Joe Barnett

We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.   —2 Corinthians 4:18 “Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our […]

God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son.                    —John 3:16 The measure of love is how much it gives. Paul contends that God’s supreme love gift of his Son is the guarantee of all other gifts: “He who did not spare

We are [God’s] workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works.                  —Ephesians 2:10 The late Dr. Norvel Young often told people, “You’re doing more good than you know.” My friend Allen Isbell, who preaches for the Broadway church in Galveston, recently cited Young’s statement, saying he thought

God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.                   —2 Timothy 1:7 Self-control. You can’t succeed without it. No athlete consistently wins without it. No musician achieves excellence without it. No weight-loss program is maintained without it. No exercise regimen

Be completely humble and gentle.              —Ephesians 4:2 Cultivating gentleness is hard work—it isn’t a highly regarded virtue in our self-assertive age. The Greek word means “gentleness, humility, courtesy, considerateness” (Arndt-Gingrich). It’s an attitude that diminishes the drive for preeminence: “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather,

Well done, good and faithful servant.                      —Matthew 25:21 “Do you faithfully promise to be hers, and only hers, as long as you both shall live?” I asked. “I do,” he said. Eleven years later, a phone call informed me that he had lied. To her.

Let us do good to all people.         —Galatians 6:10 The opening lyrics of Velna Ledin’s hymn run this way: God is so good / God is so good / God is so good / He’s so good to me. Every meal, every night’s sleep, every possession, every pleasure, every moment is

Be kind and compassionate to one another.                       —Ephesians 4:32 Kindness. “I love that word,” said R.C. Sproul. “I want to be a kind person. I don’t want to be known for being mean. I hope it will be chiseled on my tombstone: ‘This was

Be patient, bearing with one another in love.                                 —Ephesians 4:2 Patience is a tough trait to cultivate. It calls for endurance, humility, restraint, tolerance, calmness, and resignation. It’s the staying power to endure hard knocks and obnoxious people—a refusal

Live in peace. And the God of love and peace will be with you.    —2 Corinthians 13:11 The legacy of our Lord is joy and its companion, peace: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you” (Jn 14:27). Paul groups joy, gentleness, and peace in a single paragraph: “Rejoice in the