Steven Wales

Do You Put Your Money into a Bag Full of Holes? Haggai 1:6,9.

Do we still reap what we sow? Does that old idea still apply under the New Covenant? Do you harvest what you plant? Yes. When Israel delayed in rebuilding God’s temple, He said: think about it. Figure it out. “You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough to feel full.Continue reading “Do You Put Your Money into a Bag Full of Holes? Haggai 1:6,9.”

GOD CAN CHANGE ANYONE. Ezra 6:22 and Proverbs 21:1.

Have you ever had a feud or a problem with someone that was impossible to solve? God can make a way; He can reconcile enemies. Esau wanted to murder Jacob, but forgave him. Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery—but they reconciled. Both Jesus and Stephen asked God to forgive their murderers. God is in theContinue reading “GOD CAN CHANGE ANYONE. Ezra 6:22 and Proverbs 21:1.”

The Day of Small Things. Ezra 5:10

Long ago, the people of Israel rejected God and His Word. Many died. Solomon’s temple was destroyed. God sent the survivors to live in the pagan nation of Babylon for generations. (That’s where Daniel faced the lions, and Shedrach, et al., faced the fiery furnace.) Then God used King Cyrus to send the new generationContinue reading “The Day of Small Things. Ezra 5:10”

Resolutions and Uphill Battles. Ezra 4:5 and 5:5.

Change is hard. New Year’s Resolutions are hard. Turning around old habits is hard. Starting new habits is hard. It is hard to study more or to become a reader. It is hard to begin eating right. Or to begin an exercise program. All new goals are hard to reach. First, you must overcome yourContinue reading “Resolutions and Uphill Battles. Ezra 4:5 and 5:5.”

What’s With All These Ancestors and Family Trees? Ezra 2:59-62.

Americans do many things well: Space travel, radio and television transmissions, weather forecasting, computers, automobiles, jet flight, modern medicine, antibiotics. We have stopped polio in its tracks and rid the world of smallpox. But Ancient Israel did one thing better: RECORD KEEPING. The Bible includes the most detailed records of so many things. The writersContinue reading “What’s With All These Ancestors and Family Trees? Ezra 2:59-62.”

SURRENDER YOUR EXPECTATIONS. Ezra 3:11-13; Zechariah 4:10.

What do you expect God to do for you? Do you think “I’ve obeyed Him, so I know He will give me _________”? Examples: You work hard in school, so you expect God to bless you with money. You are pure with the opposite sex, so you expect a rock-star spouse. You give your talentsContinue reading “SURRENDER YOUR EXPECTATIONS. Ezra 3:11-13; Zechariah 4:10.”

Predestination vs. Free Will. Daniel 11:27.

How can God know the future, yet still allow us to make our own decisions? “If he knows what I’m going to do, then didn’t He CAUSE me to do it?” “Foreknowledge is not cause.” I love that simple answer from the Dragon in the John Gardner novel GRENDEL. “Foreknowledge is not cause.” Just becauseContinue reading “Predestination vs. Free Will. Daniel 11:27.”

WE WILL REFLECT GOD’S GLORY—LITERALLY.

When God the Father sits on His throne, “Earth and Heaven flee from His presence” Revelation 20:11. Imagine! God is so fierce the earth itself flees from Him. Then in the New Jerusalem (heaven) “the city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, because GOD’S GLORY ILLUMINATES IT; its lampContinue reading “WE WILL REFLECT GOD’S GLORY—LITERALLY.”

STARS. Philippians 2:14-15.

We talk about movie STARS, sports STARS, rock STARS. But what is a star? Why do we use the metaphor constantly? Imagine the inky blackness of a starless sky. If you could spend a moonless night at sea or on a mountaintop a thousand miles from civilization, you would see true darkness. Yet stars remain:Continue reading “STARS. Philippians 2:14-15.”

WHAT LIES BEYOND? Daniel 12:2-3.

Do you ever wonder what’s ahead? What comes after this life on earth? Does heaven sound boring? Some joke that all their friends will be in hell, so that’s where they want to go. But your eternal destiny is no joke. “Those who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake, some to eternalContinue reading “WHAT LIES BEYOND? Daniel 12:2-3.”