Dear friends, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. (1 Peter 4:12 NIV) We are going to face trials and ordeals on this earth. This is simply the way it is. However, there is great comfort and wisdom … Read more
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. (Matthew 5:9 NIV) Seeking to be a peacemaker puts us in a unique position as we become a conduit of compassion. Seeking more to understand than to be understood. We help reconcile people, giving of ourselves in the act of reaching out rather … Read more
For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. (Hebrews 4:15 NIV) Empathy for others comes from love and gives birth to compassion. When we can empathize with another, … Read more
Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him. (Psalm 34:8 NIV) Life can be hard. It can feel bitter, harsh and abusive at times. But God is good and we can take refuge in Him even in the harshest of times. People will try to debate … Read more
Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 3:13-14 NIV) It … Read more