By Not Known When one city decided to give out free condoms to students age 12 and older, one parent wrote, “I’m so happy, I can’t wait to celebrate.” Did this parent think that the problem with teen pregnancy was going to end with this? Instead, wouldn’t giving out free condoms be the equivalent of…

By Not Known Nehemiah was a prayer warrior as well as a practical worker. He was not “so heavenly minded, that he was of no earthly good”.  When we read through the book of Nehemiah, we see the man in differing and trying circumstances, but the common thread of prayerfulness runs right through. Nehemiah prayed…

By Not Known A song from the musicale “The King and I” goes like this:“Getting to know you, getting to know all about you,  Getting to like you, getting to hope you like me…” The character from the musicale who sings this is an English teacher who has just arrived in Thailand to tutor the…

By Not Known The Sanhedrin – “the rulers, elders and teachers of the law” – just had to take the evidence as it stood. Right before their eyes was the crippled beggar completely healed, with the Jewish onlookers praising God for what had taken place as five thousand amongst them had just turned to Christ…

By Not Known “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” (Heb 11:1) Living by faith and not by sight is a Christian dictum that we have been taught to embrace. But when it comes to situations of injustice where we desire wrong to be…

By Not Known There was a very interesting incident in Luke 11 that we often miss. As Jesus continued in his journey toward Jerusalem, he gave various instructions to his disciples. As they moved along, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said: “Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts…

By Not Known “If he comes suddenly, do not let him find you sleeping.” (Mark 13:36) When Nehemiah led the people to complete the restoration of the wall in Jerusalem, he finished a chapter in the history of the Jews. Another chapter is coming to an end too in Mark’s gospel. In Jesus’ words in…

By Not Known The decision to put away all the pagan wives and their children in Nehemiah 13, must certainly be heartrending for those Israelite men and their families. Why did God allow this most seemingly cruel event to take place? Why didn’t He intervene to prevent the families from being broken up? Wouldn’t that…

By Not Known A ‘yes’ man may not always be the best man to entrust an important responsibility. A ‘yes’ indicates a promise to be or to do something. With a promise comes responsibility. With a responsibility comes accountability. Without accountability, a ‘yes’ can become an empty promise and a lie. Do you often say…

By Not Known How easy it is to wrestle an apology from a child who did wrong – intimidate, threaten, deprive, punish… But does a ‘sorry’ mean anything to an unrepentant, stubborn, arrogant and rebellious child? Probably not! It is merely a smart way of getting out of trouble in order to carry on as…