Steve’s Books
Category Archives: Encouragement
Images of God
God created us in His image, after His likeness (Genesis 1:26-27). That image encompasses all of us, our heart, soul, mind, and strength expressing love to the Creator of all. He made us to be image-bearers reflecting His glory to … Continue reading
A Rejected King
The elders of Israel asked the prophet Samuel to make a king over them like the other nations have. When Samuel prayed about this, the Lord replied, “they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should … Continue reading
The Kingdom, Power, and Glory
The “Our Father” prayer in Matthew 6:9-13 humbles me. The entire prayer is pointing us to see our need for the Lord in everything. The Father is exalted in heaven. We pray for His kingdom to come and replace the … Continue reading
Pen Pal Letter
I read with interest the quotes you had gathered about repentance, addiction, and other subjects to help you grow. They are really good quotes. I see one glaring problem with your quotes. First, read Romans 1:16, “For I am not … Continue reading
More to Follow
After seeing King Solomon’s riches and hearing his wisdom, the queen of Sheba said to him, “Behold, the half was not told me. You exceed in wisdom and prosperity the report which I heard” (1 Kings 10:7, NASB). What wonderful … Continue reading
Old Testament consequences in the New Testament times
While King Solomon stood before the people before the newly dedicated temple, he prayed for several scenarios in which they would need to pray before the temple of God’s presence. “When your people Israel are defeated before an enemy because … Continue reading
The Two Heads
In Romans 5:12-21, Paul introduces the idea of Adam being the head of humanity. That is, what Adam had was passed on to everyone else, as a free gift, as it were. Adam passed on sin and death to us … Continue reading
Thine Be the Glory, Risen, Conquering Son
The Swiss author of this hymn, Edmond Budry, originally wrote it in French. He beautifully captures the intimate connection Christ’s earthly body has with His resurrection glory. Thine be the glory, risen, conqu’ring Son; endless is the vict’ry Thou o’er death … Continue reading
Meditation: A Faith That Works, James 2:26
We’re familiar with James 2:26: “For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.” Do we know what it implies? James is talking about living life in a way that bears witness to … Continue reading
My Prayer List Benefits
I’ve been using a prayer list to keep my prayer times productive. Here are some of the blessings I’ve discovered after keeping to it almost every evening. These benefits are for anyone who wants a better prayer life!
Hark the Herald Angels Sing
Some of the most enduring hymns contain a treasure-trove of scripture framing the whole. So it is with “Hark the Herald Angels Sing.” It was written by Charles Wesley, with classical composer Felix Mendelssohn adding the tune. Charles, drawing from his … Continue reading
Make the Good News Known
In His last days on earth after His resurrection, Jesus’ final words included this commandment: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation” (Mark 16:15). In this statement, our Lord is revealing the scope of the … Continue reading
Thanksgiving in Israel
God gave several yearly feasts for Israel to observe as a nation. All the biblical feasts center on remembering the work of God in the history of the Jews. Most of the feasts are celebrations and times of thanksgiving. (None … Continue reading
Isaiah 8 Meditation: Signs and Wonders
This is my chapter breakdown for Isaiah 8: 1-8 Prophecy regarding Maher-shalal-hash-baz: Damascus and Samaria will fall by the Assyrian invasion soon9-15 Fear the Lord, not what the people fear16-18 Being a testimony to God19-22 Look to God and live, … Continue reading
America, America
Despite what you read in the media, it’s not about race: it’s not about White versus Black or any other people group. It’s about sin. Our national anthem prays: “America! America!/God shed His grace on thee,/And crown thy good with … Continue reading
Meditation: Called to speak the things of God, Isaiah 6
God was looking for someone to bear witness of the Lord to a Jewish people who would “Keep on looking, but do not understand” (Isaiah 6:9). That person will speak and the hearers will not respond. How would you like … Continue reading
What More Could God Have Done?
Sometimes we can invest a lot of our time and attention on a person or group, only to see no good results come from it. In Isaiah 5:1-7, the Lord recounts the care He took to form a successful vineyard. … Continue reading
Is Our Faith Real?
James 2:20-26 uses the story of Abraham to help us see if our faith is biblical faith, or if it’s something else. God told Abraham to go and offer his son Isaac on the mountain. This is the same God … Continue reading
Meditation, James 1
The “testing of your faith produces endurance” (James 1:3). God is using situations around us to apply pressure to us and our faith. Some of us think we’ll grow spiritually by reading something and understanding it. But the fruit of … Continue reading
A Father’s Gift
The Word of God is a declaration of the love of God the Father to His Son. God is Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, three persons in one God, what the Christians call the Trinity. This is how God describes … Continue reading
Meditation in Mark 8, A Deeper Healing
Some of the townsfolk brought a blind man to Jesus and urged Him to touch him (Mark 8:22-25). Here’s a blind man wondering, “Who is this stranger? What does He want? What is going on here?” Jesus, seeing the true … Continue reading
Becoming a People of Faith
This is another article in the series that addresses how the Word of God changes us. We want to be people of God. How does the Bible get us there? Hebrews 11:1 gives us important traits about the biblical faith … Continue reading
Letter to a Pen Pal
I had a thought. (I get those now and then.) People say the Bible is a handbook of life. But not quite. It doesn’t tell us which college to enter, which person to marry, which career to go into, right? … Continue reading
Meditation: “Love one Another” (1 Corinthians 13)
First Corinthians 13:1-8 has been oft quoted at weddings simply because its topic is love. But Paul the apostle did not have marriage in mind when he wrote this. He had church gatherings in view. First Corinthians 13 is the … Continue reading
Your God is Too Small
I’ve been reading a book for the second time since I rediscovered it in the bargain bin: Your God Is Too Small, by J.B. Phillips. What he wrote about Christians and their small love applies to what I’ve been reading … Continue reading
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The Incarnation of the Son of God
Before we can address the theme of the Son of God becoming flesh, we should remind ourselves of why he came to be born here in the first place. In the Garden of Eden, Adam chose the way of disobedience … Continue reading
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Come Before His Presence with Thanksgiving
The first three verses of Psalm 95 call us to sing, give thanks, and worship the LORD, Yahweh, the Rock of salvation, the great God, the great King above all gods. This God is distinct among all the man-made gods … Continue reading
NOTW
The flesh provides the entryways though which the world and the devil can enter. The eyes, ears, mind, senses—these are all underground tunnels through which the enemy may enter and we may be taken captive. What are you listening to? What are you thinking about? What are you watching? Whatever is not of God and His liberty is from the enemy. Are you a friend of the world or of God? Continue reading
Christ is Not Far Away
Christ is not far from us. “But the righteousness which is of faith says this, ‘Don’t say in your heart, “Who will ascend into heaven?” (that is, to bring Christ down); or, “Who will descend into the abyss?” (that is, … Continue reading
Letter to a pen pal, July 2020
Now as to prayer. You find great resistance to prayer from outside because Satan fears prayer. Through prayer and the teaching of the Spirit you take hold of all the resources of God to live a holy life that is … Continue reading
