2 Kings 5 tells the story of the healing of the Syrian general Naaman. We read of how this powerful, proud man learned to humble himself and obey God’s instruction through the prophet Elisha, and so was miraculously cleansed of his leprosy. But none of it would have happened had it not been for an obscure Israelite girl.

The chapter begins by explaining that bands of Syrian troops had been raiding Israelite territory. In one such raid a young Israelite girl was taken captive and made a servant to Naaman’s wife. Observing…

In Luke 14, Jesus tells the story of a man who gave a great feast. Many people were invited. When the feast was ready, the host sent out his servants to summon the guests. But instead of coming, those who had been invited “all with one accord began to make excuses” (verse 18). So the host had his servants go out and invite anyone they could find to come to the feast. He added, “none of those men who were invited shall taste my supper.”

The parable, of course, is about God’s…

“Better is the end of a thing than its beginning” (Ecclesiastes 7:8).

I confess, I’ve always had some trouble with that statement. I guess it’s easy to see the truth of it when the thing in question is a dental procedure or a tax audit. But in many cases, the end of a thing saddens us: a fun vacation; a memorable school year; a gratifying career; the life of someone we love. The end means it’s over. Done. No more. It means it cannot continue, no matter how much we might want…

I had a frustrating experience a while back. I called a company with which I regularly do business, spoke to a person whose job is to provide customers with accurate information, and asked her a pretty basic question, which she promptly and cheerfully answered. But the answer she gave me, as I soon discovered, was wrong. Not slightly wrong, very wrong. I ended up spending a whole day correcting mistakes that would have been prevented if she had given me the correct information.

When it comes to our spiritual lives, misinformation is…

This time of year many people are making new year’s resolutions. One person resolves to lose weight, get in shape. Another resolves to save more money, get out of debt. And another resolves to quit a bad habit, such as smoking.

Of course, many new year’s resolutions are not kept. Some don’t even make it to February. And often this happens because what the person needed was not just a resolution, but a revolution.

A resolution is a determination to do something. But a revolution is a radical change. The…

During a visit to a funeral home some time ago, I ran across an interesting bro­chure. It was an advertisement for something called “Escape School.”

Escape School, it turns out, is a community program that teaches child­ren how to keep from becoming victims of kidnapping or assault. That this kind of program is necessary is a sad commentary on our so­ciety. But the danger is real. Many parents can’t even let their children walk to the corner by themselves, fearing they may be abducted by some psycho. I applaud families and communities…

Have you ever wondered where our English word “church” came from? The word evolved from the Old English cirice, which had its origins in the Germanic kirika, which was adapted from an ancient Greek term, kyriakon, meaning “the Lord’s [house].” You can detect a similar history of the word for “church” in many modern languages, from Swedish (kyrka) to Czech (cirkev) to Afrikaans (kerk). Even in Scottish dialect, a church is called a kirk.

Think on that for a moment: “church” derives from a word denoting the Lord’s house. What is the Lord’s…

In the first century, Roman engineer Sextus Julius Frontinus was so impressed by his world that he said, “Inventions have reached their limit, and I see no hope for further development.”

In 1895, British scientist Lord Kelvin declared, “Heavier than air flying machines are impossible.”

In 1932, the great physicist Albert Einstein said, “There is not the slightest indication that nuclear energy will ever be obtainable.”

In 1977, computer industry pioneer Ken Olsen remarked, “There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home.”

Now, if you know the Plant City congregation, you might say we have plenty of Davids already! At present our number includes eight fine men by that name. Some of us have even joked about changing the name on our sign to “The House of David.”

But of course that’s not what I’m talking about. I’m referring to King David of Israel. He was not perfect, but God called him a man after His own heart (1 Samuel 13:14). This church, like every church, needs men and women like that. Specifically, every…

The purpose of a doctor is to help sick people get well, not to make them feel good about being sick.

The purpose of a road map is to help us get where we need to go, not to make us feel good about being where we are.

The purpose of a plumber is to fix your pipes, not to make you feel good about having a leak.

Despite some modern exceptions, the purpose of schools and teachers is to educate children, not to make them…

Sometimes the true test of a conviction comes when defending that conviction — or merely explaining it — causes someone else to view you as an enemy. When simply stating what the Bible says about an issue leads others to call you mean, repressive, or even un-Christ-like. When your efforts to teach someone the truth cause them to weep, not tears of regret or repentance, but the tears of someone who feels he is being treated unfairly. When a person paints you as being responsible for others’ heartache and suffering just because of what you…

“It’s broke, Daddy. Please, can you fix it?”

 Our daughter, age four, handed me the little ceramic nick-knack, her face full of worry. It wasn’t anything of value, but to her it was priceless. As I took the broken object from her hand, I realized just how much that little brown-eyed angel relied on me. I thought to myself, She believes I can fix anything.

It has been said that a child’s conception of God is based largely on what he sees in his parents — because they’re the…

2 Samuel 13 records a story filled with moral ugliness. Does it involve the denizens of some pagan city? A bunch of social outcasts? No, the players in this story are members of the royal family of David, king of Israel.

Amnon, the eldest son of David, became infatuated with his beautiful half-sister, Tamar (David’s daughter by another wife). Although the Biblical text uses the ordinary, broad Hebrew word for “loved,” it is clear that Amnon’s main interest in Tamar was sexual. But she was off limits to him. As the king’s…