By Not Known Chinese communities all around the world will be celebrating the Lunar New Year in the days ahead. Shops are closed and businesses slow down in Singapore, especially on the first two days: most areas would appear like a ghost town. I have had several foreign friends sharing their surprise on not being…
By Not Known The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” (Rom 8:15) No Earthly Father The word, ‘Father’ was never used or called out by me for the…
By Not Known Thirty-three miners were trapped in 2010 for 69 days 2000 feet underground in Chile. Many around the world followed their ordeal until finally they emerged one at a time from darkness into light. As these 33 men emerged onto the surface, they were not just a group of soot-covered men in ragged…
By Not Known There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven – A time to give birth and a time to die; A time to plant and a time to uproot what is planted. A time to kill and a time to heal; A time…
By Not Known Management philosophies and techniques have infiltrated the church. The pastor is now in danger of being seen as a CEO, visionary, strategist and manager instead of shepherd, spiritual teacher, preacher and discipler. What used to be his study has now become his office. Instead of studying the Bible, he studies reports. He…
By Not Known I miss the seasons of Scotland. From winter to spring; from summer to autumn… life follows a climatic rhythm, like a piece of choral music with four parts – all in one, yet each part is distinctly unique. This is the way which God renews his natural creation. Every first visible change…
By Not Known God desires that you not waste your life, but just give it back to Him, for instead of misery, strife and loss, He can help you play to win. Life is like a game, you see, a match that wrestlers play; You do your best to stand and fight, but the…
By Not Known Today marks the 4th and last Sunday of Advent, representing joy that Jesus gives to the world. As the year-end approaches, perhaps it is a good time to reflect with thanksgiving on all that God has done for us in 2015. What can we be thankful for in this past year, not…
By Not Known Black Friday is the day following Thanksgiving Day in the US (the fourth Thursday of November). Since the 1930s, it has been regarded as the beginning of the Christmas shopping season, and most major retailers open very early (and more recently even through the night) offerring promotional sales. Sales in 2014 fell…
By Not Known Previously (22 Nov), I wrote that unforgiveness is a sin in the light of the Gospel. However, God forgives justly, and justice demands confession and repentance; restitution and punishment. How then does God exercise justice in forgiveness? In 2 Samuel 12:13b-23 David was confronted with the threats of two deaths: (1) His…