The prosperity gospel claims that faith and obedience to God will bring earthly blessings and physical healing. God’s Word promises us every spiritual blessing through the Holy Spirit, but it also tells us that we will suffer and be persecuted for following Jesus. Jesus tells all His disciples to consider...
Rarely does gossip represent the full story, it’s simply the side of the story we like to talk about. Most people are drawn to gossip because it seems to build social credit. Yet we dislike being the target of gossip ourselves. God’s Word says that gossipers are like those who...
Most people go through life feeling alone. We may be surrounded by large crowds and people who care for us. We may intellectually know that God is always with us. Yet we can still feel lonely inside and silently long for a deeper connection with our fellow human beings. God...
The Bible talks a lot about God’s power. It also talks about the power He gives to those that believe in and obey Him. God’s power gives us the ability to rise above our circumstances, overcome sin, heal the sick, and destroy the works of Satan. In his letter to...
From young, we are all taught what manliness is all about – which usually involves being well-built, tough, and emotionally impenetrable. Taken one step further is the macho man who is full of bravado. The macho man will aggressively protect his “invincible” image and not back down from any confrontation....
Hatred seems inconsistent with a God who loves mankind immensely. Yet it is precisely because God loves us so much that He hates the evil attitudes and behaviours that keep us away from Him. Made in God’s image, we too have the propensity to hate. Hatred is a powerful “murder...
Jesus commands all His followers to love others perfectly. Yet this is something each one of us struggles to fully obey. We understand the commandment in our minds, but our hearts may be pulled by invisible strings towards things like fear, resentment, envy, and judgment instead. Romans 7 describes this...
“The use of fetal tissue from elective abortions is commonplace in the pharmaceutical industry and in medical research,” states an article from the National Center for Biotechnology Information in the US*. Many common vaccines, for instance, have been developed using the fetal tissues of two aborted foetuses from the 1960’s,...
God has created every human being with survival instincts. Suicide is not a natural choice. Research shows that most who survive suicide attempts do not attempt it again. Let us pray that no one acts impulsively and takes their own lives because suicide, or self-murder, separates us from God. As...
The Bible provides a lot of practical advice on money, including warnings about the things that bring financial poverty and spiritual curses. Our attitudes about money will always reveal the true nature of our hearts; whether we love God and love people more than riches. Here is a quick list...
The world chases after “bigger, better, faster, stronger” in the name of progress. We are told we can achieve anything as long as we try hard enough. Sadly, we can bring this same performance-based mentality into our relationship with God. We believe we can achieve spiritual “enlightenment” through our own...
Compassion is an amazing quality from God that enables us to foster deeper understanding and relationships, even with antagonistic people. By allowing the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with God’s loving compassion, we are able to move beyond anti-social behaviours to empathise with other people’s inner hurts and insecurities....
In the age of social media, every one of us feels entitled to our own opinion. In contrast, God’s Word tells us to submit to and obey our church and ministry leaders. Otherwise, we cause those whom God has appointed to watch over us to groan with sorrow. This would...
Both the poor and the rich face many temptations but the super wealthy face their own unique set of challenges, particularly when they unintentionally allow their wealth to define their identity and steer their lives. Jesus proclaimed that it is very hard for a rich person to enter the Kingdom...
Marriages suffer when husbands and wives don’t see each other as playing by the same team rules. The challenge is that everyone received their training in different families of origin. How can we find the best game strategy for us to win together as husband and wife, rather than dispute...
Perfectionists often have a hard time understanding God’s love, grace, and forgiveness towards us, because we feel like we haven’t done enough or been good enough. A deeply imprinted inner script convinces us that, “Anything less than excellent is not good enough.” Sadly, perfectionism obstructs our relationship with a God...
God owns and watches over everything on earth, including the world’s money. He is the One who gives us the ability to gather resources to earn money. Our Heavenly Father also knows that we have a tendency to mismanage our resources and be seduced by the more destructive aspects of money....
The Confucian belief of filial piety (孝, xiào) teaches entire societies to respect one’s parents, elders, and ancestors. Such traditions run through virtually all Chinese families. Confucianism has been embraced for its ability to foster harmonious households and societies through the implicit influence over individuals. Disavowing any of its man-made practices...
A major stumbling block for believers who suffer injustices is the belief that we have the right to retaliate and set things straight. We are told that “what goes around, comes around.” The world glorifies “heroes” who teach the “bad guys” a lesson. Never mind if we blindly leave a trail...
All food produced from God’s earth is good. The Bible points out that wine “gladdens the heart of man”. Unfortunately, mankind has a tendency to misuse God’s good gifts. Today, alcoholic binge drinking is socially tolerated and even glorified with stories of outlandish behaviour and missing memories. Many of us are unaware of the...