Joe Barnett

A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.    —Proverbs 14:30 What osteoporosis does to the body, envy does to the spirit—it cripples its victim. “Wrath is cruel and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?” (Prv 27:4). Unchecked, the end result of envy is […]

I will trust, and will not be afraid; for the Lord God is my strength and my song.                               —Isaiah 12:2 To Abram, God said, “Do not be afraid . . . I am your shield” (Gn 15:1). To Joshua, God

Let light shine out of darkness.             —2 Corinthians 4:6 He left his San Francisco apartment, walked to the Golden Gate Bridge, and jumped to his death. He was thirty-one years old. A suicide letter on the dresser in his apartment said, “I’m going to walk to the bridge. If

I know you by name and you have found favor with me.         —Exodus 33:12 “Noah found favor in the sight of the Lord” (Gn 6:8). Noah was a farmer, not a carpenter. Building a boat chewed up decades of his life. Saying “Yes” to God’s plan meant saying “No” to his

At the name of Jesus every knee will bow.                           —Philippians 2:10 Real-time coverage and constant reruns made it impossible to escape the coronation of King Charles III. Thousands of soldiers, elaborate carriages, clerical regalia, Royal Air Force flyover—and Charles’ five-pound solid gold

I will set out and go back to my father.                            —Luke 15:18 In his book Sky Pilot, Ralph Connor tells of a young man who deserted his Christian home in Scotland and strayed to a far country of sin and shame. As

In him we have redemption through his blood.                                   —Ephesians 1:7 In his mid-twenties, William Cowper was so conscience-stricken that he twice attempted suicide. “My sin! My sin!” lamented Cowper. “Oh, for some fountain open for my cleansing.” Reading

You will shine among [a crooked generation] like stars in the sky.           —Philippians 2:15 You—yes, you—are the salt of the earth and light of the world (Mt 5:13, 14). Without salt, food is bland. Your life—as salt—should present Christianity as desirable, not distasteful; as delightful, not disagreeable. Leaving people with

Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.    —Ecclesiastes 9:10 Author John Erskine’s music teacher counseled him to grab a few minutes of practice whenever he could rather than waiting for big blocks of time. Erskine made it a lifetime habit. He allegedly wrote his best-known work, The Private Life

My soul is crushed with grief.                    —Mark 14:33 In Gethsemane, Jesus “began to be filled with horror and deep distress. ‘My soul is crushed with grief,’” he told his three best friends. Bible scholar R.C.H. Lenski wrote, “We should not think that the rapid approach of