Author: Scott

Though he slay me, I will hope in him . . . Job 13:15 Most of my suffering has been self-inflicted, so I’m not well versed in what to say when bad things happen unfairly. If anyone ever suffered in a way that seems unjust (to me) though, it was Job, who endured incredible loss, precisely…
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He will deliver you from six troubles; in seven no evil shall touch you. Job 5:18 We’ve all been there. A friend goes through something terrible and in our desire to comfort – and to say something spiritual – we offer up ill-conceived advice. We don’t mean to be insensitive, but we compound misery by suggesting…
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The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. Job 1:21 When bad things happen, most of us want to know why. When times are good, we thank God, but when life falls apart, we want a reason. We like formulaic answers, so we may turn to passages…
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Whom would the king delight to honor more than me? Esther 6:6 Today’s passage on pride, as always, is for me. Though I find other’s pride so ugly, I find I am often completely comfortable with my own. In the story, Haman was elevated to a powerful position by the king of Persia, but Mordecai, a…
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I will go to the king . . . and if I perish, I perish. Esther 4:16 I hear this not infrequently in Christian circles, regarding drug addiction: It’s simple. Just believe in Christ and your free. What’s odd to me, is that those I hear saying it, still struggle with food, tobacco or pride, just…
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Who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?  Esther 4:14 Looking back, it’s easy to see God’s hand working through my addiction. God used the miserable consequences of my toxic choices to change me. Now, I’m able to share Christ’s transforming power with others. In retrospect, it’s…
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If you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Esther 4:14 When I go to the local jail for Sunday morning bible study, I would love to say that it is simply out of some noble desire to share…
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I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. . . Now I was cupbearer to the king.  Nehemiah 1:4,11 I don’t usually refer to current events in this blog, but one aspect of a recent tragedy has stuck with me. As the horrific details of multiple killings emerged on the news, several public…
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I was ashamed to ask the king for a band of soldiers and horsemen to protect us against the enemy on our way, since we had told the king, “The hand of our God is for good on all who seek him . . . “  Ezra 8:22 I still struggle with the difference between…
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He did not listen to the words of Neco from the mouth of God . . . 2 Chronicles 35:22 When I first attended Alcoholics Anonymous, I was irritated by their insistence that I had a persistent problem. I believed that once I came to Christ, I was set free. Other Christians confirmed for me that…
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