Burned out? Exhausted? Needing work breaks more and more often? Perhaps these are signs that you really needed a sabbatical, or a getaway. More so, it’s a gentle prompting that true ministry begins with true receiving. I am currently reading through a wonderful book on spiritual formation titled... read more »

To continue working and ministering in Uganda through the nonprofit organization I launched in 2009 called Tukutana, I recently had to raise a considerable amount of funds in a short period of time. Amazingly—despite the struggling economy—after my need was shared by e-mail, the donations poured... read more »

Many of us are familiar with the story of Zacchaeus, the “wee little man” (as the Sunday school song goes) who climbed up a sycamore tree to see Jesus passing by. However, Luke sets Zacchaeus’ story in close context to the story of another rich man—a young and wealthy leader who visited... read more »

I hadn’t seen him in years. He called my name and walked over to me at the grocery store. After some small talk, I asked how he was doing. He said, “Last year I was dying,” and went on to explain that stress had nearly killed him. His heart and body had been breaking down due to his workaholic... read more »

Psalms 42:1-2: As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God. I thirst for God, the living God. When can I go and stand before Him? The Bible is filled with typology and symbolism. A dry and parched land is used throughout the Old Testament to illustrate to us what the absence of... read more »

A counselor was conducting a family therapy session with the parents of a teenager who had been caught using drugs. The parents excused their daughter’s drug use, saying that it was no big deal and just a phase that most teenagers go through. After a while the counselor told the parents to leave... read more »

The other day I stopped at a service station to fill up my car’s gas tank. When I went inside to pay, I noticed a little sparrow hopping around on the windowsill next to the cashier. She told me the sparrow had flown into the window a few days earlier and injured its wing. So she had brought it... read more »

One of the world’s finest violinists performed Bach and Schubert in a subway, and over a thousand commuters hurried right on by. Some wore ear buds or chatted loudly into their cell phones while others were rushing too fast to pause for Joshua Bell’s unexpected treat. Many people did stop for... read more »

—pic submitted by Ruth Tobing, Indonesia The Lord God is our sun and our shield. He gives us grace and glory. The Lord will withhold no good thing from those who do what is right (Psalm 84:11). ... read more »

—pic submitted by Kristin Palmer, US You guide me with Your counsel, leading me to a glorious destiny. Whom have I in heaven but You? I desire You more than anything on earth. My health may fail, and my spirit may grow weak, but God remains the strength of my heart; He is mine forever (Psalm... read more »