Delightsome Land

Look closely, phrase by phrase, at the implications of this pivotal statement:   But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe.  — Romans 3:21-22 “But now... is revealed” First of all, Paul is saying that the gospel of Jesus Christ gives us a fuller, clearer understanding of the way of salvation than had ever been revealed before. The truth was there in the Old Testament, but it was concealed in shadows. For the most part, it was imbedded in typology and symbolism. For example, the Old Testament sacrificial system was loaded with graphic depictions of substitutionary atonement. The vivid, bloody rituals reminded the faithful in a powerful way that sin’s dire wages must be paid. Animal sacrifices pictured the death of a vicarious sin-bearer, showing that the penalty of sin could be borne by an appropriate substitute. But those

Truth Doesn’t Have a Side  - launching nationwide next week - follows the journey of neuropathologist Dr. Bennet Omalu, who uncovered the truth about brain damage in American football players, and his battle against those who would silence him. An incredible story that could change the course of sports culture. Enjoy this exclusive first look at the book. *  Match Day came in March 1995. This is the day when residency programs announce who they are inviting to come join them. The whole match process is rather odd. At every other stage of higher education, you choose where you want to go. You choose your college — as long as they accept you. The same is true of graduate programs and professional programs like law school and med school. However, for residency you go out and interview with as many programs as give you the opportunity. You then list them in order of your preference. The programs then decide who is going where. You have very little say in the matter. If you do not lik

I’m more and more convinced that the answer to every prayer is more of the Holy Spirit. Need more power? Then you need more of the Holy Spirit. Need more wisdom? Then you need more of the Holy Spirit. Need more love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, or self-control? Then you need more of the Holy Spirit. We need to be filled with the Holy Spirit, but we have to empty ourselves first. And one of the best ways to empty ourselves is through fasting. When I have a big decision to make, I circle it with a fast. It doesn’t just purge my body; it purges my mind and spirit as well. It also purges my motives. When I need a breakthrough, I circle it with a fast. It doesn’t just break down the challenges I’m facing; it also breaks down the calluses in my heart. An empty stomach may be the most powerful prayer posture in Scripture. It’s even more powerful than kneeling! It shows God that we mean business. And when we fast, God makes our business His business! Ma

“Since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.” 
— Hebrews 12:1–3 Hebrews 12 develops the theme of endurance. The first three verses teach us  that the key to persistence is passion. All the men and women of faith in Hebrews 11 “made it” because they felt passionate about their cause. The writer compares our lives to a race and tries to convince us that we must run with endurance if we plan to finish well. The text also suggests that if the key to persistence is passion, then  the key to passion is purpose.  We must ru

Our trustworthiness rests on our truthfulness. When Teddy Roosevelt was a cattle rancher, he and a new cowboy were riding across a section of his land when they came across a maverick, an unbranded yearling from a neighboring ranch. It had wandered onto Teddy’s land, and he instructed the cowboy to brand it with his neighbor’s brand, as was the custom. Roosevelt recounted that the man replied, “‘All right, Boss; I know my business.’ ‘Hold on a minute,’ I said; ‘you are putting on my brand.’ He said, ‘I always put on the Boss’s brand.’ And then I said, ‘Oh! all right; go back and get your time.’ He said, ‘What’s that for?’ And I said, ‘My friend, if you will steal for me, you will steal from me.’” Roosevelt had learned a sad but true reality. One who steals for you is a thief, and thieves will steal from you when the occasion enables it. The same holds true with the person who lies. The one who lies for you will lie to you. Do we lie at work? Once others at our place of employment s

We don’t know how Mary, Martha, and Lazarus became so close to Jesus. In fact, we don’t know much about the siblings at all, not their ages, or if they ever married and lost a spouse so that they needed to live together as adults. But Scripture does tell us that Jesus stayed with them in their home from time to time (Luke 10:38), and counted them dear friends. In fact, John 11:5 says, Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. It’s interesting that Scripture names Martha first in this list of who Jesus loved. So often Martha gets maligned for being the pragmatic one, always about busyness, maybe missing the point. remember how when Jesus came to visit, Martha attempted to make sure the event was properly catered, while Mary sat at Jesus’ feet and drank in every word, even when her sister fussed at her? So maybe Martha missed the point there, but this reference also suggests that Martha was the one who held everything together (perhaps she was the eldest of the three), and I imagi

Recognition Leads to Ignition When you acknowledge God’s presence, you turn the key in your spiritual ignition. His presence is a benefit only if you remember it, cultivate it, and lean into it. One of the most repeated commands in Scripture is “Remember,” because it is so easy to forget. Whisper to God each morning, “I know that you are here. I know you are with me.” Say it when you are afraid or tempted. Say it when you are angry or disappointed. Let it become your release valve when you are ashamed. Run  to  him, not  from  him. Memory will help alter your story. There is no limit to where you can take this, because God will fill whatever space you create. God said, Those who seek Me find Me. —  Proverbs 8:17 NIV Like the ocean that floods into the hole on the beach you dug between tides, He will fill whatever you open up and make available. We check our phones on average one hundred and fifty times a day, which breaks down to once every six minutes. You probably just did it,

Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?  — Isaiah 40:12 Allan Rex Sandage, the greatest observational cosmologist in the world — who deciphered the secrets of the stars, plumbed the mysteries of quasars, revealed the age of globular clusters, pinpointed the distances of remote galaxies, and quantified the universe’s expansion through his work at the Mount Wilson and Palomar observatories — prepared to step onto the conference platform. Few scientists were as widely respected as this one-time protégé of legendary astronomer Edwin Hubble. Sandage had been showered with prestigious honors from the American Astronomical Society, the Swiss Physical Society, the Royal Astronomical Society, and the Swedish Academy of Sciences, receiving astronomy’s equivalent of the Nobel Prize. The New York Times dubbed him the “grand old man of cosmology.” 1 As he approached the stage at this conference on science and religion, the

After He had dismissed them, He went up on a mountainside by Himself to pray. Later that night, He was there alone.  — Matthew 14:23 I had just sat down on the couch. Finally! The day was over. I popped open my laptop to check a few e-mails and read the news. The kids were in bed. Silence. And then my alone time was over. “Mom? Mom? Mom, I’m thirsty!” My youngest daughter’s voice pierced my solitude. My alone time was over before it started! Motherhood is demanding, isn’t it? Oftentimes our day begins with a little one pulling at us, anxious to wake up and start the day. Even nights aren’t sacred or off limits with kids. A nightmare startles your son or daughter awake. The flu hits. Someone wets the bed. Motherhood is anything but easy. And it’s far from quiet. All of the demands can be draining. What mom hasn’t wanted to lock herself in the bathroom for a few minutes of peace and quiet?! Whether you're a parent or not, you can take comfort in knowing that even Jesus, God in th