by Nigel Pink | Apr 20, 2020 | Articles, Testimonies
Throughout history, from the shut gates of Eden to the present, there has been disease. Disease literally means discomfiture, and each bacterium and virus, God-made and God-given, is divinely designed to discomfort men and women at ease with themselves. God says through his prophet, Amos: When disaster comes to a city, has not the Lord caused it? (Amos 3:6b) And through Isaiah: I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things. God uses many agents; he uses wind, rain and fire. He ignites volcanoes and shakes the foundations of mountains with earthquake. He commands disaster and calamity. To think otherwise, can only mean one of two things; either God is not omnipotent or that he is indifferent. Both positions would require us to find an alternative object for worship. With the former, we would necessarily seek the higher power; and for the latter, there can be no use for a careless deity. That is all very well, but to what purpose is this suffering? Unless we trust God there can be no good purpose. We must know: The Lord is righteous in all his ways and kind in all his works. (Psalm 145:17) Unless we trust God to act in our best interests, hardship is the product of an indifferent cosmos. It can only have meaning if God purposively directs the hardship: …do not despise the Lord’s discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the Lord reproves him whom he loves… (Proverbs 3:11-12) Any agent, however unpleasant, painful or inconvenient is visited on us by God, not randomly or cruelly but restoratively and redemptively. Regretfully for humankind, correction can only be achieved by agents...
by Joe Bradley | Apr 7, 2020 | Articles, Mentors Corner
For several years I’ve always operated under the MO (modus operandi) of having a Steps-to-Peace with God in my back pocket, blazer pocket, car, office, and… well you get it – on my person/within reach at all times. You never know when God will decide it is the right time and gives me a chance to use it. I drove (essential service) onto our school campus in Nashville, Tennessee this morning to find it completely empty. No one there. Not a single car – except our parked busses that just three weeks ago were providing transportation for hundreds of kids from 44 different zip codes. The school and campus have been shut down by our Governor, who has issued a Safe-at-Home Order through the end of April. After signing the utility and healthcare checks, I went to pull my office door shut behind me, and asked myself this question: “…what am I leaving behind that will be absolutely essential in the days ahead?” The Holy Spirit prompted me immediately – grab all your Steps-to-Peace with God. In the last several weeks I’ve had numerous conversations with men who are scared to death – literally. Men who in the past have put on a good façade and appeared to have life under control. They have managed to skirt the life and death conversation like the plague in the past. Well, now that the plague is here, I’m finding a different audience… and much more receptive. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:1-2, “And when I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming...
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