The words of a wise man’s mouth win him favor, but the lips of a fool consume him. —Ecclesiastes 10:12 We probably all know foolish people who use many words. I know a few wise people who use many words and are discerning and articulate. Using many words is not necessarily an indicator of one’s … More Using many words is not necessarily an indicator of one’s wisdom.
Are you ever struck by how God seems to speak directly to us through multiple Bible passages, saying the same things and reinforcing the message? Today, a unifying theme seems to run throughout our readings: God’s purposes and plans in our lives may not be clear, but we can trust in His grace and mercy. … More A unifying theme: God’s purposes
Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour. A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” (For his disciples had gone away into the city to buy food.) The Samaritan woman said … More Intentional grace
Ecclesiastes 8:12, in our Bible reading passage for today, reminds us: Though a sinner does evil a hundred times and prolongs his life, yet I know that it will be well with those who fear God, because they fear before him. Carrollton, Kentucky, was the site of one of the most deadly bus disasters in United … More I know that it will be well with those who fear God
Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. … More “If God wills…”
Ecclesiastes 7:13 Consider the work of God: who can make straight what he has made crooked? We don’t think of God making things crooked. Instead, we usually think of it being a mistake. But God doesn’t make mistakes. And God is sovereign. And the Bible tells us that He makes some paths crooked. When we … More The designer of crooked paths
John 3:3-8 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, … More Unsettling words of Jesus
Our passage for today, Jeremiah 13:23 says, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? Then also you can do good who are accustomed to do evil.” In the same way, the nature of a tree determines or defines the kind of fruit it produces. Jesus said in Matt 12:33 that the tree is known by its fruit. Apple … More Spot-changing and other impossibilities
Solomon now turns from a beautiful section (Ecclesiastes 3:9-15) about God making everything beautiful in its time, taking pleasure in God’s gifts to us, thanking and fearing our sovereign God… to the section which is our focus for today, verses 16-22. Solomon’s brief interlude into a vertical perspective quickly ends and he turns his attention back to … More Don’t forget the vertical perspective
Jeremiah 9:23-24 Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, … More What are you boasting about?
Knowing God through His Word ... Day by Day 