-
‘Through the Gates of Splendor’
BY JACK WARD One of the most influential Christian women of the 20th century, Elisabeth Elliot, has died. Elliot, the Christian author and speaker whose husband, Jim, was killed during their short-lived but legendary missionary work among unreached tribes in eastern Ecuador in the 1950s, passed away Monday, June 15, at age 88. She wrote…
-
A treasure inside
BY JACK WARD As Postmaster, I was in the package delivery business for 37 years. People either love or hate getting packages. But almost always they contain a treasure inside. The No. 1 phrase I have heard when someone gets a package is “I don’t remember ordering anything? Should I open this?” They act scared…
-
Wear his coat well
BY JACK WARD Many years ago, an evangelist named Jakov arrived in a village in Serbia. He met an elderly man there named Cimmerman, and Jakov began to talk to him about the love of Christ. Cimmerman abruptly interrupted Jakov and told him that he wished to have nothing to do with Christianity. He reminded…
-
Trust in God
BY JACK WARD Psalm 7:1: “O Lord my God, in thee do I put my trust: save me from all them that persecute me, and deliver me.” Proverbs 3:5-6: “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy…
-
The strength to do what He requires
BY JACK WARD Many people have told me over the years that they would become a Christian if they could live it. I understand that people don’t want to start something they know they cannot finish. And I understand that everyone knows that we cannot be perfect. But I ask: Who is able to live…
-
Code Red
BY JACK WARD Pastor Bruce D. Weaver and his wife drove to pick up their son from Vacation Bible School. The sky was growing dark and there was a storm watch in effect, but no rain was falling yet. The theme of their upcoming Vacation Bible School was Noah’s ark and the flood, so he…
-
‘What’s So Amazing About Grace’
BY JACK WARD Why would God go to all the trouble to endure our bad choices and our flagrant sinning in order to have a relationship with us? Hear the story of the lost son from the modern setting as told by Philip Yancey in his book “What’s So Amazing about Grace.” Yancey tells the…
-
A boy waits for the bus
BY JACK WARD There’s an old story of the boy who stood on a sidewalk, waiting on a bus. A man walking by spotted the boy and gave him some gentle instruction. “Son,” he said, “if you’re waiting on the bus, you need to move to the street corner. That’s where the bus stops for…
-
‘unChristian’
BY JACK WARD In the book “unChristian,” David Kinnaman, president of the Barna Group, discusses some disheartening research concerning the failure of Christians in our day to remain distinct: “In virtually every study we conduct, representing thousands of interviews every year, born again Christians (talking about people who say they have made a personal commitment…
-
Enough
BY JACK WARD Missionary Gregory Fisher writes, “What will he say when he shouts?” “The question took me by surprise. I had already found that West African Bible College students can ask some of the most penetrating questions about minute details of Scripture. ‘Reverend, I Thessalonians. 4:16 says that Christ will descend from heaven with…
