The Day of Death and Triumph

James Guthrie, the Covenanter, woke up in the condemned cell on the morning of his execution. His servant was weeping, and he said, "Stop that at ...

Barriers to Creativity

Lack of self-confidence is the biggest barrier to creativity.

Fear Planted in the Soul

God planted fear in the soul as truly as he planted hope or courage. It is a kind of bell or gong which rings the mind into quick life on the approach ...

Life Without Fear

He who loves God with all his heart dreads neither death, torment, judgment, nor hell, for perfect love opens a sure passage to God.

Preach with Conviction

I think it was Goethe who said, after hearing a young minister, "When I go to hear a preacher preach, I may not agree with what he says, but I want ...

The Advantage of Hope

Hope prevents us from clinging to what we have and frees us to move away from the safe place and enter unknown and fearful territory.

The Courage of a Child

In A Pretty Good Person, Lewis Smedes writes:

A federal judge had ordered New Orleans to open its public schools to African-American children, and the ...

Leaving Our Shells Behind

From time to time, lobsters have to leave their shells in order to grow. They need the shell to protect them from being torn apart, yet when they grow, ...

Better to Dare

Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy ...

The Offence of Christ

I believe it to be a grave mistake to present Christianity as something charming and popular with no offence in it. We cannot blink the fact that gentle ...