Perilous Boasting

Trouble always comes whenever we begin to take credit for any of the gifts of the Spirit, be they gifts of prayer, tongues, prophecy, art, science.

Descending into Greatness

I'd just finished mowing the lawn, and it seemed like the perfect time to spray Weed & Feed on the grass. Except I didn't have any Weed & Feed. ...

The Celebrity Syndrome

Bible-signing can be very humbling. On occasion, when I have spoken at the same church several times, I have had to tell a child that my name is already ...

Mary as an Example of Faith

Medieval artists often portrayed Mary in stained glass windows. Her pane would be the only one with no color on it. Clear glass. All the other windowpanes ...

Someone Must Play Second

Leonard Bernstein, the celebrated orchestra conductor, was once asked, "What is the hardest instrument to play?"

Without a moment's hesitation ...

A Noisy Horn

A Pharisee's trumpet shall be heard to the end of the town but simplicity walks through the town unseen.

The Power of Humble Clothing

Missionaries who dressed like the Chinese suffered a few snags. In the gossipy colonial enclaves of Shanghai and Hong Kong, "going native" caused ...

Making a Good Impression

When as a young man Robert Morrison had first sailed to China, he was asked, "Do you really expect to make an impression on the idolatry of the great ...

Peaceable Kingdom

Give me courage to show the dove in a world so full of serpents.

Acid Test of Servanthood

You can tell whether you are becoming a servant by how you act when people treat you like one.