Devotionals

Are you a fan of period pieces?  Perhaps you enjoy being transported back about 100 years in Mary Poppins, or to the 19th century in Pride and Prejudice or further back yet to the days of Moses in The Ten Commandments.  There is something particularly captivating about bygone eras.  Maybe you find yourself drawn to the simplicity, or apparent naiveté, of the past.  Have you daydreamed about what [...]

Narcissist, micromanager, control freak—they’re all terms for people that exercise an unnecessary level of control over another.   They are overbearing and, in some cases, manipulative.  The most sinister of them are intimidating oppressors.  While that behavior is reprehensible, the seed of that attitude exists in all of us.  We all want to exercise control over others and we do it in many ways, some [...]

“Never Forget” is a phrase that is associated with tragedies, namely historic ones.  Its exact origins are unknown, but it can at least be traced back to World War II and the post-Holocaust era.  In their efforts to combat Naziism, the Allied powers organized an exhibition in Vienna in 1946 entitled “Never Forget.”  The phrase was used widely after the 9/11 attacks as well.  [...]

You may be familiar with the word “stoic.”  It is used to describe someone that does not show emotion, particularly when faced with pain or hardship.  The origin of the word comes from a Greek philosophy known as “Stoicism.”  It asserts that happiness can be achieved by living an ethical life that specifically includes the four “cardinal virtues” of wisdom, justice, courage and moderation.  [...]

The modern Christian fancies himself more “advanced” than the ancient people of the Bible, particularly when it comes to any talk of idol worship.  An examination of the ten commandments hits home when he considers the mandate to make God first in his life, to honor his parents or to refrain from adultery.  The second commandment, however, that prohibits the worship of manmade images [...]

It’s difficult not to romanticize the direct encounters people had with God recorded in the Bible.  In the beginning Adam and Eve had open contact with God in the Garden.  Enoch and Noah “walked with God.”  Hagar saw God, the Lord “appeared” to Isaac and Solomon and the Lord “visited” Hannah.  Each had a unique relationship with God that resulted in firsthand interaction with [...]