A man watched as his bride prepared a delicious meal of roast, potatoes, and carrots. Before putting the meat in her pan, she cut off a piece and set it aside. Her husband asked why she had done this. “I don’t know,” she said. “My mother always cooks roast this way.” When questioned, the girl’s…

An infant is completely helpless. He can’t talk, understand speech, feed himself, walk, crawl or even roll over. The months and years slip by quickly, though, and soon the little guy is wanting to do everything independently. Mom, don’t lift me into bed at night. I can climb that mattress mountain all by myself. Dad,…

The apostle Peter urges Christian women to submit to their husbands (1 Pet. 3:1-6). He follows this inspired appeal with an admonition for men: “Likewise you husbands, live considerately with your wives, bestowing honor on the woman as the weaker sex, since you are joint heirs of the grace of life” (v. 7). How, exactly,…

One day “a lawyer stood up” and asked Jesus an excellent question: “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” (Luke 10:25). This fellow was no attorney but rather an expert in the Law of Moses and the religious traditions of the Jewish people. Actually, the man knew a good biblical answer to his…

  Below is a simple communion meditation. You may wish to keep it in your Bible until you have memorized its main ideas. One. One Savior died for my sins and reconciled me to the Father. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but…

Many Christians seem to have mixed-up contentment priorities. On the one hand, external circumstances tend to make us feel dissatisfied. We may be unhappy about our physical appearance, lack of money needed to purchase a coveted item, or even the weather. On the other hand, we tend to be perfectly content with our spiritual growth—or…

One time I saw a TV commercial promoting laundry detergent. The ad promised that the product gave sheets a wonderful lavender scent. The stuff worked so well that a married couple going to bed angry would find themselves in an entirely different mood as soon as they got a whiff of the clean sheets. How…

Carrying tablets engraved with God’s own handwriting, Moses descends from Mount Horeb and commands Israel to “remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy” (Exod. 20:8). Some denominations maintain that this commandment is still in effect. One church has even named itself after belief in the seventh day as the true day of Christian worship.…

Although Daniel procured government posts for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, their positions failed to protect them from the wrath of Nebuchadnezzar. The Babylonian king built a golden idol and commanded all his officials to worship it (Dan. 3:1-5). When these three friends refused to obey the edict, Nebuchadnezzar threatened them with death. Believing that the…

As a child I loved the “Sesame Street” character Oscar the Grouch. This green muppet, whose housing preference is a garbage can, always lives up to his name. He complains about everything and resents all social contact. Oscar’s role is amusing because he is a caricature of people we actually know. We all have a…