“Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” – Esther 4:14 (NLT) The proud and impulsive Persian king’s, Xerxes the Great, banquet for all the nobles and officers under his rule in 483 B.C. was intended to be a ‘…tremendous display of the opulent wealth of his empire and the pomp and splendour of his majesty’ (Esther 1:4 … Continue reading THE DARING QUEEN
Joshua stood before the wall. In front of him towered the most formidable structure he had ever beheld. It drew comparison to the grandeur of the pyramids from his childhood in Egypt, only this was different. The pyramids were designed to house the dead, this wall defended the living. Behind Joshua was a sea of Israelites, two and a half million in number. He had … Continue reading BE STRONG AND COURAGEOUS
There is something almost magical about the last words of a person. We even imagine what our last words may be before our passing, hoping to convey some sort of significance or final message to the world. Everybody falls into a hushed reverence at the mention of the last words of a person, eager to listen to any final pieces of wisdom they will speak … Continue reading FAMOUS LAST WORDS
A Constant God For many, the God presented in the Old Testament is irreconcilable to that seen in the New Testament. The image of a loving, healing God as represented through Jesus in the New Testament is, for some, in-congruent with the idea of a God who led his chosen people on conquests and would command the death of people for not following a seemingly … Continue reading RECKLESS LOVE AND GENOCIDE
THE ULTIMATE CLIFF-HANGER A racist, arrogant, proud and disobedient man is called by God to preach to a country who constantly invades his own, and to tell them to repent of their sins and worship God. But Jonah, being the stubborn and unloving man that he is, runs away from God onto a boat, only to be thrown overboard and eaten by a big fish. … Continue reading MYSTERIES OF GOD
I have such amazing news to share with you! I won the lottery! Well . . . almost. I was two numbers off the winning number, but I was so close. Oh but, let me tell you something even more exciting; I have saved up enough money to buy a Lamborghini Gallarado. . . well, almost. I’m still $200,000 short, since I only almost won … Continue reading ALMOST
The following article was composed by Rick Ferret For many people today the pace of life is extraordinary. Do we rush? Are we in a hurry? Does anything really matter? Humanities quest for knowledge and answers to all manner of questions has been exciting and adventurous, but also confusing for many. The smorgasbord of human philosophy is astounding. Charles Swindoll in his book, “Growing Strong … Continue reading A POTPOURRI OF PHILOSOPHIES
The Borobodur temple of Indonesia, the Acropolis of Greece, the Shinto Shirne of Chureito overlooking Mount Fuji. What do these sacred places of worship all have in common? Their foundations all lie on the top of a mountain face, as high into the heavens as humanly possible. Religious traditions both past and present, have always viewed mountains as sites on the mortal plane, at which … Continue reading REACHING UP, FALLING DOWN
Who doesn’t fondly remember having their mother quote to them as a child, the following, infamous Bible verse: cleanliness is next to godliness? The verse seems created purely to justify unwanted showers and enforce thorough scrubbing behind the ears. Of course, this Scripture is one of many other notorious verses which come from the same holy book; versus such as “moderation in all things”, “this … Continue reading WHY DOES GOD NOT WANT ME?
AN INVOLVED GOD The Bible, especially the Old Testament is full of stories of people who encountered God in a close, personal and unignorable way. A way that we do not see paralleled today. The interactions that God had with his people in the past seem fundamentally different. God seemed to be more in touch with His people and in a way, more tangible. When … Continue reading THE SILENT GOD
