“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word from the mouth of God.” – Matthew 4:4
You may have heard that in 2024, Bible sales rose by 22% over the previous year. That is certainly very encouraging! At our “Hope for America” livestream event, we gave away 40 Bibles. There definitely seems to be a growing hunger for God’s Word.
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“Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.” — 2 Timothy 4:2-4
A.I. (Artificial Intelligence) has been in the news A LOT! Everyone certainly has thoughts and predictions about what it means for our world.
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Does life ever surprise you with the joys and sufferings that happen, sometimes simultaneously? There are so many encouraging things happening in and around our church. People are meeting Jesus. God is saving people as well as transforming lives.
At the exact same time, however, a brief review of my prayer journal reveals people are suffering through job loss, death, and grief. Along with that, there are hospitalizations, accidents, sicknesses, and several other challenging circumstances.
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“For I have no one like him, who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. For they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ.” — Philippians 2:20-21
In April, my sons and I watched part of the Masters golf tournament. While watching, I realized something strange was happening; no one had a cell phone. The tournament had banned them from the event. The TV commentators even mentioned that people were really present in the moment.
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The other day, I found a dead bird. Consequently, it got me thinking. In 1859, Charles Darwin wrote “On the Origin of Species.” He talked about limited resources and survival of the fittest. Basically, Darwin decided there were limited natural resources, like food or water. On this basis, he theorized that these limited resources led to competition (survival of the fittest) in the natural world.
In one sense, Darwin was right. As Christians, we certainly know that creation is cursed (Romans 8:20-22). This is self-evident in the death and disease we see around us. However, Darwin approached this question of resources from a naturalistic (godless) perspective. In his worldview, there was never a Creator who provided for His creation.
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“At that time Joshua built an altar to the Lord, the God of Israel, on Mount Ebal, just as Moses the servant of the Lord had commanded the people of Israel, as it is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, “an altar of uncut stones, upon which no man has wielded an iron tool.” And they offered on it burnt offerings to the Lord and sacrificed peace offerings.” — Joshua 8:30-31
While studying the book of Joshua this year, these verses caught my eye. Why would God command the Israelites to create an altar of uncut stones? Perhaps there is a reason it matters? Nonetheless, if the Israelites wanted to have a nice altar for God, why would He care?
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“I believe that I shall look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living! Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for the Lord!” — Psalm 27:13-14
While studying the book of Joshua this last month, something caught my attention. When the Israelites conquered Jericho, God told them to destroy everything and keep no plunder. But Achan disobeyed the command. Joshua (Chapter 7) says he kept some of the plunder (which included a bar of gold). We don’t know how heavy the bar was, but if it was similar to modern bars, we’re talking about a million dollars of gold. In due time, God judged Achan and his family (and all of Israel) for that disobedience.
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“Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love.” — Ephesians 4:15-16
I had lunch with a friend the other day. As we talked, he said something about “P.T. slabs.” With my engineering background, I knew he was obviously talking about post-tensioned slabs. But, I told him, most people would not understand that. We then shared a laugh.
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The other day, I ran a quick errand to the grocery store. I pulled into my parking spot, and when I looked up, I noticed two cars near me backing straight into each other! The drivers were looking left and right but not behind them! With a split second to act, I honked my horn loudly without delay. As a result, both cars slammed on their brakes, narrowly averting an accident.
But I don’t think one of the drivers understood why I honked. After pausing, the driver continued to back out, glaring at me the whole time. I pointed at the other car they had almost hit. However, their facial expression suggested they had no idea why I honked. In fact, my honking had made them pretty angry.
Afterward, I processed this parking lot incident as I walked into the grocery store. I had seen an accident about to happen. And I had done something to prevent it. But the driver who glared at me had no idea why I did what I did.
Then it hit me. This is a tiny glimpse into the mind of God.
God sees all of time and space. He not only knows the past, present, and future, but is all-powerful. Additionally, He is our Good Father. But the Lord does things and brings situations into our lives that make no sense (from our earthly perspectives). Along with my own life, I can think of numerous trials and difficulties my friends and family are dealing with. Very hard things.
But the Bible repeatedly speaks of the idea that God uses these difficult things for our ultimate good. So, through tears, these truths speak to us.
These verses present profound and yet challenging truths. Like the driver who glared at me, we often don’t understand why God has brought this or that trial into our lives. It certainly doesn’t make any sense. Also, it’s very difficult to accept. But faith is trusting that God sees what we don’t and knows what He is doing. Equally important, He is powerful and good.
So, through tears, we strive to trust and not glare.
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The election is less than two weeks away (November 5). Earlier this year, we took six weeks to study what the Bible teaches about politics in our King Jesus series. We specifically covered several important lessons during that time. Here are a few significant reminders as we approach election day.
It says in Jeremiah 29:7, “But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.” More Christians voting biblically is a significant way we can bring good to our city, state, and country.
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