Tag Archives: Spiritual Nuggets

Red Ropes and Restricted Access I often want to keep certain areas of my life roped off. God can reign over some of my relationships, but not to the extent that I need to make gut-wrenching decisions to fall in … Continue reading →

Good Opportunities and Difficult Decisions When Daniel is invited to dine at the king’s table—a great honor reserved for the favored (Daniel 1:1-4)—he turns down the offer. Instead of eating food and wine fit for a king, Daniel and the … Continue reading →

Constantly in Prayer Desperate circumstances often dictate our prayers. We pray for others when they’re in need, or we thank God for others when they fill our needs. But how often do we thank God for the faith of those … Continue reading →

The Time, Space, and Money Continuum When we think of setting things apart for God, we usually think of money first. But what about our time or even a place? Ezekiel 45:1 speaks of setting aside land for God: “And … Continue reading →

The New Jerusalem We are being made new. God is working in us now, and He will one day complete His work. Scripture speaks of the ultimate hope of this renewal: our reunion with God. For the first-century Jews, the … Continue reading →

Visions of Grandeur In times of struggle, a vision of grander glory is often enough to move us beyond our current circumstances. We find encouragement in glimpsing the vastness and power of God’s plan. When Ezekiel and God’s people are … Continue reading →

It Has Been Granted To You “It has been granted to her that she be dressed in bright, clean fine linen” (Revelation 19:8), announces a voice from heaven in John’s revelation. The voice describes the bride who waits in anticipation—representing … Continue reading →

Big Picture Hope Some Bible passages are so perplexing that we’re not really sure what to make of them. Such is the case with Ezekiel 38:1-39:24. As we closely examine this text, we can easily lose sight of its message. … Continue reading →

A New Way of Being God calls us to live lives that are distinguished by His light, clearly separate from our old way of being. He wants to make us a new creation by separating the light from the darkness … Continue reading →

Shepherding Is a Tough Business Leadership requires accountability, yet many leaders of the past considered themselves above rebuke. Even when their deeds failed to catch up to them in their own lifetimes, history judged them clearly. History often remembers and … Continue reading →

Mercy and Judgment “God is judge,” we like to say—especially when someone is struggling with injustice. When we get to the book of Revelation, though, we might struggle to understand God’s judgment. Yet even as John describes God dispensing judgment, … Continue reading →

Picturing God If you were to ask five people at random, “How do you picture God?” you would receive five very different answers. A social network prompt to “describe God in one word” confirms this idea: It resulted in more … Continue reading →

Persist, Don’t Just Exist The phrase “patient endurance” brings to mind the pasted-on smile of a parent regarding a misbehaving child—a parent clinging to the hope that someday this stage will pass. In Revelation the term is used in a … Continue reading →

The Last Person You Would Expect Yahweh is capable of doing anything and everything He pleases. If He were not a good God, this would be deeply frightening, but considering His wonderful character, this is comforting. In Ezekiel 26:1-6, Yahweh … Continue reading →

Kingdom Politics We sometimes jump on the bandwagon with politics. Yet if we put our full trust in political candidates, or believe their rise to power is an indication of our future—a common campaign platform—we’re putting our hope in something … Continue reading →

Greener Grasses When God’s people turn from Him, the biblical story becomes solemn, sad, and explicit. “Now as for their names, the older was Oholah, and Oholibah was her sister. And they became mine, and they bore sons and daughters, … Continue reading →

The Power Behind the Drama The concerns that make up our mini-narratives can sometimes distract us from the great drama in which we have been cast. When a mighty angel appears with a scroll in John’s revelation, the apostle’s part … Continue reading →

Defibrillators for Sardis We cover up the dead places in ourselves with all sorts of regalia. We fill the emptiness with fine clothing, once-in-a-lifetime experiences, or relationships in which the other is set up as god. Underneath the trappings, though, … Continue reading →

It Will Eat You Alive Idolatry eats at our souls. And God puts up with it for only so long. “And the word of Yahweh came to me, saying, ‘Son of man, set your face to the mountains of Israel … Continue reading →

When Love Is Lost, Labor Is in Vain When zeal lacks love, faith is rendered useless. Love is the crux of faith. We can study the Bible like a scholar, pray like a warrior, evangelize like the world is ending … Continue reading →