Joe Barnett

[We are] struck down, but not destroyed.                       —2 Corinthians 4:9 Life, like weather, is unpredictable. Sunshine, blue sky, gentle breeze. Nice. Then, boom! Clouds boil, wind blows, rain inundates. You’re suddenly in a teeth-jarring storm, a hurricane of disappointment and despair. I’m guessing that […]

I am with you always.   —Matthew 28:20 “I will be with you.” God said that to Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Isaiah, and Jeremiah. And Jesus said to his disciples: I am with you. Always. The promise is yours as well. Helen Malicoat put it this way: I was regretting the past and fearing

Do not worry about your life.              —Matthew 6:25 “You shall not commit adultery.” “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.” “You shall not murder.” “You shall not steal.” You may score an A+ on that test, having never landed on the wrong side

Give thanks to him and praise his name.                             —Psalm 100:4 We live in a nation that applauds the indomitable spirit; that nurtures the conviction that no matter where you are, there is no limit to where you can go; that no

This day the Lord will hand you over to me.    —1 Samuel 17:46 When fear attacks, you need to refocus from the source of your fear to the source of your power. Saul’s soldiers’ source of fear was the giant, Goliath. God was the source of their power. They forgot that, but David didn’t:

We get knocked down, but we get up again and keep going.       —2 Corinthians 4:9 “The price of success,” said Vince Lombardi, “is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task.” Today is

My peace I give you.          —John 14:27 It was Jesus’ last meal with his disciples before his crucifixion. “I will be with you only a little longer,” he said. While they sat in stunned sadness, he said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.” The next two days

Seek peace and pursue it.         —Psalm 34:14 Want a couple of sentences that can keep you in control? Try these: “I have the right to choose.” “I choose peace.” When some domineering person drives you to the limit of your endurance, say to yourself: I have the right to choose. I

People should . . . enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God.            —Ecclesiastes 3:13 When you were a kid, were you ever ordered to clean your plate because children were starving in some faraway place? You probably wondered how your empty plate could fill an

Let us come before him with thanksgiving.                                 —Psalm 95:2 Paul advises us to season our prayers with thanksgiving: “By prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God” (Phil 4:6). A dominant attitude eliminates a conflicting attitude because