Joe Barnett

Remember how fleeting is my life.                       —Psalm 89:47 F.W. Boreham wrote forty-eight books, the last having been published in 1961. C.S. Lewis wrote more than sixty books, the last having been published in 1963. These two influential and prolific authors both confessed that the […]

Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.                            —Mark 6:50 Jesus’ disciples were in a frightful storm. They had expected him to join them on their lake crossing, but “Jesus had not yet come to them” (Jn 6:17). Where was he? Why

What is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.     —2 Corinthians 4:18 Babylon was once the most famous city in the world. Its Hanging Gardens was one of the Seven Wonders of the World. In 100 A.D., Ephesus had a population of 500,000. Its Temple of Artemis was the largest building

Oh, how I love your law! I meditate on it all day long.            —Psalm 119:97 Bible commentator Alfred Plummer referred to a lady who had acquired a collection of rare antiques worth several million dollars. Asked which of her possessions she valued most, she said, “I have a letter from

I praise you because you made me in an amazing and wonderful way.                  —Psalm 139:14 I’m grateful God answers prayer. I’m also thankful that he gives blessings we don’t pray for. Did you ask for oxygen any time in the past twenty-four hours? Didn’t think so. But

Live one day at a time.       —Matthew 6:34 Romancing the yesterdays or the tomorrows is a prescription for missing the joy of today. Are you immersed in memories of some yesterdays? You were young. Life was fun. Health was good. Those who have meant the most to you were alive and nearby.

[God’s mercies] are new every morning.                    —Lamentations 3:23 Today is the day to which all of your yesterdays have been pointing since the day of your birth—and the day from which all of your tomorrows will advance until the day of your death. God designed this

You don’t know what the day will bring.                            —Proverbs 27:1 What’s on your agenda today? Travel? Work? Meetings? Shopping? Cleaning? You brush your teeth, put on your clothes, and grab your to-do list—set on conquering your busy world by lunchtime. But it

I have acknowledged my ways and have turned my steps to your statutes.                 —Psalm 119:59 It flustered Peter when Jesus forced self-examination by asking him three times if he loved him. Peter pointed at John and asked, “What about him?’ Jesus said, in effect, “John is not

Calm down, and learn that I am God.                         —Psalm 46:10 In his book In Praise of Slowness, Carl Honoré encourages his readers to slow down and enjoy the “now.” “A big part of slowing down is doing less,” Honoré says. “Can’t do that,”