Yesterday, we learned that God’s servants have no special powers in themselves. Thinking they do is our first misconception. Our adequacy comes from God alone. Another misconception is that servants don’t struggle with everyday problems.
Read MoreCategory Archives: Encouragement & Healing
Spurgeon’s Channel of Encouragement
Charles Haddon Spurgeon remains one of the most colorful and gifted preachers in the history of the church. Any man who loves to preach and desires to cultivate the art and skill of communication must study Spurgeon.
Read MoreMinistry to the Miserable
You don’t run through an art gallery; you walk very slowly. You often stop, study the treasured works of art, and take time to appreciate what has been painted. You examine the texture, the technique, . . .
Read MoreA Promise for ”Those Who Mourn”
I remember an incident many years ago when a man in our church fell while taking a shower. As he slipped on the slick floor, he fell against a sheet of glass with all his weight.
Read MoreA Well-Chosen Word
Like Jell-O, concepts assume the mold of the words into which they are poured. Who has not been stabbed awake by the use of a particular word . . . or combinations of words? Who has not found relief from a well-timed word?
Read MoreGod’s New Morning Message
Do you know what God’s fresh, new morning message is to us? Whether the sun is shining brightly or whether it’s pouring down rain? Whether the morning is bright or whether it’s gray and overcast?
Read MorePersevering through Pressure
Doubts often steal into our lives like termites into a house. These termite-like thoughts eat away at our faith. Usually, we can hold up pretty well under this attack. But occasionally, when a strong gale comes along we discover we cannot cope.
Read MoreSorrow and Hope
If tears were indelible ink instead of clear fluid, all of us would be stained for life. The heartbreaking circumstances, the painful encounters with calamities, the brutal verbal blows we receive from the surgeon or an angry mate, the sudden loss of someone we simply adored, riding out the consequences of a stupid decision—ah! Such is the groan and grind of life.
Read MoreWriting with Thorns
In pain, grief, affliction, and loss, it often helps to write our feelings . . . not just feel them. Putting words on paper seems to free our feelings from the lonely prison of our souls. It was C. S. Lewis who wrote: Her absence is like the sky, spread over everything . . . . No one ever told me that grief felt so like fear. I am not afraid, but the sensation is like being afraid.
Read MoreHealing, Part Two
When it comes to physical healing, often confusion reigns. To combat it, I’d like to point out five “laws” of suffering. These “laws” will do more to help the hurting and erase their confusion than perhaps anything else they could read. Yesterday, we looked at laws one through four. Today we’ll look at number five. Law Five: It is not God’s will that everyone be healed in this life.
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