Which Parts of the Bible Does Your Doctrine Make Invisible?

Written by Tony Cooke

I was recently pondering all of the conflicting views that Christians have about a wide variety of doctrinal issues. While I believe that unity regarding the essentials of faith is...well, essential, it never ceases to amaze me how many become hyper-rigid over doctrinal positions that the Bible doesn’t really seem to be all that rigid about. 

Since the first time I heard Blaise Pascal quoted, I have appreciated his statement, “In essentials, unity. In non-essentials, liberty. And in all things, charity.” Of course, such wisdom is quite different than the attitude I had following a wonderful encounter with the Lord back in 1977. Possessing more zeal than wisdom, I was eager to not only defend my new-found beliefs, but also to correct anyone who disagreed with me and to convince them just how right I was.

Talk Like God!

"Whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith." (Mark 11:23)

Jesus didn't say, "Whosoever shall speak to God about this mountain." He said we should speak directly to the mountain the desired end result.

From a worldly point of view, that sounds foolish. But 1 Corinthians 1:27 explains that God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise. It's always going to sound foolish to the world when a Christian talks as if what God has promised is reality, especially when those promises seem to contradict the natural evidence around us. But if you want to keep the enemy defeated, that's the kind of talking you'd better be doing.

God Wants Us Well

Written by Larry Ollison, Ph.D

Did you know God wants us well? He wants us healthy. When the Hebrews went out of Egypt, the Bible says there was not a feeble one among them. Once I heard a radio preacher explain away healing using this story. He said God told Moses to leave the feeble people behind because they would just slow them down as they fled from Egypt. 

Sometimes man will twist the scripture and go to great lengths to prove what he thinks is true rather than accepting God's Word just as it is written. God did not tell Moses to leave the sick ones behind. He healed them all and then sent them out of Egypt. 

All through the scriptures, God has demonstrated that His will is for man to be healthy. He didn't create Adam with a bad leg. He didn't create Eve with asthma or arthritis. He created them whole and that is His perfect will for us. 

Psalm 103:3 says He heals all our diseases. Do you believe that is true? God's Word says it. Either it is true or God's Word is lying. God does not lie. It must be true. 

Nuggets of Wisdom for Successful Living

Written by Dave Meyer

God wants you to know that if you will do what you can do, He will do what you can't do.

The Lord God is my Strength, my personal bravery, and my invincible army: He makes my feet like hinds' feet and will make me to walk [not to stand still in terror, but to walk] and make [spiritual] progress upon my high places [of trouble, suffering, or responsibility]!(Hab. 3:19) 

• A position of power can be obtained in a Christian's life when he has learned to be encouraged in a discouraging situation.
• Are you living on the ragged edge or the cutting edge?
• Visions never start with completion; they do start with commitment.
• Extended inactivity is disguised procrastination.
• Obedience delayed is disobedience!

Your mouth is the doorway to the expression of your soul.

For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the breath of life (soul) and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature, exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart.
(Heb. 4:12)

You Are Your Spouse's 'Angel'!

Written by Danny Gutierrez 

As a child, do you remember watching Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse cartoons? Some of my favorite episodes were the ones where Donald found himself trying to impress Daisy by babysitting his three nephews, but they would drive him absolutely crazy! 

He would plop down in frustration, and two figures would inevitably appear to give him advice: an angel on his right shoulder and a devil on his left. The angel would give him good advice, and the devil, bad.

Well, God has called us to be our spouse's "angel." We all make decisions every day, and the person who hopefully has the most influence our choices is our spouse.

So, when your spouse asks you for your opinion, are you most often "the angel" or "the little devil"? Do you give him or her solid advice based on God's Word, or do you say whatever sounds best at the moment? 

It's Never Too Late For God

Written by Lisa Comes

I know a young couple who went through a really traumatic marriage tragedy. They were even Christians, active in church and the work of the ministry. But the devil began to attack their marriage. 

The husband became discouraged and drifted into sin. He slipped into worldly practices. One thing led to another. Finally, he got involved in adultery. He left home. In spite of his actions, his wife didn't want a divorce.

But he divorced her anyway. So this wife thought, "Well, I'll just go on with my life. I'll try to be happy. I'll do something for God." She was thinking about going to Bible school, traveling and doing things for the Lord. And God saw her heart.

She thought it was too late - it was all over. The devil told her there was nothing in God's Word that pertained to her situation. She didn't know where there was healing for her marriage - wrecked by divorce.

The Two-Sided Secret of a Satisfying Marriage

Written by Mac Hammond


"My needs aren't being met." Once you and your spouse really start listening to each other, that is probably what you're going to hear.

It's the battle cry of 99 percent of the people who come to me for marriage counseling. Physical needs. Spiritual needs. Emotional and intellectual needs. Men and women both have them. God designed us that way.

God initially created man perfect and whole with all of the components of both the male and female personalities housed in one body of flesh called Adam. When God took woman out of man, it left gaps in each of them. Each became incomplete without the other.

Thus, ever since the Garden of Eden, men and women have needed each other. And when they come together in marriage, according to God's plan, those needs are met. At least, they are supposed to be met.