occurs 24 times in the Bible (ESV). Fourteen times the words “took, take, or found” are used in conjunction with “courage.” Daniel’s act of courage was remaining faithful to God in prayer even though he knew that it was going to cost him something.  While the cost for us isn’t the same as some other Christians across the world, it is

Focal Passage: Daniel 5:13-17, 22-28  “Know your why.” If you’ve ever read a book on leadership or attended a conference on organizational effectiveness you have probably heard that statement. Leadership teachers use this terminology to emphasize the importance of a company knowing and remaining true to its purpose. I believe that knowing your why is imperative for an individual’s success in another area, speaking the truth with boldness. Daniel was

Focal Passage: Daniel 2:13-23, 27-28a  Your sentence is death. You’ve just learned that you are to be executed for a crime you didn’t commit. How would you respond?  I’ll speak for both of us … we would rant and rave about the injustice. We’d post about the insane official who is threatening our lives, we would call our congressman, we’d start a GoFundMe for attorney’s fees as we gear up

Focal Passage: Daniel 1:3-13, 17-19  I love quoting Charles Spurgeon when I preach. He had a way of taking deep theological truths and communicating them with profound simplicity.  Let me provide his perspective on circumstances and I think you’ll agree. He said, “Had any other condition been better for you than the one in which you are, divine love would have put you there.” By this statement we learn that

Focal Passage: 1 Samuel 25:14-17, 23-28, 32-35  What is wisdom? I’ve heard it said like this, “Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad.” Spurgeon elaborates on the relationship between knowledge and wisdom in a more spiritual and serious way, “To know is not to be wise. Many men know a great deal and are all the greater

Focal Passage: Philippians 3:12-21  Have you ever had a teacher say something like “if you remember one thing from my class period remember this …”? It seems as if Paul is doing something similar for us in Philippians 3:13.  He writes in the last part of the text, “But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead.” When Paul, the greatest missionary and

Focal Passage: II John 1-9  “Goblin mode.” I bet you are as confused as I was when I first read that phrase. Every year the Oxford dictionary picks one word that reflects the “ethos, mood or preoccupations of that particular year.” And yes, 2023’s word is goblin mode. I’ll leave it to you to look up what it means.  The word of the year for 2016 is a bit less