See Something More

It may not be the most popular or well-known book of the Bible, but my favorite book in the Old Testament is Nehemiah. I love the story because all you have to do is change a few names and places and you have a story very much like your own. Nehemiah, exported to a land far away from his home in Jerusalem, worked as a cupbearer for the king in Susa. When he heard about the state of his homeland - that the walls had been destroyed and the people were in turmoil - he prayed, asking God to intervene. When the king noticed Nehemiah's unusually sad disposition and asked him what was bothering him, Nehemiah jumped at the opportunity to get permission from the king to return to Jerusalem on behalf of his people. Not only did the king let him go, but he also sent him with calvalry, army officers, and letters of approval. And Nehemiah recognized that all this was evidence of "the gracious hand of God" upon him. So he returned to Jerusalem, rallied the people, and started rec

In our small group Bible study last Sunday night, we discussed the armor of God found in Ephesians 6. The belt of truth , God's truth that holds us together. The breatsplate of righteousness , the righteousness that has been given to us by God and protects our hearts. The feet fitted with readiness , the preparedness to run wherever God calls because we have peace with God through the gospel of Christ. The shield of faith , the confident belief we hold to deflect the enemy's arrows of attack. The helmet of salvation , the very salvation that keeps us alive. And the sword of the Spirit , which is the Word of God. "You know, that's the only offensive weapon listed. The Word of God." My friend commented. It tooke a minute to process and understand what my friend was saying, but then we all realized how true it was. "Yeah, and that's funny because we tend to think of God's Word as being a defensive weapon." We all nodded in agreeme

Behind closed doors and in dark spaces, they gather in quietness and secrecy. They worship in hiding because they know that if they are discovered, they will die. They risk prison, torture, and even death for the sake of gaining that which can never be taken away - that which means everything to them - their undying faith in God and their devoted love for His Word. In honors of the millions of Christ-followers around the world who are meeting in secret churches , a group of students met this past weekend for our own secret church. Unlike our brothers and sisters in persecuted countries, we sat in padded chairs and sang at the top of our lungs. But one thing we did have in common: a hunger for God's Word. The persecuted churches, the secret churches, often meet for hours upon hours to study the Bible. Because the Bible is not conveniently located on bookstore shelves, in waiting room lobbies, or upon coffee tables everywhere around them, they can't get enough of the words of

Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. I have probably heard that verse more than a hundred times in my lifetime, and I love it. It is one of those famous, feel-good verses that we all go to in times of trouble. However, we often stop short and forget to keep reading. Verse 29 says, "For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters." When God says that He will work for the good of those who love Him, we have to keep reading to find out what exactly that "good" really is. We tend to think that the "good" God is working toward is the "good" that we have in mind. We want Him to work things out for our good - which is our own ideas of everything working out or falling into place the way we would have it. But when you read verse 39, you get a li

When I opened the door and stepped outside, I expected to get blasted with a blow of hot, sticky, humid air. Instead, I was pleasantly greeted by the surprising cool, sweet-smelling breeze of autumn. At the risk of being late to class, I slowed my pace in order to enjoy the crisp, chill morning. For the first time in months, I walked across campus without sweating immediately. Fall is finally coming , I thought to myself. I don't know how I missed the transformation of summer to fall, but I feel like this one morning I just woke up and felt it. I love fall. Fall means chill bumps on my arms when I forget to wear my jacket. It means leaves changing colors and decorating the dry ground. Fall means cinnamon scents and pumpkin carvings and hayrides and candy corn. Fall means circling around campfires in cozy sweatshirts to toast smores and sing worship songs to the strumming of a guitar. Fall means propping open windows and doors so that all can enjoy the fresh air that we have mis

Today I built a church. Well, kind of. It might not be the kind of church building that automatically pops into your head. Made of cedar posts, sticks from a brush pile, and mud, this church was in Africa  - or at least the African simulation village at HUT (Harding University at Tahkodah). I spent this past Saturday helping to prepare the new African church building for the Global Missions Experience that is to take place at the end of this month. In the morning, when our team first arrived on site with the goal of building a church building, we found that the posts had already been set in the dry soil. Just the sight of the bare, natural logs brought back a million memories from my summer in Nicaragua, where I really did attend a church service in a building made solely of posts and a thatched roof.   "Guys, this is for real!" I said. "People really do have church buildings just like this!"   As I spent the rest of the day sweating, digging, hammer

One of my new favorite songs, titled Overcome , has a powerful line in the bridge that sticks out to me. It says: We will overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony. That line actually comes from Revelation 12:11, where it says that our triumph over the enemy is a result of Christ's blood sacrifice and the power of our testimonies. I learn so much about God from conversations with people. Recently, I have made it a daily challenge and goal to bring Christ into my casual conversations with the people around me. I have thoroughly enjoyed having random spiritual "convos" - sometimes with dear friends, sometimes with mere acquantainces, and sometimes with complete strangers - because it is in conversation that you really hear a person's testimony. And because the Lord orchestrated each testimony (and is in fact the main character and hero of every one), hearing them teaches me more about who He is. For example, just tonight I was talking with a