Prayer is an elusive activity for many. It’s one of the spiritual disciplines that many people struggle with. Yet, so many people in the Bible used it effectively. The prayers of Moses for example in the book of Numbers, shows us at least one man who seemed to have his prayer life in order. There is no denying that Moses was a prayer warrior. Time and time again he went to God with questions, with concerns, with pleas for help and mercy. And some of the prayers of Moses were not ordinary. On several occasions when he approached God, people’s lives were literally on the line.  So why was ..read more

All of your life’s work – gone in an instant. One moment of weakness is all it takes. That’s what happened in the wilderness near Kadesh to the most unlikely person. Yes, even the sin of Moses could not be overlooked. You can make the case that Moses ranks second only to Jesus when it comes to important Biblical characters. He was one of the greatest leaders in the Bible. By most accounts, he’s responsible for writing the first 5 books of the Bible, which lays the groundwork for the nation of Israel. Numbers 12:3 also says he was the humblest man on earth. Without him, Israel may never have fo ..read more

It’s one thing to ask legitimate questions of God and what he’s up to. It’s quite another to attack Him directly as incapable and incompetent. Yet the latter is what the 12 spies did when asked to report on the Promised Land they had just scouted. Well, all except two of them.  The incident in Numbers 13 and 14 hinges on one question, “Is God capable of doing what he says he will?” The people had been promised a new land. They had journeyed through harsh wilderness conditions to get there. Now, they were on the doorstep of all they had hoped for. Could God deliver? Would he fulfill his p ..read more

God is love. The Bible clearly defines that as a character quality of God. God demonstrates his compassion and love to all mankind no matter who they are.  One people group however does receive some extra special attention in Scripture. It’s not that God loves them more or blesses them more or protects them more than other people groups. What makes this group stand out is that they have an extra special need.  They are poor. The poor hold a special place in God’s heart. We see instructions and commands related to them throughout the entire Bible. And the foundation for how to treat ..read more

The Old Testament lists so many types of offerings in the book of Leviticus for the people to follow. There was the burnt offering, the peace offering, the grain offering, the sin offering and guilt offering just to name a few. These different types of offerings were for different situations and had different rituals that God instructed Moses and the Israelites to follow.  Today, when you hear the word “offering”, you probably connect it to church. That’s because typically the church collects an offering of money from those in attendance. This usually happens at some point during or afte ..read more

The phrase “be holy for I am holy” has its roots in the Old Testament portion of the Bible. In fact, all the times that phrasing comes together in a verse, it happens in the Old Testament book of Leviticus. That is except once. Peter used it in the first chapter of his first letter in the New Testament (I Peter 1:16). But then again, Peter WAS quoting Leviticus when he said it, so that really doesn’t count as original content from him.  So, who said “be holy for I am holy” anyway? And to whom was it said?  Well, it’s God speaking. He is the holy one. The people hearing the challenge ..read more

Do you know someone that has a generosity of spirit that’s so obvious everyone knows it? They bless people they come in contact with, sometimes by their mere presence. They give so generously of their time, talents and money that at times it looks extreme.  Ever wonder how they got that way? How does someone get to the point where their spirit of generosity spills over like a fountain into other people’s lives? It’s not natural or everyone would be doing it. What sets these generous people apart from the rest?  The easy answer is that somewhere along the way they have come to value ..read more

A goal to read through the Bible in a year is a worthy one. However, it’s a long journey – 365 days. And around the end of January, readers hit the Bible’s first big danger zone.  What is a Bible danger zone exactly? Basically, it’s an area of Scripture where readers get bogged down with the content of the passages. Their reading stalls and they may even miss a few days. Consequently, if they can’t catch up and push through these zones, they end up quitting their Bible reading journey. It’s super frustrating too. At the beginning, you are excited to do something big. And then these passa ..read more

Have you ever been treated unfairly? For those who have, you know one thing – it stinks. Few things in life sting as much than to know you’ve been trampled on and treated unfairly. Unfairness is a part of life. We do a good job of teaching this concept to children when they whine and complain about some unfair situation in their world. What parent or teacher at some point hasn’t responded to the “That’s-not-fair” line coming off the lips of a child with the phrase, “Life’s not fair, kid…get over it”, or some variation thereof. But adults hate being treated unfairly just as much as childr ..read more

In Genesis 25, the Bible tells the story of when Esau sold his birthright to his brother Jacob.  This was no ordinary transaction, like we think of transactions. It had wide-ranging implications for both Jacob and Esau and for all their descendants. It would shift the balance of power in a family and cause a brotherly rift that lasted for years.  And even though we don’t have birthrights today to cash in on, there is a valuable lesson for us to learn from this story. In a way, we all have a little Esau inside of us that we need to watch out for.  The Birthright Esau was the fir ..read more