by Sarah Ivil Recently I had the opportunity to comfort another woman who was going through an unexpected trial filled with grief. As sorrow-filled words came tumbling out of her mouth I wondered how I might comfort her, especially since…
Think of the story of the man born blind (John 9). It’s well known and well thought of. It’s one of those stories that take work to read because we must disabuse ourselves of contemporary concern for those with disabilities.…
According to The Beatles, love is all you need. Of course, you won’t actually learn anything about love from their vapid lyrics, yet we need to learn about love, if we are to know God, and live glorifying him and…
The Abitinian Martyrs – The Christians Who Couldn’t Do Without a Lord’s Day Service. “Sine dominico non possumus” (“We can’t do without the Lord’s Day”). This was the answer of a group of 49 Christians (31 men and…
As my wife and I anticipate our seventh covenant child (and third daughter) joining us early next year, I told our other children that it is their fault that we’re having another baby! Because they are all so amazing—so wonderful…
Johannes Theodorus van der Kemp – An Unconventional Missionary The renowned historian Andrew Walls describes Johannes van der Kemp as an unconventional candidate for the London Missionary Society (LMS). At the time of his application, van der Kemp was…
Recently, Christians have agonized over accounts of false devotion to talented but corrupt church leaders. In outwardly successful churches and ministries, leaders have covered up sin, blamed victims, and blocked investigations to protect gifted but fatally flawed pastors and their…
Have you ever considered that it is important to “guard your steps when you go the house of God” (Ecc. 5:1)? Perhaps we don’t often think of church as a dangerous place, and yet it is a very dangerous place…
One of the greatest memories I have of Valentine’s Day is from my time in seminary when my friends and I helped each other focus on the love of God. We were in an accountability group together and all single…
I have sat before women with tears streaming down their face confessing the truth of God’s sovereignty, but questioning His love in the face of death, despair, disappointment and disillusionment. Whether it’s the loss of a baby, the end of…
