One weekend in March I led a retreat on the theme of Mary and Martha the sisters in Bethany whom Jesus loved We were in a remote spot along the English coastline When we were snowed in unexpectedly many of the participants remarked how the extra day together meant they could practice sitting at Jesus rsquo s feet as Mary did They wanted to pursue the ldquo one thing needed rdquo Luke NKJV that Jesus lovingly told Martha she should embrace which was choosing to draw close and learn from Him When Jesus visited the home of Martha Mary and [... more]

In the days of self-isolation and lockdown during the coronavirus pandemic words by Martin Luther King Jr in his Letter from a Birmingham Jail rang true Speaking about injustice he remarked how he couldn rsquo t sit idly in one city and not be concerned about what happens in another ldquo We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality rdquo he said ldquo tied in a single garment of destiny nbsp Whatever affects one directly affects us all indirectly rdquo nbsp Likewise the COVID- pandemic highlighted our connectedness as around the world cities and countries closed to stop the [... more]

For six years a woman tried to make herself the ldquo perfect minister rsquo s wife rdquo modeling herself after her adored mother-in-law also a pastor rsquo s wife She thought that in this role she couldn rsquo t also be a writer and painter but in burying her creativity she became depressed and contemplated suicide Only the help of a neighboring pastor moved her out of the darkness as he prayed with her and assigned her two hours of writing each morning This awakened her to what she called her ldquo sealed orders rdquo mdash the calling God had [... more]

When Joni Eareckson Tada returned home after suffering a swimming accident that left her a quadriplegic her life was vastly different Now doorways were too narrow for her wheelchair and sinks were too high Someone had to feed her until she decided to relearn how to feed herself Lifting the special spoon to her mouth from her arm splint the first time she felt humiliated as she smeared applesauce on her clothes But she pressed on As she says ldquo My secret was learning to lean on Jesus and say lsquo Oh God help me with this rsquo rdquo Today [... more]

Lily a Bible translator was flying home to her country when she was detained at the airport Her mobile phone was searched and when the officials found an audio copy of the New Testament on it they confiscated the phone and questioned her for two hours At one point they asked her to play the Scripture app which happened to be set at Matthew ndash ldquo Do not judge or you too will be judged nbsp For in the same way you judge others you will be judged and with the measure you use it will be measured to you [... more]

When I moved to a new country one of my first experiences left me feeling unwelcome After finding a seat in the little church where my husband was preaching that day a gruff older gentleman startled me when he said ldquo Move along down rdquo His wife apologized as she explained that I was sitting in the pew they always occupied Years later I learned that congregations used to rent out pews which raised money for the church and also ensured no one could take another person rsquo s seat Apparently some of that mentality carried on through the decades [... more]

Th eacute r egrave se of Lisieux was a joyful and carefree child mdash until her mother died when she was just four years old She became timid and easily agitated But many years later on Christmas Eve all of that changed After celebrating the birth of Jesus with her church community she experienced God releasing her from her fear and giving her joy She attributed the change to the power of God leaving heaven and becoming a man Jesus and through His dwelling in her What does it mean for Christ to dwell within us It rsquo s a [... more]