Is VBS Worth the Time and Trouble ?

Once there was a little boy who lived in a rural community with his mother,
father, and younger brother. This family was not affiliated with any church and
rarely attended religious services of any kind. In the summer, some neighbor
children would invite this little boy and his younger brother to go with them to
VBS at the church of Christ in the city. “Going to church” was a new and exciting
experience for this little third-grade boy, and he would stand at the end of his
driveway waiting for the neighbors to…

View Full Content Source:

Why All This Waste ?

… And the woman broke the alabaster flask and anointed Jesus …
This event in the life of Jesus is mentioned in all four gospel accounts. Much like
a diamond can split light into different beautiful colors, each author spends time
on different perspectives to teach us what happened and what was important.
Mark, who some scholars feel is the oldest writing of the four gospels, suggests
that those who were seated at table were indignant. Matthew places this
indictment closer to home when he calls out the disciples as the ones who were
indignant. Luke…

THE PLAIN GOSPEL 
       (Ron Halbrook)

     The Missionary Baptist Church tract on “The Plain Gospel” asks, “Are you among many today who are confused as to which religion,...denomination,...church, or...preacher is right?  They cannot all be right, can they?”  The tract correctly teaches the only thing that matters is “what the Bible actually says.”  It is our sole authority in all matters relating to salvation and service to God (2 Pet. 1:3).

     The author creates confusion when he claims, “You were born into the world with a…

View Full Content Source:

Quiet Time with the Father

In a world overflowing with information, we are constantly surrounded by voices
offering advice, encouragement, and direction. Friends lend an ear, family share
their experiences, books reveal human insight, and the internet offers endless
opinions on every imaginable topic. While many of these sources can be helpful
and even wise, they are still ultimately human and limited. They may speak from
love, knowledge, or good intentions, but they don’t have the eternal perspective,
or the flawless wisdom and love of God. For those who truly seek clarity and
purpose, there is no substitute for turning to…

If Only

If only I made just a little bit more.
If only it cost just a little bit less.
If only I had just a little more time.
If only my house wasn’t quite such a mess.
I’d share with the needy. I know I’d give more!
I’d open my home with more zeal than before.
“If only. If only! If only…” I say.
“If only my life had worked out in that way.”
If only I knew those I see every day.
If only my friendships had come with rapport.
If only I knew all the…

In 1631, English royal printers Robert Barker and Martin Lucas published an edition of the Bible that would come to be nicknamed “The Wicked Bible.” You see, after publication, a printing error was discovered in the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20: the word “not” had mistakenly been omitted from verse 14, so that it read, “Thou shalt commit adultery.” The authorities fined Barker and Lucas, revoked their licenses, and ordered that the entire edition be recalled and destroyed. Only a handful of copies are known to have survived.

We chuckle at the…

In the past couple of decades, hospital emergency rooms have seen a dramatic rise in the number of injuries caused by “distracted walking.” Pedestrians with their eyes fixed on the screens of their smart phones or tablets are falling down stairs, tripping over curbs, and stepping into the path of oncoming traffic. These mishaps have become frequent enough that the National Safety Council now includes a “distracted walking” category in its annual injury report. And sometimes more than injury results: the percentage of people killed in distracted walking accidents, while still relatively small, has been…

“‘Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,’ and he was called the friend of God” (James 2:23).

Can you think of anything better than that — to be called the friend of God? We understand that it’s one thing when we say, “I know that person.” But it’s quite another when we say, “That person is my friend.” It describes more than just recognition or acquaintance; it implies familiarity, shared interests, companionship, love. It’s marvelous, then, to think of being counted as a friend of God, and of…

View Full Content Source:

SHEEP THAT ARE MORE THAN CONQUERORS
(Constant Coulibaly)

Years ago, when I was at the school of Journalism, we learned a writing technique that consists of grabbing the reader's attention when crafting an article. This practice is common to various areas in the field of mass communication (advertising, marketing, public relations, broadcasting, etc.).

Over the years that I have been a student of the Bible, I have learned that God employs similar techniques when speaking to His people. One way He does this is through the use of contrasts. Here is an…