I read good news and bad news this morning: In Micah 7, the prophet praises God for His mercy: “Who is a God like You, removing sin and passing over rebellion? … He does not hold on to His anger forever, because HE DELIGHTS IN FAITHFUL LOVE. He will have compassion on us. You willContinue reading “GOOD NEWS AND BAD NEWS. Micah 7:18-19; 2 Kings 17:8-26.”
Author Archives: Steven Wales
HOLINESS. Micah 6:6-7.
Close your eyes and imagine. Imagine a world WITHOUT JESUS. Imagine that you are going to HELL unless you can make up for your sins. What will it take? What does it take to please God? Micah suggests several answers: “Should I come before Him with burnt offerings, with year-old calves? Would the Lord beContinue reading “HOLINESS. Micah 6:6-7.”
Let Jesus Wash You Clean—Again and Again, Forever. Micah 7:19.
Hogs like to wallow in the mud. The muddy places they frequent are called “hog wallows.” But we are not hogs. People like to be clean. We shower every day, sometimes two or even three times. We wash our hands so often we stop counting. We have one type of soap for hands, another forContinue reading “Let Jesus Wash You Clean—Again and Again, Forever. Micah 7:19.”
BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. Micah 4:3-4.
The ability to resolve conflicts is a gift. Being a peacemaker does not mean compromising everything. Peacemakers have integrity—they won’t yield the key point, but they will yield pride and anything else that might get in the way of peace. Ronald Reagan never compromised on SDI, but was able to make peace with Mikhail GorbachevContinue reading “BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS. Micah 4:3-4.”
Don’t Let Prosperity Make You Weak. Micah 4.
I made a bumper sticker today. It has a picture of hiking boots and says, “We will walk in the name of our God forever and ever.” Micah 4:5. When I read the verse, it got me thinking of the great stickers in the tee shirt shops along the Appalachian Trail. But I’ve never seenContinue reading “Don’t Let Prosperity Make You Weak. Micah 4.”
Birth Announcements. Isaiah 9:6-7.
When birth announcements arrive in the mail, husbands across America get in trouble for not paying attention: “How tall is he?” “I don’t know.” “What does he weigh?” “I don’t know.” “You don’t know much, do you?” “I know they put him in a Dallas Cowboys jersey for the picture.” Some birth announcements take aContinue reading “Birth Announcements. Isaiah 9:6-7.”
FEAR GOD OR FEAR EVERYTHING ELSE. Isaiah 8:12-13.
Oswald Chambers wrote, “When you fear God, you fear nothing else, whereas if you do not fear God, you fear everything else.” It’s not easy to have faith that strong—but it is true: “Do not fear what they fear; do not be terrified. You are to regard only the Lord of Hosts as holy. ONLYContinue reading “FEAR GOD OR FEAR EVERYTHING ELSE. Isaiah 8:12-13.”
CAN YOU SEE WHAT GOD IS DOING? Isaiah 5:11-13.
God’s children suffer because they miss God’s work. But why are we blind to God’s activity? Because we focus on our appetites. “Woe to those who rise early to drink beer, who stay up late drinking wine. At their feasts they have music and wine. They DO NOT PERCEIVE the Lord’s actions, and they doContinue reading “CAN YOU SEE WHAT GOD IS DOING? Isaiah 5:11-13.”
MY PURPOSE? TO BEAR FRUIT. Isaiah 5:1-4.
We are here to bear fruit. But how? The same way trees bear fruit. They need sunlight, water, and soil. They also need a few years—peach trees and grape vines often don’t bear fruit until year three or four. First, they need good roots. God explains Himself as a farmer with crops that are unsatisfying:Continue reading “MY PURPOSE? TO BEAR FRUIT. Isaiah 5:1-4.”
QUARTERMASTER. Isaiah 6:8.
When I was eleven, I joined the Boy Scouts. my friends Chris and Paul joined too, and my brother Dennis came along as soon as he was old enough. What red-blooded American boy wouldn’t want to join an organization that promised to take him on a camping trip in the woods every month for theContinue reading “QUARTERMASTER. Isaiah 6:8.”