When was the last time you prayed fervently to God? What did you need? Did He answer in a way you expected?  When Hannah wanted a baby, she cried out to God with great earnestness so much that the priest Eli thought she was drunk. Hannah had confidence that God heard her prayer. She understood that one of the...

The story of Ruth is an incredible story. We see how gracious and good God is. We see the providential care God has for a woman who was not Jewish. She was from Moab—a descendant of Lot, not a child of Abraham. Yet, she became a recipient of God’s promise to Abraham because salvation is a gift and is...

Samson is one of those characters in the Bible you don’t easily forget. He was strong, handsome, successful, and blind. He is what in literature is called an anti-type. He is a type of Christ in all the wrong ways. Samson was consecrated from an early age yet disobeyed his covenant promises and dishonored his parents. When tempted, he...

In the Book of Judges, we see a cycle of sin, oppression, repentance, rescue, obedience, and then back to sin. The condition of man’s heart when left to himself will “do what is right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25). Our own hearts lead us to sinful behavior that leads to enslavement to sin. Judges reveals who we are...

The Bible is a supernatural book filled with accounts of supernatural events. Dozens of miracles are recorded in the Bible. Each miracle points to a greater reality and reveals to us what God is like.   In the story of Israel’s crossing the Jordan, we see how God hears our cries and provides for us in miraculous ways. Throughout Israel’s...

Joshua was getting along in years, so he gathered the people at the place where God had made a promise to Abraham. (See Gen. 12:6-7.) Joshua wanted the people to remember and to live based on what they knew to be true about God: God can be trusted. He is good, and He is faithful.  Joshua issued a challenge:...