Message: In 1 Samuel God told the prophet that he was going to see the man he would anoint to be king at a particular time and place. A day later anunassuming Saul of Kish (and his servant) had come... Continue reading →

In first Samuel 8 the prophet Samuel was getting old so he appointed his sons to judge over Israel. They were not honorable men and were already taking bribes, perverting justice and abusing their power so Israel rejected this idea.... Continue reading →

Message:  In Samuel 7 the Israelites began seeking God 20 years after the ark had been returned to them Samuel the prophet said “If you are returning to God with all your heart get rid of your foreign gods and... Continue reading →

Message:  In 1 Samuel 6 the Philistines had possession of the ark of the covenant for 7 months. They had moved it from city to city to see if it would be accepted in their land somewhere because they were... Continue reading →

Message:  In 1 Samuel 4 God allowed the Philistines to defeat Israel. After the defeat they brought the ark of the covenant with them expecting that bringing the presence of God with them would bless them and ensure a victory.... Continue reading →

Message:  Revelation 2 describes the vision John had of a visit to heaven where he saw Jesus and was told to write down the things he saw and heard. He scribed letters to 7 churches. All of the letters commended... Continue reading →

Message:  In 1 Samuel 2 the little boy that was dedicated to the temple was beginning to hear from God. He wasn’t sure what it was at first, so he kept responding to Eli the priest. After a few times... Continue reading →

Message:  Jude is another one-chapter book (or really a letter) written to the church. Reading it gives the impression that he is talking about unsaved people living in sin but really he is talking about people who identify themselves as... Continue reading →

Message: In 1 Samuel 1 There was a woman named Hannah who was barren. She was deeply anguished over it and when she came to the temple with her sacrifice to pray she vowed to God that if he would... Continue reading →

Message:  In Ruth 4 we read the finale to the story of Ruth & Naomi, except that it wasn’t the finale at all. It was just the beginning. The details are difficult to understand without knowing a little bit of... Continue reading →

Message:  In1 John 5 John was talking about what it means to know God. It’s so much more than believing in God because it requires a response of obedience from us. It’s not enough to say that we know God... Continue reading →

Message: In Ruth 2 Ruth decides to go to a field and harvest grain behind the workers. There were laws about leaving behind pieces in the field for the poor and the foreign to eat. This was necessary for their... Continue reading →

Message: In Ruth 1 we read about Naomi, who lost her husband and then both of her sons. Death is hard enough, but in those times, women were not able to sustain themselves. They had to have a husband or... Continue reading →

Message: In 1 John 2 John was answering many of the things that we often wrestle with in our minds. It almost sounded like he was talking in circles as he clarified that we are not to intentionally and freely... Continue reading →

Message:  Yesterday we read the very difficult chapter in Judges 19 and today we continue on to see how it was handled. Where we left off reading, the Levite man had taken his concubine’s raped, abused and unresponsive body home,... Continue reading →

Message:  Judges 18 tells one of the most disturbing stories I know of in the bible. Every time I read it I feel sick and I pray for understanding because it’s not one of those stories you can explain away... Continue reading →

Message: Today I found another interesting parallel between what we read in Judges 18 and what we read in 2 Peter 2. In Judges 18 there had been a young Levite who was traveling in a foreign land. The Levites... Continue reading →

Message: In 2 Peter 1 Peter seems to be talking to Gentile believers because he is confirming them as “those who have obtained a faith of equal privilege with ours through the righteousness of our God and savior Jesus Christ.”... Continue reading →

Message: Judges 16 is the ending to the fascinating, but sad story of Samson. He was marked for great things even before he was born. His mother abstained from certain things during her pregnancy and he took a Nazirite vow... Continue reading →

Message: In 1 Peter 4 we continued reading about suffering. Since chapter 4 is a continuation of chapter 3 we had left off reading about the suffering of Christ in the flesh. Peter challenges us that Christ suffered with purposeful... Continue reading →