Throughout history the Old and New Testaments have shown themselves to be reliable and true; they rise up to outlive their pallbearers, if you will. The following story probably stirs my own confidence in the power of God's Word and His sovereignty more than any other. Let me share part of it with you…

TITHE God promises to rebuke the devourer for tithers. Devourer. That's an interesting word. A word that makes me think immediately of the Tasmanian Devil. Not Bugs Bunny's nemesis, but the animal that haunts the dark nights of the island. The devil is about the size of a cocker spaniel, but don't let…

The motion picture “Faith Like Potatoes” tells the true story of Angus Buchan, a South African farmer who learns what true faith really is. Angus comes to South Africa in the middle of racial turmoil and economic disruption to begin a new life for himself and his family. The hard work of reclaiming an…

The ship may not need an anchor in calm waters; when upon a broad ocean a little drifting may not be a very serious matter. But there are conditions of weather in which an anchor becomes altogether essential. When a gale is rushing toward the shore, blowing great guns, and the vessel cannot hold her…

In A Long Obedience in the Same Direction, Eugene Peterson says, “Perseverance is not the result of our determination; it is the result of God’s faithfulness.” So when we are tempted to compromise our faith, or when we think we have no strength left to endure—we should remember God’s faithfulness. ––Jim…

LITTLE THINGS Rev. Andrew Jensen's first Sunday at his new church coincided with an appeal to the membership to give to a fund to aid the victims of a hurricane. Due to a clerical error, the center page of the bulletin was missing, so those in attendance reading from the bottom of the second page to…

In Crazy Love, Francis Chan writes, “Worry implies that we don’t quite trust that God is big enough, powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what’s happening in our lives.”—Jim L. Wilson and Stephen Argilla Crazy Love: Overwhelmed By a Relentless God P. 42. Worry can disable or paralyze us…

PROTECTION Mary Dhume of Ohio claims a mysterious phone call actually saved her life. The Summerford Ohio woman was watching television in her living room on a Monday night when the phone in the next room rang. She got up to answer it, but there was no one at the other end of the line. At that moment,…

In his book, Shaped by God, Max Lucado writes ”When God sets out to shape us in His image, he often uses the heat and pressure of our daily lives to temper us and craft us into beautiful instruments He can use.” Shaped by God, 175 James 1:2 (HCSB) “Consider it a great joy, my brothers, whenever you experience…

John Bunyan, in Pilgrim’s Progress, tells us that Christian, by the light of day, looked back on the Valley of the Shadow of Death, which he had passed through in the nighttime, and saw what a narrow path he had kept and what a bog there was on one side, and what a miry place on the other, and where…

In Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a relentless God, Francis Chan writes “Worry implies that we don’t quite trust that God is big enough, powerful enough, or loving enough to take care of what’s happening in our lives.” --Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a relentless God, P. 42 Illustration by Jim L. Wilson Philippians…

A good old minister was once asked whether he believed in the final perseverance of the saints. “Well,” said he, “I do not know much about that matter, but I firmly believe in the final perseverance of God, that where He has begun a good work He will carry it on until it is complete.” To my mind, that…

A Colorado pastor wrote a book describing how he has become disillusioned reading the social media messages of high-profile pastors he respected. Pastor Brady Boyd, says he fears the social media has simply became another venue for hype which is creating a church full of consumers. Boyd says the trend…

The grandson of evangelist Billy Graham gave an update on his grandfather’s condition, and relayed an important message during a meeting of Christian Broadcast professionals. Will Graham told the crowd that his grandfather is in condition that is natural for someone who is 95 years old. Billy Graham…

RESTORATION Donna grew in a Christian home in South Carolina. She went to church beginning in nursery school. In high school and her early college year she devoted herself to Christian youth groups, and even served as a summer missionary teaching the Bible to young people from 50 churches. In her later…

Hope What's left when everything else is stripped away? At the end of 1 Corinthians 13, Paul says there are three remaining things: faith, hope and love. Paul uses those three words in one verse in three other places. To him, they were the triumverant of the Christian virtues. Though intertwined, Paul…

Prayer Prayer is not making three wishes while rubbing on a mysterious lamp. Neither is it convincing God to do our will instead of His will. Prayer is one way we express our faith. Sometimes we pray in faith asking God to move the mountain, and sometimes we pray for enough faith to climb the mountain.…

Ask Me "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." Matthew 7:7 In this verse, humility meets ingenuity and determination to create a winning formula for prayer. Asking takes great humility because when we ask, we are admitting that we need help.…

After a tornado struck the community of Shawnee Oklahoma, a Bible found in the debris ministered to many people besides the original owners. A stormchaser, Brandon Heiden actually witnessed the twister strike the home of Lance Carter. Heiden shot video of the storm and then stopped to be sure everyone…

RESURRECTION Who would you say is the most skilled lawyer of all times? According to the Guinness Book of Word Records, it is Sir Lionel Luckhoo, the winningness lawyer in the world with 245 straight murder acquittals. You would think that a lawyer with his track record would possess superior investigative…

Suppose you say to your little boy, “Don’t you know, Tommy, if I were not to give you your dinner and your supper you would die? There is nobody else to give Tommy dinner and supper.” What then? The child does not think that you are not going to give him his dinner and supper. He knows you will, and…

Some might say the Fulton, Mississippi couple was lucky, but if you ask Joseph Gale and his wife Dionne, they believe the reason they survived an encounter with a logging truck was divine intervention. The Gales were driving along the highway when a truck carrying a load of logs flipped over in the opposite…

TRANSFORMATION “We [churches] are in the business to do ministry to facilitate transformation …that is the only reason we exist.” —George Barna, 11-6-2000, Barna 2000-2001 Seminars, San Jose, California Illustration by Jim L. Wilson For more information on Barna’s seminars and other resources, go to…

As a student in California, Jeremy Camp traveled around, plucking on his guitar and leading worship. One day he met a woman who was deeply in love with the Lord. Jeremy and Melissa dated, but Melissa soon called off the relationship to focus exclusively on her bond with Jesus. Shortly afterward Jeremy…

FEAR What are we afraid of today? One author who spent his career writing novels that scare people warns against taking the scares too literally. The late Michael Crichton, who wrote “The Andromeda Strain,” and “Jurassic Park,” warned us to “Stop Scaring Ourselves.” Crichton gave a list of the proclaimed…