If you Google “the Bible” and “justice,” you’ll find lots of websites that walk you through the story of Joseph (the guy who had the coat of many colors), you’ll find mentions of mercy, and there will be a lot of Psalms. You might stumble across the mention of Biblical justice.
Read MoreIn Happy Valley, South Australia, Travis and Pixi Johnson call 72 Candy Road their home-away-from-home. Built in the 1800s, the little old church sits proudly on the corner, sheltered by peppercorn trees and besides a grassy hill often dotted with kangaroos.
Read MoreWe’ve all experienced that sinking feeling when you’ve messed up yet again and did the thing you told God you wouldn’t do anymore. You know you shouldn’t have, and for a while, you did so good, but then a hard day or something triggers you and the flesh wins out. And in that moment, the enemy will tell you that you’re the only one like that; like everyone else has it figured out but you’re the only one constantly struggling. Yet, here we have Apostle Paul saying, “For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” So, if a man like that struggled with this too, where do we find the hope? Let’s study that this week.
Read MoreThe most daunting portion of mission work is often the first step of the journey. It can make any potential missionary candidate to sweat a little, if not a lot, over any number of things that can crop up. There are so many questions, and a slew of potential unknowns.
Read MoreWe’ve got a responsibility as artists, creatives, writers and the like to handle the Great Commission with care. So what are we doing about it?
Read MoreYou really couldn’t have thought the story was over...right?
Read MoreWhat does mission work look like now, after a year of most everything being shut down? This is a question I’ve been pondering lately. When we hear the word “missions”, most of us think of someone living far off, possibly even in another country. Today, I believe it looks like that, plus something a little different.
Read MoreUp to now, Paul has repeatedly talked about how we don’t live by the law anymore. Such teaching had the same reaction back then that many Christians do today: religious rules are bad, so we don’t need the law anymore. Such thinking then leads to wanting to live however we please. So, where does the law fit into a Christian’s life? Let’s study that this week.
Read MoreFor as long as I can remember, insecurity has been a part of my life. As a child, I had a skin disease called vitiligo, which causes loss of color that appears in patches. Fortunately, these blotches have become far less noticeable as I’ve grown up in the desert sun, but during junior high, I was incredibly insecure about my pale skin. I had ultra-white patches on the eyelids which made it look like I was constantly wearing eyeshadow and I always had to wear twice as much sunscreen as everyone else and constantly take breaks during my soccer games to reapply. Until wearing make-up became acceptable and age-appropriate, I would hate seeing myself in the mirror.
Read MoreI lean my head back, spread out my arms and legs and allow the water to softly suspend me on the surface. I’m not swimming, forcing forward motion, or treading water, barely keeping my head above water. I’m floating: free to rest, be still and simply be. I welcome the weightlessness and wonder why I don’t float more often. Floating, in the water and out in the world, both takes faith and renews my faith. And I’m beginning to believe faith is a float.
Read MoreRecently, I’ve been thinking about what it means to live a life worthy of the Lord’s calling. It’s easy to believe that my work or circumstances define me; when, in fact, I know in my heart that true salvation comes by grace through faith and not by works (Ephesians 2:8-9).
Read MoreAt least a couple of days each week, I feel nervous as I drive to work. This has been an issue since I graduated from college. In the past year, I’ve switched careers from being a middle school teacher to being a behavior tech working with kids who have autism. While some of my worries are a little different now, I’m still concerned that some random, unpredictable event will happen, and I won’t know how to handle it in the moment.
Read MoreThis week, Paul brings in another analogy to explain our relationship to God and sin: marriage. Let’s study how Paul connects these things.
Read MoreMission statements may feel corporate and you might wonder what role they have in a Christian’s life, but here’s the thing: if you do not have a clear destination and purpose for your time here on earth, life will just pass you by. Today, let’s talk about what a mission statement is and why you need one.
Read MoreIt’s easy to forget that everything we wear is made by living, breathing, human beings. I grew up believing that my garments were made by some mass factory machine, blissfully forgetting about the hearts and hands that contributed to each item in my closet. How often do we look at our labels and ask, “Who made my clothes?”
Read MoreThis month, our theme in Tirzah Magazine is justice and missions. Missionary work is often bucketed into just one category: overseas missions. But what if we’re called to missions work in one way or another, whether it is at home or abroad?
Read MorePaul makes a big statement in this week’s passage: you’re either slave God or sin. In today’s world of a watered down Gospel, some people may try to tell you that there’s a middle ground: that you can live as you please without being a slave to God or to sin. Let’s study what the Bible has to say about this.
Read MoreYou’ve heard the warning. Beware of the guy who wants you for your body. Watch for the one who leads you closer to the Lord. Run from the one who looks at you with lust. Well, I have a new warning for you.
Read More2020 was quite the year for all of us. The word “unprecedented” seemed to describe the entire twelve months in a nutshell. For some, it meant doing church on Facebook Live, for others it included getting married on Zoom. Some folks suffered great loss being laid off from their jobs, or endured the death of a loved one from Covid-19, or both. When we rang in 2021, there seemed to be a glimmer of hope that 2020 was over and that everything would change as soon as the clock struck midnight.
Read MoreI grew up singing a song in chapel at school entitled; “He Makes All Things Beautiful in His Time.” It’s a beautiful song giving me, and many others, hope to look beyond our present situations to have the courage in believing for a better turnout of events than our family of origin, our education, our own home churches and all the worldly wisdom and experiences we could set us up for.
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