Week Four, 2025

When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus come forth.”

–John 11:43

Fresh out of law school, I landed my first job as a lawyer with a local law firm. On the first day a senior partner handed me a file and told me to go to court that afternoon. It was a petition for habeas corpus. Ironically, the person in custody was named George Washington, so I can say that my first court appearance was to get George Washington out of jail.

The “Great Writ” of habeas corpus is a fundamental right in the Constitution that protects against unlawful and indefinite imprisonment. Translated from Latin it means “show me the body.” Habeas corpus has historically been an important instrument to safeguard individual freedom against arbitrary executive power.

Well, I won and George was released. It was so far, the highlight of my legal career, as I was batting 100%!

There’s a parallel in the Bible, found in John 11:43 when in a loud voice, Jesus said “Lazarus come forth.” I read that and realized the true meaning. Most think the issue and the command was restoring life to a three day dead body.

But there’s more. It was a real-life exercise to draw a spiritual parallel for all people. Jesus calls all to emerge from spiritual darkness and come into the light of Christ found out of the darkness of a sinful life and into the light of salvation.

Jesus was saying to produce the body wrapped in the clothes of our naturally sinful life and into the light of a life with Him.

Have you walked forth from the darkness of sin and into the light of Christ? The entrapment in the cave of sin is a dark life and Jesus calls us to emerge into a brand-new life. Today is not too late, but tomorrow may be.

Sometimes True Stories

He who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. 1 Peter 3:10-11

According to Peter, if you want the good life, here are the rules:

Rule number one: keep your tongue from evil. Gossip is pure evil. There is nothing loving or productive about gossip. It brings only harm.

Rule number two: keep your lips from speaking guile. In other words, don’t be deceitful in your speech. Deceitful speech twists or omits the truth. It is speech which exploits terminology. Those who are deceitful in their speech soon lose credibility and trust. Obey God and He will shower you with joy, happiness, peace, and prosperity.

Rule number three: flee that which is evil. Not only must we avoid evil, we need to seek that which is good. As Paul wrote to the Ephesians, “Put off… the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts… put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (Ephesians 4: 22, 24). Paul then gave specific examples. They weren’t just to stop lying, they were to start telling the truth. They weren’t just to stop stealing, they were to get jobs so they could help those in need. They weren’t just to stop slandering; they were to edify one another with their words. Avoiding evil means choosing what is good.

And what is the result of following these rules? Only blessing.

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Fear can be debilitating. It can tear us down and steal our confidence. It can bring great anxiety that has us feeling as if we are boxed in and the walls are moving closer.

Fear can cause us to freeze up, to not move or do. It can cause us to just lock up, to “choke” ~ being unable to act, unable to help, unable to think clearly. Fear can cause us to run, to flee, to panic, to take flight. It can cause us to fight, to become angry, to defend.

Fear keeps men from rising up to greatness. Fear keeps men cowering in a boat, while the Savior beckons us to step out and walk on water. Fear causes us to thrash about in the water, even after we’ve taken a few steps on that very same water.

Fear can also be healthy as it causes us to prepare, to strengthen, to fortify. Fear can cause us to plan and strategize. It can be the catalyst to help us think outside the box, help us become creative, help see things we may never have seen otherwise.

As we face the fears of today and tomorrow, whether large or small or somewhere in between, let us not be afraid. For we know that He will never leave us nor forsake us. We know that we are never alone. We know that God is bigger, and God is in control.

Though I may fear… I will not be afraid, for I know from where my help comes. I will have faith over fear. Marty Stubblefield

Quotes You Can Use

Walk with Him today. Renounce sin’s darkness; choose the Light. Light and darkness are mutually exclusive.

Decades ago, when the Bible and prayer were banned from schools, we wondered what would become of our society. Now we know.

I often hear that we ought not bring religion into politics. This where it ought to be brought.

Prayer is not a back-up plan. Prayer is the battle plan.

Heaven has strict immigration laws. Hell has open borders.

Three enemies of the soul: The world, the flesh and the devil.

A nation that kills its children in the womb has lost its soul. Mother Teresa

Gossip dies when it hits a wise person’s ears. Rumors are started by haters, carried by fools and believed by idiots.

No one is harder to reach than a false Christian.

A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.

Never make the person who made the problem in charge of the solution.

We are living in a time when Satan doesn’t hide anymore and still people cannot see him.

It takes two years to learn how to speak and sixty years to know when to be quiet. Ernest Hemingway

Ships don’t sink because of the water around them. They sink because of the water inside them. Don’t let what is happening around you get within you and weight you down.

To live without hope is to cease to live.

Your feedback is welcome and if you want to contribute your ideas and thoughts, address all items and comments to [email protected]. © Thoughts on Life Copyright 2025

How old is coal? Evolutionists usually suggest around 300 million years old.

How old is man? Evolutionists usually suggest around 6-7 million years old.

How old is the discovery of iron? Historians suggest around 5000 years old.

So, what if a man claimed to find a large lump of coal with an iron pot inside?

Answer 1: He is a liar.

Answer 2: It would disprove the standard theory that it takes 300 million years to form coal.

Answer 3: It would mean that the coal had been contaminated or tampered with in some way, for clearly man-made objects can’t be found inside naturally-formed, previously-undisturbed formations of coal.

Have you ever heard the story of Frank J. Kennard? In 1912 Frank found an iron pot inside a large lump of coal. Ever since its been a point of contention between evolutionists and folks like myself (whom evolutionists love to label as “pseudo-scientists”) who see Frank’s find as strong evidence that coal does not require millions of years to form and that a global flood can easily explain the discovery of that pot inside that lump of coal.

But let’s hear directly from Frank himself in his notarized statement about the find:

“While I was working in the Municipal Electric Plant in Thomas, Oklahoma in 1912, I came upon a solid chunk of coal which was too large to use. I broke it with a sledge hammer. This iron pot fell from the center, leaving the impression, or mould of the pot in a piece of the coal. Jim Stull (an employee of the company) witnessed the breaking of the coal, and saw the pot fall out. I traced the source of the coal, and found that it came from the Wilburton, Oklahoma Mines.

Frank J. Kennard

Sworn to before me, in Sulphur Springs, Arkansas, this 27th day of November, 1948.

Julia L. Eldred N.P.

My commission expires May 21, 1951 – Benton Co.”

What might we conclude after reading this document, assuming no theoretical contamination of Frank’s coal?

1. Frank is a liar (if you’re related to Frank, please forgive my slight);

2. Men lived at least 300 million years ago, before the formation of Frank’s chunk of coal, thus upending the conventional evolutionary dating of both men and iron; or

3. The evolutionary dating of Frank’s coal is wrong, for it can be no older than the discovery of iron, approximately five thousand years ago.

Google confirms that man-made objects (in addition to Frank’s pot) have been found inside lumps of coal, so this story is not a one and done.

God confirms that a worldwide Flood destroyed the earth during the time of Noah, which buried massive amounts of organic material and created necessary conditions for a much more recent formation of coal. Men lived before coal.

–Daniel McCabe

Week Three, 2025

But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asks you for a reason of the hope that is in you, with meekness and reverence (1 Peter 3:15).

We got on the elevator on the 14th floor on our way to breakfast. It stopped on the 10th floor. A tall handsome man got on. Now it was the three of us. We looked at him and then looked at each other. Could it be? We determined it was, and I said “Good morning, Dr. Graham.”

The doors closed and I realized that I had ten floors of descent to engage in a jeweled conversation with Billy Graham. I reached in my coat pocket and pulled out a New Testament and asked for him to sign. He wrote “Billy Graham, Philippians 1:3…. I thank my God every time I remember you.”

By then, we were on the ground floor and the doors opened. We shook hands and went our separate ways. What an experience with a man I so deeply admired.

They call it the” elevator speech.” It begs the question of what you would say about the philosophy you profess or the product you sell if you only had an elevator ride to do it. It also reminds us that we always need to be prepared to speak in the limited time we are fortunate to have, no matter how short.

1 Peter 3:15 tells us to be ready always to give an answer to every man that asks you for a reason of the hope that is in you. Are you always prepared to share your faith at the time you have, even how short the opportunity?

What is your Christian elevator speech and are you always prepared?

Sometimes True Stories

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:28-30 NIV

Whatever you may be dealing with.

Whatever is going on in your world.

Whatever is stealing your thoughts, your moments, your joy…

Be Reminded.

Be reminded from where your help comes.

Be reminded of the one whose yoke is easy and whose burden is light.

Be reminded of the one who gives you joy and peace and comfort.

Believe me, I know it’s hard.

I know things sometimes are more than we can handle.

But in those moments… In those times when the weight is bearing down and the walls seem to be closing in, be reminded of the one who broke the chains of sin.

Be reminded of the one who defeated death, died upon the cross, and resurrected three days later.

Be reminded that you are not alone.

Be reminded that there is nothing that you may be facing that Jesus, himself, has not already faced.

Nothing that He cannot overcome.

Be reminded of His strength in our weakness.

His hope in our hopelessness.

His forgiveness in our failure.

His love even when we cannot seem to love ourselves.

Jesus Loves You.

This I Know.

For The Bible Tells Me So.

Be reminded of His grace. His mercy. His hope. His love.

Be Reminded. Marty Stubblefield

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PROBLEM:

These days there are far too many who say they are expositors of God’s Word but preach “feel good” sermons or “self-help” sermons or “get rich” sermons. Sure, we recognize them on television or radio, but too often we find them in our churches. Lost people who go to church hoping to find the solution to their lostness find, instead, how to have a happy life by what they can do in their own power.

SOLUTION:

1. Search out a church which preaches and teaches the pure Word of God, a church that will not compromise on the Truth found only in Scripture. If you don’t find one initially, keep looking until you do. The Holy Spirit will let you know when you find it.

2. Diligently read and study the Bible every day. Before reading, ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you what truths you need to know. He will answer that prayer.

Start today. Rich Jensen

Quotes You Can Use

The coming of the Lord enables us to be real about the messiness of the world while still being hopeful for the future. Edgar Aponte

If the Lord should come today, would you be ready to meet Him? Dan Shock

Some people can be reasoned into sense, and others must be shocked into it. Thomas Paine

One day we’ll pass through that veil called death and we will see the face of our Savior. Dan Shock

Kindness is the language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see. Mark Twain

If life is to have meaning, and if God’s will is to be done, all of us have to accept who we are and what we are, give it back to God, and thank Him for the way He made us. What I am is God’s gift to me; what I do with it is my gift to Him. – Warren Wiersbe

My God, I have never thanked Thee for my thorn. I have thanked Thee a thousand times for my roses, but not once for my thorn. I have been looking forward to a world where I shall get compensation for my cross; but I have never thought of my cross as itself a present glory. Teach me the glory of my cross; teach me the value of my thorn. Show me that I have climbed to Thee by the path of pain. Show me that my tears have made my rainbows. – George Matheson

Returning thanks for blessings already received increases our faith and enables us to approach God with new boldness and new assurance. Doubtless the reason so many have so little faith when they pray is because they take so little time to meditate upon and thank God for blessings already received. As one meditates on the answer to prayers already granted, faith waxes bolder and bolder, and we come to feel in the very depths of our souls that there is nothing too hard for the Lord. As we reflect upon the wondrous goodness of God toward us on the one hand, and upon the other hand upon little thought and strength and time that we ever put into thanksgiving, we may well humble ourselves before God and confess our sin. – R.A. Torrey

Hell has many gates. Heaven has but one.

Death comes to an ungodly man as a penal infliction, but to the righteous as a summons to his Father’s palace. C.H. Spurgeon

Salvation is free, but discipleship will cost you everything. Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Serve your parents in the last part of their life just like they served you in the first part of your life.

The early church wanted to know what you have to do to be saved. Today’s church is asking what I can do and still be saved.

Saying that abortion is healthcare is like saying that human trafficking is free transportation.

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Your feedback is welcome and if you want to contribute your ideas and thoughts, address all items and comments to [email protected]. or [email protected].

© Thoughts on Life Copyright 2025,

—I was born in Brussels, Belgium as was Audrey Hepburn; attended the same high school as Matthew McConaughey; and lived for years in “Stephenville, TX,” which doubles as a song title by the versatile “Jewel” Kilcher, which she wrote while married to local boy and nine-time PRCA rodeo champion, Ty Murray. What famous people share your birthplace, your hometown or the place you now call home?

—In the Bible you’ll find Bethlehem on David’s birth certificate and you may even recognize Bethsaida as the hometown of Philip, Peter and Andrew, but when I say “Beersheba,” does anyone come to mind?

—In the beloved, unofficial anthem, “America the Beautiful,” we sing of our country’s beauty “from sea to shining sea,” and we could summarize our nation’s west-to-east dimensions as “from the City of Angels to the Big Apple” or our north-to-south dimensions as “from the Rust Belt to the Bible Belt.” In the Old Testament the Jews likewise used a similar idiom, “from Dan to Beersheba” (Judges 20:1; 1 Samuel 3:20; et al), with Dan being their northernmost city and Beersheba being their southernmost city for all practical purposes.

—Situated astride the treeless, unforgiving Negev Desert, Beersheba often gets ignored by tour groups who prefer day trips to Israel’s glorious hill country northwest of Beersheba or to the Dead Sea, En Gedi and Masada northeast of the city, yet three of the Old Testament’s greatest names lived at least for a time in Beersheba—Abraham, Isaac and Jacob—and hearty groups who make the trek will gain tremendous insight into the lives of the patriarchs.

—Abraham called this city “The Well of the Oath,” sometimes translated as “The Well of Seven,” after having agreed with Abimelech to purchase the land rights for a well that Abraham had dug on the site and where he sacrificed seven lambs to seal the deal (Genesis 21:25-34). Isaac doubled down on the name when he himself found water there and dug his own well (Genesis 26:26-33). Do you remember Jacob’s deal with Esau to exchange a pot of lentil stew for the family’s birthright (Genesis 27:30-28:10)? That too took place at Beersheba. Later Jacob stopped at Beersheba to offer sacrifices before leaving his homeland for Egypt along “The Way of Shur,” the busy caravan route that passed through Beersheba.

—I’m starting to think that someone should write a song about Beersheba too. How about you?

–Daniel McCabe

Week Two, 2025

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28).

Recently, we lit a fire in the fireplace and looked for a movie to watch. We discovered “The Boys in the Boat,” the true story of a nine-man crew team from the University of Washington that, despite long odds, made it all the way to the 1936 Olympics in Berlin and became the improbable winners of the gold medal, beating out Italy and Germany in a close race. It was a great movie with all kinds of suggestions for better living and how competition in life ought to be. This crew transformed the sport of rowing, overcame enormous odds and grabbed the attention and hearts of their nation.

The movie ends more than forty years later with one of the team telling his grandson of his adventure. His grandson asks if he enjoyed rowing an eight-man crew, to which Joe replies, “We were never eight. We were one.” This shows just how unified they were back then, embodying what it means to be a team. It’s the film’s final line, and it perfectly captures their journey.

The Bible verse Galatians 3:28 states, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” This verse is central to the Gospel and conveys the idea that in Christ, everyone is equal and the same.

The verse is interpreted to mean that people should look beyond the differences of race, color, abilities, and other external factors to build fellowship on the essentials of their new birth. The unity that Christ prayed for is a spiritual unity based on faith in Christ and the glory of God within. Relational unity in the church is the best witness to the reality of Jesus Christ and God to the world.

As Christians, we are called to be one, one in Christ. I have a gift of writing and teaching, but the church should pay me not to come near the choir. I can’t carry a tune. All have separate gifts, but all are one. It was so obvious in the movie. Each in the boat had a different role in the boat, but all together they were one.

It’s the same way in all team sports. Putting the quarterback on the offensive line would be a disaster, as would be the reverse. All have separate gifts, but together we are one in Christ.

What are your gifts and how committed to use in ministry so that your church is one?

Sometimes True Stories

”Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance, persecutions, and suffering, such as happened to me….” II Timothy 3:10-11

The Apostle Paul was teaching Timothy how to live his life as a Christian and pastoral leader. He didn’t say read Aristotle or Plato. He said, “Look at me”. What you see in me, do yourself.

Often times the most effective learning in our lives is the modeling of someone we respect. What model are you following? Parents? Coach? Grandparents? Pastor? Teacher? Jesus? Be sure you look to the one who has positive, Biblical qualities to emulate.

What about you? Are you that person who displays Biblical attributes; that person that others want to emulate? You never know who is watching you, and who will be influenced by the way you live your life.

Be a Paul. Rich Jensen

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Bible sales are up 22 percent in the US through the end of October compared with the same period last year. By contrast, total US print book sales were up less than 1 percent in the same period. What accounts for the rising popularity of God’s word?

According to Jeff Crosby, president of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association, “People are experiencing anxiety themselves, or they’re worried for their children and grandchildren. It’s related to artificial intelligence, election cycles … and all of that feeds a desire for assurance that we’re going to be OK.”

Cely Vasquez, a twenty-eight-year-old artist and influencer, recently bought her first Bible, explaining: “I felt something was missing. It’s a combination of where we are in the world, general anxiety, and the sense that meaning and comfort can be found in the Bible.”

Much of what worries us in the world hasn’t changed. As Paul Powell observed, “It’s not that people are worse—the news coverage is just better.”

At the same time, a world facing the threats of nuclear annihilation, global war, and runaway artificial intelligence is objectively more dangerous. And American society possesses fewer tools for dealing with such crises than ever before.

Quotes You Can Use

The most beautiful gift of nature is that it gives one pleasure to look around and try to comprehend what we see. Albert Einstein

Just having a desire to live a godly life is not enough. Dan Shock

Integrity without knowledge is weak and useless, and knowledge without integrity is dangerous and dreadful. Samuel Johnson

The Lord is near—and He is willing and able to take my burdens and carry them for me. Dan Shock

I have always thought the actions of men the best interpreters of their thoughts.

John Locke

I am indebted to my father for living, but to my teacher for living well. Alexander the Great

Hard to tell at this point, but the fundamentals are in place for a massive change in American politics. What happens next is up to us.

If the Lord should come today, would you be ready to meet Him? Dan Shock

Common sense without education, is better than education without common sense. Benjamin Franklin

God wants you to overcome the temptations of Satan. Dan Shock

The dominant characteristic of an authentic spiritual life is the gratitude that flows from trust—not only for all the gifts that I receive from God, but gratitude for all the suffering. Because in that purifying experience, suffering has often been the shortest path to intimacy with God. – Brennan Manning

The kind of experience of humility and happiness that comes with gratitude tends to crowd out whatever is coarse, or ugly or mean. – Kevin DeYoung

I think the key to passion, to zeal, is gratitude. Or to put it another way, the fuel to motivate is gratitude, and gratitude comes by just backing up a little and realizing how much you’ve sinned against God. – Ray Comfort

Gratitude’s not a natural posture. The prince of darkness is ultimately a spoiled ingrate, and I’ve spent most of my life as kin to the fist-shaker. – Ann Voskamp

To come to terms with our beginning requires a truthful story to acquire the skills to live in gratitude rather than resentment for the gift of life. – Stanley Hauerwas

For three things I thank God every day of my life: thanks that He has vouchsafed me knowledge of His Works; deep thanks that He has set in my darkness the lamp of faith; deep, deepest thanks that I have another life to look forward to—a life joyous with light and flowers and heavenly song. – Helen Keller

Your feedback is welcome and if you want to contribute your ideas and thoughts, address all items and comments to [email protected]. © Thoughts on Life Copyright 2025.

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Break Out is a new novel for teens and young adults, written by Joy Becker. It is the story of Jason, a young rebel who refuses to conform to the crushing demands of his remote community.

It’s a restrictive, and punishing society where all enthusiasm and initiative are drowned, where reasoning is circular, like the white-domed buildings precisely spaced around the concentric streets, and where nothing may be questioned because that is the Master’s will.

Denied the right to think, and with the word “freedom” removed from the city’s only dictionary, any attempt to question is not only denied but severely punished. Argument is not an alternative. Reason is defined by the Master.

Jason has no memory of mother or father—just a lifelong teacher who insists on fulfilling the Master’s desires—a minor monarch who makes his subjects squirm because he holds the power of life and death.

Jason lives with “yes” kids who remain stubbornly silent rather than expose themselves to greater tyranny. Fear surrounds them. There is no life except in one’s dark dreams. The whispered specter of torture and death is ever present.

Every day, he feels more stifled. Every day, more pressure is exerted, more control exercised, more demands made.

There is no place to hide, and Jason wants out!

With visions of escape, he is continually reminded that escape is impossible. Still, he dares to sneak out in the dark evening hours to wander empty streets, searching for a way.

Night after night, he risks his life in hope of finding a solution. As he continues stalking the streets, he discovers another world.

Join this turbulent story, with its twists and turns, occasional bright spots, and intense relationships. Meet someone who understands what it is to be both alone and together, making unique friends, growing together against all odds, and hoping, always hoping, to somehow keep the dream alive in spite of bitter loss.

Will Jason find a way of escape? Or will he, like all those who preceded them, slip into a life of submission, conformity, and “normality?

Will he submit to slavery…or die!

It’s time to Break Out!

Break Out! by Joy Becker, is available from Amazon.com.

January 4, 2025

“After this, Sennacherib, king of Assyria, who was besieging Lachish with all his forces, sent his servants to Jerusalem to Hezekiah king of Judah and to all the people of Judah who were in Jerusalem,” (2 Chronicles 32:9).

—The final stop on our Shephelah tour is the Lachish Valley. Perched on the west end, the city of Lachish was massive for ancient standards—and very important.

—Sennacherib famously besieged Lachish on his conquest of Judah during Hezekiah’s reign. The Bible highlights the campaign and how Sennacherib left the Lachish siege to move against Hezekiah in Jerusalem. As we know, God destroyed the Assyrian army and Sennacherib returned home (2 Kings 19:35-36).

—The Assyrian king bragged that he shut Hezekiah up “like a bird in a cage,” as recorded on the Sennacherib Prism. Notably he could not claim to conquer Jerusalem. But Lachish was so important that he supposed the taking of that city was proof of a successful campaign, based on wall carvings known as the Lachish Reliefs found at his palace in Nineveh. Ultimately Sennacherib’s boast was not received well as his sons killed him and Esarhaddon reigned in his place (2 Kings 19:37).

—In the picture you can see a walkway up to the city gate complex, which is quite well preserved compared to many other ancient cities in Israel. Close by are the remains of a siege ramp that Sennacherib built to attack Lachish. If you dig around in the dirt above and below the siege ramp, you might even find an Israeli or Assyrian arrowhead left over from the battle!

—On the eastern side of the valley you can search caves at Makkedah, the place where five kings hid from Joshua after the time when the sun stood still (Joshua 10:16-21).

—The Shephelah is an area with many important places, home to great events and people of the Bible. Not many tourists go there (other than the Elah Valley to collect their own smooth stones), but be sure to explore the wonder of its valleys if you ever make a trip to Israel!

—Adam Keim

Pastor Daniel McCabe, Shalom Y’all Ministries, 104 County Road 1633, Cullman, Alabama 35058, US

Week One, 2025

At the same time, saith the Lord, will I be the God of all the families of Israel, and they shall be my people. Jeremiah 31

Well, believe it or not, a new year is here. 2024 is history and 2025 is a blank slate. What are you going to write on it?

January is the month of “resolutions”, many of them. People make more resolutions in this month than in all the remaining ones combined…. Loose weight, quit bad habits and the list goes on. More gym plans are sold this month than in all of the remaining ones.

People focus on worldly and personal resolutions more than on spiritual ones, yet those are the most important. Remember that God makes resolutions as well. We, as believers, are His people and He will guide our paths and watch over us. But what will we resolve for Him.

First, as we are His people, He wants us to resolve that He is our God. Resolve to be in His word daily and to pray to Him for all things in our lives. He also wants us to be a part of His community. But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired.” I Corinthians 12:18

The Swiss are famous for their precision watchmaking. Generations of highly skilled craftsmen assemble many different and essential parts to make their timepiece. Even the smallest gear, if not installed at the right spot, will render the watch inoperable.

It is much the same in other facets of our lives. The right combination of employees performing their specialties makes the company run smoothly. A family whose members function as God intended runs well. A community must have all its departments and leaders on the same page to serve their citizens.

And God has equipped the church to have members who come together like a finely tuned watch in order to further the Kingdom of Jesus Christ. Some are gifted as teachers. Some are administrators. Some are givers. And so on.

Just as watchmakers look for the right parts in the right place; just as a family fulfills its roles; just as a community serves its people; so also, the body of Christ, when believers fulfill their given gifts in the right way, functions as God ordained.

Resolve to get to church, find your gift, you are needed.

Resolve to get spiritually and morally straight and become a functioning part of the family of God.

Sometimes True Stories

God’s Will for Our Lives

To love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind and strength

To love your neighbor as yourself

To flee evil

To be joyful and give thanks in all circumstances

To praise Him and worship Him

To dwell on all that is good and pure and true

To go therefore and make disciples

To daily put on the full armor of God

To daily take up your cross and follow Him

To pray continually

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At some point in our lives, we begin to think about what we will leave behind, for our family, our community and beyond. We go through careful thought about our physical assets. Which of our children should get particular items of sentimental value? How should our money be distributed? Should we leave something to charities or the church?

It’s not just our assets that are our legacy. What kind of world are we leaving? Have we cared for and preserved the value of life that was given to us by our parents, including a government that enables liberty and prosperity to grow?

Those may be good things to think about, but they are all temporary. What about the legacy that our children will follow us into an eternal paradise, which is Heaven, because we have shown them that the way there is through Jesus Christ, and Him alone. That’s the everlasting legacy into which we should invest.

Now, start building your legacy.

Quotes You Can Use

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. – Melody Beattie

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. – John F. Kennedy

It is not the mountain we conquer, but ourselves. Edmund Hillary

How many lives have been shattered— all because of the tongue? Dan Shock

When it comes to life, the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude. – Gilbert K. Chesterton

Pride slays thanksgiving, but a humble mind is the soil out of which thanks naturally grow. A proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he never thinks he gets as much as he deserves. – Henry Ward Beecher

Naturally we are sinners in search for a savior.

Some problems will never be solved because there are people who simply do not want them to be.

Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. Our natural tendency is to be led by the desires of the flesh, which only leads to sin and death. Resist the flesh. The fruit of the Spirit is the work of the Spirit that we bear as we walk by the Spirit. Walk by the Spirit. Edgar Aponte

It’s hard to see one’s generosity when our grip on the checkbook is so tight that our closed fists prevent our best intentions of ever being expressed. Dwight Short

Society allowed intolerant people to gain control through our tolerance. It’s time to fight back.

Gratitude is the healthiest of all human emotions. The more you express gratitude for what you have, the more likely you will have even more to express gratitude for. Zig Ziglar

God will continue to remove the imperfections within us until He can look at us and see His reflection.

Gratitude is the inward feeling of kindness received. Thankfulness is the natural impulse to express that feeling. Thanksgiving is the following of that impulse. – Henry Van Dyke

Gratitude is when memory is stored in the heart and not in the mind. – Lionel Hampton

Gratitude is riches. Complaint is poverty. – Doris Day

Your feedback is welcome and if you want to contribute your ideas and thoughts, address all items and comments to [email protected].

Archaelogy

Let’s make our way to the Church of the Annunciation in Nazareth, the largest church in the Middle East, where we’ll find multiple layers of archaeology that tell quite a story.

The modern church to which visitors are taken in the heart of the city has been standing there since 1960. Before that an older church of the same name stood on the same site from 1730-1954. Before that the site featured a Crusader church, dating to approximately 1100, until a Muslim, Egyptian sultan destroyed it in 1263. Before the Crusader church a Byzantine church stood there from the early fifth century until 1009.

And finally, under all these archaeological layers a synagogue/church has been discovered that dates to the second century and in which archaeologists have found columns, capitals, bases, cornices, decorated stones, one wall, a mosaic floor with symbols of crosses, a crown, and letters from the name of Christ, demonstrating that the church’s second-century, Jewish worshippers believed that Jesus was both their King and Messiah. Archaeologists also found plaster inscriptions at the second-century level, one of which read “Jesus.”

However, I haven’t even told you the best part. Under the second-century synagogue archaeologists found a first-century house with cisterns, caverns and finally a Jewish ritual bath, known as a mikveh, that had been later incorporated into the baptismal of the second-century synagogue. In other words, the people of Nazareth built a synagogue over a house. But whose house?

Another one of the plaster inscriptions found in the synagogue yields the fuller story, for it reads, “Rejoice, Mary!” Jewish Christians living shortly after the time of Jesus clearly believed this house to be none other than that of Mary, the mother of Jesus, and the inscription just noted was likely intended to reflect the very words of the angel Gabriel to Mary in Luke 1:28, 30, “Rejoice … Mary, for you have found favor with God.”

—Daniel McCabe

Week Fifty-Two, 2024

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12).

It all began thirty years ago, back in 1995, as a way to communicate with a Sunday school class that I was teaching. Few had email so we used the old-fashioned U.S. Mail. There were only about seventy-five copies. Soon the mail list grew, especially with the availability of email. Now, it has gone international to several thousand and through CRU, it is reproduced to about 22,000.

It begins as I get an idea and mull it through my mind for several days and once it is mentally structured, I sit down at the computer and type it out. Then my wife edits my spelling and punctuation and then it goes to my publisher in the Philippines. Each Saturday at six in the morning, the button is pushed, and it is on its way. People read and often will comment.

As I write this, it is a Saturday evening and I have had many emails, including one from India and one from Africa. People are blessed with now over 1,500 editions, but not as much as I am blessed with the satisfaction of spreading the Word to others. Space is not large enough in this writing to tell the stories of people who have been impacted. I claim no credit but am blessed to know that God has blessed me by allowing me to have this ministry.

The most important reason to share the Gospel is to help save souls. In Mark 16:15, Jesus said, “Go into all the world and preach the Gospel to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Sharing the good news of the gospel isn’t simply a suggestion. It’s a command that Jesus set out for us: to be the catalyst for eternal heart change in our neighbors and throughout the world as we share God’s Word with others.

One of my most treasured verses is 2 Timothy 4:2… Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. The Bible calls us to be ready to share the gospel at all times and in all circumstances.

We can “preach” in writing and by voice or by the lifestyle we demonstrate to others. The key is to be ready.

So, to all who read my weekly words, thank you for reading and thank you for sharing. I trust the 52 editions of Thoughts on Life for 2025 will bless many as much as I am blessed by writing.

May each and every one of those who follow this writing have a most prosperous, healthy and joyous 2025.

John and Beverley Grant

Sometimes True Stories

“For You formed me in my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well.” Psalm 139:13-14

When the sperm and the ovum come together, the miracle of birth, that God intended to be, happens. In that nanosecond, that human being has DNA unlike any other person who ever lived or ever will live. Already determined is the sex, color of the eyes, color of the hair, the body type, the general appearance, the intellect and even the personality. (Just ask the parents of twins) It is a masterpiece that could only have been orchestrated by God Himself.

This is not a political statement. It is a moral one. All that baby needs from that point on is nourishment and protection which happens in the mother’s womb. But nourishment and protection are what we all need….at one year old, at fifteen years old, at thirty-five, and at eighty. Nourishment and protection. May we all have both. Rich Jensen

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One of the reasons Jesus gained such a diverse and devoted following throughout his ministry is that his words and actions demonstrated how much he loved and valued the people who crossed his path. They felt accepted by him, even while he challenged their thoughts and confronted their sins. As his ambassadors to the world around us, we need to do the same. Will you? Jim Denison

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The riches Jesus desires to share with you are eternal riches, which cannot be measured by temporal things like gold or silver. Dan Shock

Quotes You Can Use

God is working in you because you are His workmanship. May we yield to His touch.

A man is not finished when he is defeated. He is finished when he quits. Dan Shock

Jesus’ presence in the world offers hope to all.

Human happiness and moral duty are inseparably connected. George Washington

Affliction often results in our greatest spiritual growth. Dan Shock

Don’t be afraid to start all over again. This time you are not starting from scratch. You are starting from experience.

God is too good to be unkind and He is too wise to be mistaken. And when we cannot trace His hand, we must trust His heart. Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Bad companions ruin good character. 1 Cor 15:33

God has already prepared the way. Now He is just preparing you.

It is the duty of every man, as far as his ability extends, to detect and expose delusion and error. Thomas Paine

We have roadmaps back to traditional America. We just need to follow them. Michael Smith

Without God, we can only bluff our way through unknown territory; with God, we can see The Master’s plan and be part of the solution. Dwight Short

There are many things that I don’t know or understand… but I do know the importance of trusting an unknown future to a known God. Marty Stubblefield

Morality may keep you out of jail, but only the Gospel will keep you out of hell.

It is through the Word of God that I gain truth about God and about myself. Dan Shock

The Gospel is only good if it gets there in time. Carl Henry

Not all those who wander are lost. J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings

Selected portions of Thoughts On Life can also be read at TheLife.com.

Your feedback is welcome and if you want to be taken off the mailing list a simple e-mail will do it. Feel free to pass this along to others and to contribute your ideas and thoughts. Address all items and comments to [email protected]. © Thoughts on Life Copyright 2024