"when I heard these words … I sat down and wept and mourned". Sorrow is never far away from those whose concern is for their fellowmen. If we would seek to love our neighbour as ourself our heart will go out to those destitute and in distress. Nehemiah heard that his beloved capital city lay ... Read more

"Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house". A help-meet was needed before the Fall and is still needed after it. Children can complete domestic bliss, but some are called to forego children of their own. Others are called to care for the orphans and destitute. Fruitfulness in the woman of the ... Read more

"Behold, therefore, the goodness and severity of God". It is a common error to think there can be true goodness without severity, just as we may think severity disregards true goodness. The goodness of the Lord is felt by all His creatures - in the life He gives and sustains, in the enjoyment of the ... Read more

"God himself shall be with them". The closing chapters of the Book of Revelation describe a scene that none in this life can really begin to appreciate. We can, however, sense the peace and tranquillity that prevails in these chapters after all the wrath and fury of what we read earlier. Not least among the ... Read more

"a servant girl". She probably never aspired to anything much more than a servant taking orders from others. But her words caused Peter to fall badly. She said "You also were with Jesus of Nazareth" as he sat outside in her yard. All eyes would be upon him and he denied that he knew Jesus. ... Read more

"Great men are not always wise". The greatest of men are not perfect and though behaving in an exemplary manner and giving wise advice, there is likely to be a time when their example should not be followed nor their counsel heeded. Until our attention is drawn to the God-man, Christ Jesus and our gaze ... Read more

"make clean the outside". Clean outside is good for appearance, but it is the state of things inside that makes for impression. When God wants to see what you are like He looks at the heart. It was in order to cleanse the heart from sin that Jesus took our punishment and died on the ... Read more

"Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help". Jacob was a devious character - a likeable rogue, until you felt the sharp end of his bargains as Esau did. He even laid down a list of conditions for God to fill, in return for which he would make Jehovah his God. ... Read more

"howbeit our God turned the curse into a blessing". This referred to the curse Balaam was asked to pronounce on the Children of Israel. Mankind has been labouring beneath a curse ever since the Fall in Eden. An appreciation that it is the curse of sin makes for gratitude in accepting the blessing God has ... Read more

"it becomes unfruitful". The danger is to think that 'unfruitful' can never be a description of me. Here are a few causes of unfruitfulness (you can add to the list) in the Christian life: - an unhealthy interest in unproductive things, - an obsessive involvement in the things of the world, - stunted spiritual growth ... Read more