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Preachers or Waiters?

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You’ve probably seen it before. A minister starts off on fire, preaching the gospel, making disciples, and then—boom!—they’re running a food program, a relief fund, or a rescue mission. Before long, teachings are replaced with sermons on supply chain logistics, and their prayer time is spent writing proposals for donations.  They even write a book about it and market it to raise funds for the charity work. Don’t get me wrong—charity is good. But when charity becomes the ministry, that's off and we then have a problem. A problem that the early church faced and overcame. In Acts 6:2-7, the apostles had a real issue. The church was growing, widows needed food, and complaints were flying in. But when faced with this crisis, the apostles made a shocking statement:   " It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. " (Acts 6:2) Wait—did they just say it’s not right to serve tables? Is charity now bad? Not at all! But it’s not...
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Joshua, Yehoshua, Yeshua.

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We're currently reading the book of Joshua, and my thoughts keep circling back to the meaning of his name—and the striking picture it paints of Jesus (Yeshua). It’s unfortunate that Bible translators chose to translate names. Nouns should have remained in their original form to preserve their meaning and place. Take Joshua, for instance. His Hebrew name is Yehoshua , a combination of Yeho (Yahweh) and Shua (salvation), meaning “Jehovah saves.” And that was his mission—to lead a people who had been under the law, across a barrier, into the promise of God (Joshua 1:2-3). But this promise wasn’t new. It had been spoken long before, when God revealed Himself as Jehovah Jireh (Genesis 22:14). Notice the wording:   " So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. And to this day it is said, 'On the mountain of the Lord it will be provided .’"   Did you catch that? "Will provide" —not "has provided." This wasn’t about the ram caught in a thicket. I...
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Leviticus

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Reading through Leviticus, I can't help but think: " This was a lot of work !" Too many guidelines, too many rules—one had to be smart even in worship, lest you mess up and suddenly find yourself offering a mandatory guilt offering for an accidental sin (Leviticus 5:15). And let’s be honest, some of these laws required serious mental gymnastics to remember. Imagine living in fear that touching the wrong lizard (Leviticus 11:29-30) could make you unclean!   After reading Leviticus 27, where even dedication and redemption had price tags, my brain whispered, " This is exhausting !" No wonder Jesus’ words in Matthew 11:28-30 must have sounded like a breath of fresh air to the Jews:   > “ Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. ”   At this point, I imagine a tired Jew...
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What Born-again means.

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I find myself constantly, or at least occasionally, thinking about how so many who claim to be "Christians" are not Christlike—and what’s worse, they’re not even trying to be. It’s heartbreaking how many people faithfully walk into denominational compounds every week but have never walked into the Kingdom of God. Simply put: they are not born-again. You see, unless a child is  born , they will never meet their  Father . A child, while in the womb, is entirely dependent on the mother. They draw all their life from her, and as long as they remain unborn, their world is confined to her and will eventually lead to their death. But the moment they are born, they enter a new reality—one where they can now see, hear, and know their father. They start living.  It’s the same with spiritual matters . Unless you are born again, your dependence remains on mother earth —on natural things, on human strength, on what you can see and touch physically. But when you are born of the Spirit,...
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Don't be like your parents

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This morning, I am concerned. Not the “where’s my phone?” kind of concern, but the “are we actually doing what God intended?” kind of concern.   You see, we’re currently jogging (not walking, jogging) through Deuteronomy—a book I like to call “When God Repeats Himself.” And let’s be honest, when someone repeats themselves, it’s either for emphasis or because the listener wasn’t paying attention the first time. Spoiler alert: the Israelites weren’t paying attention.   Then I get to Deuteronomy 11:2-7, where God specifically highlights that He is addressing the parents, not the children. Later on, He gives them a clear job description:   - Teach my laws to your children. - Talk about them while sitting, walking, lying down, and rising up. - Tag my words on your clothes, walls, and gates. ^JNM Now, let’s slow down before we miss something important. The Israelites had three generations at play in Deuteronomy:   1. The generation that came out of E...
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Inheritance and Marriage: A Conversation Guardians Shouldn't Shy Away From.

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Let’s circle back to our inheritance conversation (previously on this thoughtline... https://mapstage.blogspot.com/2025/01/inheritance-wasters.html) before I get too deep into Ramadan prayers for our Muslim friends.   This year, I’ve been doing an in-depth study of a few books of the Bible, and Genesis has been quite the eye-opener. One thing stands out—God was working in a family and through a family. The covenant He made with Abraham wasn’t a solo project; it carried through to his son Isaac, then to Jacob, and eventually, many generations later, brought forth the Messiah. Clearly, family matters to God.   Now, today I was reading Genesis 24 and noticed something striking—it contains the last recorded words of Abraham. And guess what? His final words were not about himself, his wealth, or his retirement plan. Instead, he was giving instructions about something that would shape his son's future— MARRIAGE . He called his most trusted servant and made him swear (yes...
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Deuteronomy: When God Has to Repeat Himself.

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In our Bible reading marathon 2025, we have arrived at the book of Deuteronomy.   Have you ever noticed how high school or college reunions, old photo albums, familiar songs, and visits to childhood neighborhoods stir up memories and emotions? Some memories bring joy, while others carry pain we would rather forget. As the years pass, the sharpness of unpleasant events tends to fade into our subconscious. Yet, there are moments when remembering is necessary. Mistakes must not be repeated, commitments must be honored, and recalling key events can inspire us to move forward with purpose.   Deuteronomy is a book of remembrance. It calls Israel to reflect on who God is and what He has done. The generation that God brought out of Egypt—those aged 20 and above at the time—was now nearly gone. They had left Egypt, but they never saw the Promised Land. Why? Their constant murmuring, lack of faith, and public disobedience led to 40 years of wandering in the wilderness until th...
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