Radical Lifestyle Change

For Jesus’ disciples following him meant leaving everything else behind. We don’t know a lot about their personal lives and what they left behind, but what we do know is they had to leave it all behind and make a radical lifestyle change to follow Him. Read these passages from Luke and then the Exploration […]

Meet the New Believers Bible

Becoming a Christian is a glorious thing. Figuring out what being a Christian means in everyday life can be a bit daunting. There are new ideas to absorb, a whole new vocabulary to learn, and then there’s the Bible. It’s not in chronological order, and more than a little of it can seem just plain […]

Giving God Our Best

It’s amazing how challenges and struggles that the men and women in the Bible faced are often similar to the ones we face today. Though the setting and context can be different, the heart issue is often very much the same. Read  from the Christian Basics Bible about Haggai’s struggle to get the returning exiles to get […]

In the King’s Court

New situations are often a challenge. Starting a new job, first day of school or moving around the world, being plucked from what we know and understand can leave us feeling vulnerable and unsettled. Read from the Wayfinding Bible about how Daniel and his friends responded after being forcefully taken from their homes and thrust […]

Wayfinding Bible – The Backstory

I love anything that is “behind the scenes.” There used to be a show on the radio called The Rest of the Story hosted by a man named Paul Harvey. Even though I was little I couldn’t get enough of it. I wanted to know more. Whether building a bridge, creating Disneyland or inventing a […]

Are You a Basic Believer?

The world goes by at a million miles an hour, and it seems to go faster and become more complicated at every turn. It’s not at all hard to get distracted, disgruntled, and even disillusioned. We chase so hard after the things that we think we are supposed to—success, respect, love, money, whatever. We adopt […]

Moral and Spiritual Cleansing

“Because we have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that can defile our body or spirit. And let us work toward complete holiness because we fear God.” 2 Corinthians 7:1, NLT Purification rites were common in traditional African religions. Washing and cleansing rituals served as ways to be freed from curses […]

Real Freedom Found Behind Real Bars

Women in Prison Unlock Hope and Healing with The Life Recovery Bible By Stephen Arterburn Editor, The Life Recovery Bible I was raised in Bryan, Texas, so I did not think it was unusual to be opening a letter from a woman who lived in Brazos County near Bryan. What follows was anything but usual. She […]

Spotlight on Samaritan Woman

“‘Please, sir,’ the woman said, ‘give me this water! Then I’ll never be thirsty again, and I won’t have to come here to get water.’” John 4:15, NLT The Samaritan woman was an outcast. Samaritans were despised by Jews, and women in that culture had a lower status than men. Because of her reputation, this […]

The New Covenant

Jeremiah 30–33 stands out in its optimistic view of Israel’s future. The high point of this section (31:31‑34) is the announcement that the Lord God will form a new covenant with his people. The key affirmation of the Sinai covenant was, “I will be their God, and they will be my people” (31:33; see also […]