“Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30) I often think of this verse when I am weary or burdened about some trial through which I am going. In this world, it seems all too frequent of an occasion. I guess the […]

“Now Joshua, the son of Nun sent out two men from Acacia Grove to spy secretly, saying, ‘Go, view the land, especially Jericho’. So they went, and came to the house of a harlot named Rahab, and lodged there.” (Joshua 2:1) We often name our children after some of the heroes in the Bible: Joshua, Caleb, Ruth, Sarah. Yet we never hear of a child named Jezebel or Rahab for obvious reasons. Who in the world would name a child after a prostitute? Interestingly, Rahab was an Old […]

“After this, Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but secretly, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took the body of Jesus.” (John 19:38) In spite of his role in the crucifixion story, we don’t know much about Joseph of Arimathea. The Bible has very little to say about him. But what it does record is a story of a miraculous transformation. We do know that he was […]

“Wisdom is with aged men, and with length of days, understanding.” (Job 12:12) When I was in the hospital in 2008, I had some unfinished business to conduct from my bedside and asked my secretary to request a visit from several of the county commissioners for whom I worked. One of the commissioners who came to see me is a pastor and one of the wisest public officials with whom I have worked over the last 38 years. When he entered my room and took a seat, he […]