“Those who were full have hired themselves out for bread, but those who were hungry have ceased to hunger. The barren has borne seven, but she who has many children is forlorn.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
Put yourself in Hannah’s shoes for a moment. If you are a woman there is a chance you can. She had been barren for years. In spite of much effort, childbearing remained painfully elusive. Meanwhile the woman she was forced to be with all the time seemed to be able to get pregnant at the drop of a hat. They each had the thing the other desired most, though: Peninnah, children, and Hannah, Elkhanah’s heart. Peninnah could at least take solace in her many children. Hannah merely endured the constant scorn of her rival and wondered why God hated her so much. And then she was pregnant. Read the rest…
“Jonathan said to the young man who carried his armor, “Come, let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised. It may be that the Lord will work for us, for nothing can hinder the Lord from saving by many or by few.”” (ESV – Read the chapter)
Jonathan was nothing if not brave. He had already led an attack on a Philistine garrison which had put his nation in the place that it was. Now he was going to attack another whole garrison with nobody but his armor bearer (which was kind of like a caddie for a golfer) and one sword between them. All of this while his father and the rest of the nation were cowering back in their camp wondering what they were going to do. Read the rest…
“On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to Peninnah his wife and to all her sons and daughters. But to Hannah he gave a double portion, because he loved her, though the Lord had closed her womb.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
We live in a day when the understanding of what marriage is at a definitional level is being lost. We used to know, but as we have gradually jettisoned the cultural influence of the Christian worldview we are losing it. An example of this is the issue of polygamy. Read the rest…
“And all Israel heard it said that Saul had defeated the garrison of the Philistines, and also that Israel had become a stench to the Philistines. And the people were called out to join Saul at Gilgal.” (ESV – Read the chapter)
What we see over the course the of the next three chapters is the unraveling of Saul. It starts small, but there are cracks in his image almost immediately. Here we see one of the first. Read the rest…
Evil is present everywhere in our world. We can’t escape it. We can only try and deal with the aftermath. This fact has long seemed deeply at odds with the idea of a good and loving God. The problem of evil is one of the thorniest challenges that has long seemed a roadblock to the Christian faith. In this new series, Grace in Hard Times, with the help of the book of Job, we are going to examine through the context of this epic story one powerful answer to the problem. In this first part of the conversation, we start with a bit of perspective.
What to Do When the Wheels Fall Off
A few years ago the news came out that Elizabeth Elliot had passed away at age 88. Elliot had been serving the Lord in various capacities for nearly her entire life. What she is perhaps best known for, though, is having been married for a short time to Jim Elliot. Jim was every bit as dedicated a servant of the Lord as Elizabeth was, but his story did not end in the same way hers did. In 1955, Jim and four other missionaries, including Nate Saint, were attempting to make contact with the Huaorani tribe deep in the jungles of Ecuador. After making several initial peace offerings by lowering gifts in a bucket from their plane, the pair finally decided it was time to make personal contact with the tribe. On the morning of January 3, 1956, they landed and met with some of the tribe members for the first time. They were received with excitement and it was looking like things were going to go smoothly. This road for the advance of the Gospel was appearing most promising. But just five days later everything fell apart. When the tribe warriors came out of the woods that morning to the Amazonian beach the missionaries were using as a landing strip and campsite, they did not come for peace. They came to shut down this outsider intrusion into their private lives. Nate, Jim, and the three other men with them were murdered in cold blood, speared to death by the Huaorani warriors. They each left behind a wife and a total of 10 kids among them. These five men had committed their lives to serving Jesus and advancing the Gospel regardless of the costs. They were selflessly committed to this goal and yet this was their end. Read the rest…
The Nexus 