For many years, farmers used a tool called Tribulum, which was used to separate the weeds from the wheat. Currently, we use the word tribulation which is derived from the artifact that the ancient cultivators used to separate the good wheat for their harvest. In the same way, God uses the tool of tribulation (Pain and suffering) to mature, equip, and sanctify us of all the spiritual weeds in our lives. When Thomas Dorcey’s wife died in labor, Thomas felt completely alone in such terrible agony, and in his despair he exclaimed: “God, where are you? Why did this happen...

In the literary work entitled: “The Aeneid” by Virgil, he explained that when a wounded soldier returned from war, he could barely sand up on their feet. Virgil exclaimed these words of determination: “In spite of everything, this man continued to stand firm.” Frequently, when we encounter problems, trials, and tribulation, we tend to run away and quickly give up. However, the reality is that Christ came to give us peace in the midst of our chaos. The person that rises up victoriously in life is one who does not quit in battle and although wounded with marks and scars...

“Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to your care. Turn away from godless chatter and the opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge, which some have professed and in so doing have departed from the faith.”1Timothy 6:20-21 The popular ideologies of our time completely contradict and are incompatible with what the Word of God says in scripture. From sexuality to philosophy, from incorrect theories that are called sciences to finances, the world has utterly rebelled against what God has established. Oftentimes, we might have felt like we had to reevaluate our faith or at least reevaluate the application of...

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6As human beings, we are prone to plan our own lives. We set goals that we want to achieve, we work hard to obtain material goods, and we struggle to gain the approval of others. We strive to get promoted in our jobs in order to achieve either a higher income or a higher social status. However, working towards all of this fills our hearts with anxiety. In this frantic...

“Praise the Lord, my soul; all of my inmost being, praise his holy name. Praise the Lord, my soul, and forget not all his benefits”103:1-2 An integral aspect of our Christian life is worshipping God. However, in moments of turmoil and confusion when we do not understand what is happening, it becomes extremely difficult to worship. In these moments, there is no space in our hearts for worship and we tend to complain, become discouraged, and deeply sad. King David set a wonderful example of this. He was a man that experienced many painful moments in his life however, in...

Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay...

Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. -Ephesians 5:1-2 The new year has begun and many of us have resolutions we want to accomplish. As followers of Christ, we should take a moment to think about what we need to change in order to be more like him. In this passage, Paul encourages us to be imitators of God as his beloved children. These words are very difficult to understand. How can we...

“When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh.” Matthew 2:10-11 “A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. As she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears. Then she wiped them with her hair, kissed...

“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us whatever we ask we know that we have what we asked of him.” 1 John 5:14-15As humans, waiting on God can be very difficult for us. In the world that we live in, everything that we want can be acquired rapidly. For example, if we are hungry, we can order fast food and if we wanted any other thing, we could order it through the internet and it would arrive the...

Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6It has been told that a monk from long ago needed oil to plant a sapling. Worried about the development and growth of his plant, he prayed to God. In his prayer he said: “God, in order for the fragile roots to grow and develop well, there needs to be plenty of rain. Please send rain.” After hearing his prayer, God sent rain. Once again, the monk prayed and said:...