Have you ever wondered about God’s timing? Maybe you’ve been praying for years for release from an addiction or from a chronic health condition. Maybe you’ve been praying for years for a loved one to come to know Christ as Savior and Lord. And we’re all waiting for a vaccine…

Are you really giving God your best? That was the question Micah asked his readers, some 400 years before the birth of Christ. The people were holding back their best offerings, bringing lame or sick animals to the Temple instead (Micah 1:13). And they were shortchanging God, bringing less than…

Yes, the people had returned from exile. Yes, they had been able to rebuild the Temple. Under Nehemiah’s leadership, they had even been able to build a wall around Jerusalem – perhaps not sturdy enough to withstand a siege, but certainly strong enough to keep them safe from wandering marauders….

“Fake news” – it’s all around us, especially in an election season. With every newspaper, news channel, and website putting its own spin on daily events, it’s hard to know whom we can trust, or even what to believe. And back in Nehemiah’s time, his enemies used the same sort…

How do you handle an overwhelming, impossible project? And make no mistake, the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem certainly fell into that category. Yes, some of the Jews who had been carried off into exile in Babylon had been allowed to return by the Persian kings (Ezra 1:1-4). And…

“Vote for your life!” That’s the new slogan CBS is using to persuade young Americans to register to vote. “Vote like our lives depend on it!” That’s what Michelle Obama said at the Democrat National Convention. It’s no wonder that American political rhetoric has become so extreme – so many…

So, how did God’s people escape from the trap Haman laid for them? Yes, Esther’s pluck deserves some of the credit. Even though she was the Queen, she took her life into her hands by going into the presence of the King without an appointment (Esther 4:11). And we can…

There was absolutely nothing right about the entire situation. A chauvinistic absolute monarch who expected his every whim to be instantly satisfied. A nation-wide roundup of all the beautiful unmarried girls to become part of the king’s harem – only one of which would become the next queen. And powerful…

The Old Testament people of God knew all about ritual washings. The priests were required to wash themselves before entering the Tabernacle or Temple (Exodus 30:17-21), and that’s why a large bronze laver or sea was located just outside the entrance. But Zechariah saw something much better in his vision…

The task must have seemed overwhelming to God’s people. Yes, they had returned from their exile, but the walls of Jerusalem had been broken down, and God’s Temple had been completely destroyed. Worst of all, they knew that their fathers’ sin had brought all this devastation on them (Zechariah 1:6)….