The Greek verb "to encourage" literally means, "to come alongside." It's what happens when I leave an interior light on and my car battery gets depleted. Someone pulls alongside, uses jumper cables to make a physical connection, and "gives me a jump," infusing my...

How does God's Word speak to troubling thoughts, vacillating emotions, debilitating despair, and tantalizing temptations?   Dilemmas and Defenses The desire to go on has leaked out of me.  There's no strength of will or spirit in me to face the day's...

Creditors (such as the IRS) ruthlessly try to collect what we owe them.  Threatening letters.  Edgy phone calls. Garnishment of wages. Their tireless efforts to get what we owe them can leave us thinking we're hardened criminals. The oppressive debt leaves us...

I'm not a patient person.  Waiting and I don't get along well. Those who know me best would call  the point of those first two sentences the understatement of the millennium!  When I do demonstrate patience, it's owing to a work of God's Spirit, patently not a...

What causes you to lose heart? *Relationship conflicts that appear to be irreparable? *Physical decline or unremitting pain? *Career or personal goals that haven't materialized? *Rigorous opposition or unjust criticism? *Despair over family members not...

Avoiding Spiritual Darkness in Our Latter Years   When are the leaves of a tree most beautiful? Late in their life span.  Eye-popping hues of gold, yellow, and red dot the landscape.  Their colors peak right before they die, turn brown, and fall to the earth's...

Will we live our latter years in the dark?   Despite his Christian faith, the older he gets, the more Randy complains. If it isn't recurring back pain or declining energy, he gripes about every dip in the stock market, the latest election results, the weather,...

What is something that God has done for you, for a loved one, or for your church that makes you want to shout, "Do it again, Lord!"?   Scene 1 Just as the blistering sun's rays and stale air sucks the moisture out of the desert floor, leaving it parched and...

Stunned. Did I hear him correctly? Did he really say what I think he did? Are my hearing aids working properly? Robertson McQuilkin (1927--2016), then 85, walked by me on a parallel sidewalk five yards away. He pointed at me and exclaimed, "I prayed for you this...

The Ups and Downs of a Depression-Pocked Day You don't want to get stuck on an elevator.  You're stranded in a tight space with folks you don't know, in claustrophobic conditions, unsure how long you'll wait for rescue, all the while hoping that the others used...

Turning Fear Into Faith, Part 2 God is keenly sensitive to our tendency to feel afraid. He knew we'd often fret and feel threatened by obstacles and situations we can't control. Why else would the most repeated command in the Bible be "Do not fear"?  And the...

An unanticipated diagnosis causes your heart to lurch:  cancer. Your company replaces you with a younger executive who costs them less. Your fiancé pierces your heart, reneging on his commitment, infatuated by someone else.  Will your long-held desire for a husband...