“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.’ (Hebrews 12:1) There are times in my Christian walk when I wonder why I ever became a Christian. Salvation may have been free, but living the Christian life has cost me dearly. I’ve lost good friends, dropped some old habits, and stood up to speak against lifestyles to which I was […]

“Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it.” (Proverbs 22:6) The date was June 24, 1962. I was nine years-old and had just walked down the aisle of First Baptist Church in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, to profess my faith in Christ. After Sunday dinner that afternoon, a friend of my family gave me a Bible with an inscription that read, “To my little friend, Mike Ruffin: Today, June 24, 1962, you have opened your […]

“For she said to herself, ‘If only I may touch His garment, I shall be made well.’ But Jesus turned around, and when He saw her He said, ‘Be of good cheer, daughter; your faith has made you well.’ And the woman was made well from that hour.” (Matthew 9:21-22) I believe that every word in the Bible is the inspired word of God. I also believe all those parables and stories have a purpose to them. Each one of them has an important message, a spiritual truth […]

“He makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” (Matthew 5:45) When I came to know Jesus, I thought my problems would disappear. After all, the burden of sin had been lifted from my shoulders. The sense of euphoria I felt initially placed an unrealistic expectation of what God would do for me. When I came down, I realized I had been forgiven. However, the consequences from all those sinful choices I made were still […]