'Practical Christianity' Tagged Posts (Page 5)
My Preferred Way to Read the Bible
It’s presumptuous for a man to suggest that he knows the best method for everyone to read the Bible. But I’m going to tell you the way that I best read the Bible . . . and why it works so well for me. I’ve been a Bible reader for many years and the plans I’ve followed are certainly varied. At times I’ve read the Bible through every seven weeks. I believe I even read it in a month a…
ARE YOU POOR IN SPIRIT?
Are you poor in spirit, mourning over sin everywhere you find it, gentle and approachable in your relationships, hungering and thirsting for righteousness, merciful to others, pure and unmixed in your devotion to Christ? Are you a peacemaker? Are you sometimes persecuted in subtle or even striking ways for your distinctiveness as you live out life from a changed heart? If not, you should have no assurance that the kingdom of heaven is yours, that you will receive comfort from God…
Old Testament 180 Day Reading Plan – Part Two
DAY BOOK CHAPTERS 91. HABAKKUK ALL 92. ZEPHANIAH ALL 93. EZRA 1-6 94. HAGGAI ALL 95. ZECHARIAH 1-5 96. 6-10 97. 11-14 98. EZRA 7-10 99. NEHEMIAH 1-4 100. 5-9 101. 10-13 102. ESTHER 1-5 103. 6-10 104. ISAIAH 1-5 105. 6-9 106. 10-12 107. 13-16 108. 17-20 109. 21-23 110. 24-27 111. 28-31 112. 32-35 113. 36-39 114. 40-42 115. 43-46 116. 47-50 117. 51-54 118. 55-58 119. 59-62 120. 63-66 121. JEREMIAH 1-4 122. 5-8 123. 9-12 124.…
Old Testament 180 Day Reading Plan – Part One
DAY BOOK CHAPTERS 1. GENESIS 1-5 2. 6-11 3. 12-16 4. 17-21 5. 22-26 6. 27-31 7. 32-36 8. 37-40 9. 41-45 10. 46-50 11. EXODUS 1-4 12. 5-10 13. 11-15 14. 16-19 15. 20-24 16. 25-28 17. 29-31 18. 32-34 19. 35-38 20. 39-40 21. LEVITICUS 1-4 22. 5-9 23. 10-14 24. 15-19 25. 20-23 26. 24-27 27. NUMBERS 1-4 28. 5-8 29. 9-11 30. 12-14 31. 15-18 32. 19-21 33. 22-25 34. 26-29 35. 30-32 36. 33-36 37.…
Let Us Pray Without Delay!
They didn’t complain. They didn’t doubt. They didn’t even strategize. Once Peter and John reported their imprisonment and the threats they had received for preaching the gospel, they immediately prayed with a gathering of believers in Jerusalem (see Acts 4:23-31). As I once heard, “Prayer was their first choice, not their last chance.” Here’s what they asked from God: “And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness,…
Providence in Romania
After ministering just a few days in Romania in 1985 when the Iron Curtain was still up, I received a call that my mother was dying in a hospital room in Oklahoma City. “We think she is holding on until you get here,” my brother said. It took two days to leave. It was hard enough to get into Romania at Oradea a few days earlier. At the checkpoint, the border guards asked if we had “any guns, drugs, pornography…
Faith-Sized Requests
Few things are as fixed as mountains. But, on the day after Jesus cursed the fig tree, He declared that they can be moved. "Have faith in God. Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him." (Mark 11:23) Did Jesus mean this? The writer of Hebrews thought so.…
Nine Characteristics of Biblical Prayer
True prayer is not merely a matter of saying the right words. Biblical prayer is characterized and motivated by the right attitude-right thinking about the greatness of God, the beauty of Christ, and our own unworthiness and weakness. Ask yourself if your prayers are characterized by: An Understanding of Your Own Insignificance and Sinfulness When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained; what is man that You take thought…
Beware of Study Bibles
I like resources that help me understand the Bible. My collection of commentaries grows yearly. The amount of books I own addressing various areas of theology numbers in the hundreds. There are a couple of websites that I visit regularly where numerous Bible study tools are offered. I also own four “Study Bibles,” which include not only the biblical text, but introductions and outlines for each book of the Bible, notes that explain verses, maps, articles about major concepts, and…
The Garage Method
A former professor of mine, now a successful author of Christian fiction, used to dismiss his anxieties by repeating this mantra: “Oh well. It doesn’t eternally matter.” For him six words conquered all ills. He slew his worries with a phrase, with a mere wag of his tongue. I’m not sure he was right about things not eternally mattering, but his blood pressure remained low and in many ways, he turned his worries into trust. It is sort of an…
The Last Forty-five Minutes
He was lying down, gasping. It was his own bed and it was his time. Forty-five minutes from this moment he would die. Beside him sat his wife in the overstuffed leather chair that had been pulled close for the final event. She had been there all night. She sat on the edge as she patted his hand and tried to soothe him—disheveled, wide-eyed with simmering panic, twitching, pleading. It had been the hardest night of her life. The hospice…
The Man of Faith, George Muller (audio Links)
Jim and Bill Elliff, John Piper and Jim Cymbala on the man of Faith, George Muller. In this well-produced audio presentation, you will hear many of the stories of Muller and his orphanage, his disciplines and his experiences with trusting God, as well as how Muller impacted those involved on the audio itself. This was produced by Revive Our Hearts, the radio ministry of Nancy Lee DeMoss. We encourage you to listen in order to learn more about trusting God.…