Everyone loves a good story, and central to a good story is conflict. Few best-sellers focus on the perfect day where everything works out. Romantic comedies end when the couple gets...

Why do bad things happen to good people—specifically me?” Distant tragedies from around the world can lead some to question God, but how many more crises of faith result from personal...

When we look at the family tree of the patriarchs, we find a series of “gold stars.” Abraham literally had many sons, but Genesis 25 tells us that he gave all...

Jesus hosts the multitudes, feeding people’s spiritual and physical hungers. While Jesus’ blessing and breaking works an amazing miracle in a tight spot, the disciples play an import- ant part. Jesus...

Can you imagine having crowds follow you everywhere, wanting you to solve their problems? Pastors and teachers can probably identify with the exhaustion Jesus and his disci- ples must have felt...

As a first-year public school music teacher and church musician, I looked forward to observing Good Friday and Easter. I wanted the children in my classes to understand why Good Friday...

The psalmist says in verse 15, “I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake I shall be satisfied, beholding your likeness.” He thinks that his righteousness will allow him...

You said if I cleaned my room, did all my homework, and fed the dog, we could do something special.” Youngsters asking favors of parents often start their pleading with such...

We recall the Jacob who fled his home. We remember the Jacob so weary that with a rock for a pillow he lay down to sleep. That was the Jacob who...

Jacob, while God’s man, is a fighter. He struggled with Esau, his twin, while still in the womb. During birth, he grabbed firstborn Esau’s heel. Later, he cheated Esau out of...