All married couples have disagreements. Some spouses battle fiercely, leaving deep wounds and permanent scars. Others manage conflict with wisdom and self-control. Below are some suggestions that enable husbands and wives to disagree without being disagreeable: Choose an Appropriate Time and Place. It isn’t right to argue in public – at a restaurant or in…

Some years ago I heard a sermon on the radio delivered by Bob, a denominational preacher in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Bob devoted a significant part of his time to describing his immoral lifestyle before conversion. He drank booze, snorted cocaine, and managed a “girl review” in Las Vegas. He foolishly married an attractive young woman…

Some skeptics say that the resurrection of Jesus took place in the disciples’ heads. Hypnosis, for instance, may explain their faith. Jesus was a master hypnotist. Before his death he trained his followers to have hypnotic experiences triggered by certain environmental cues. In these trances they would see Jesus alive. This theory puts too much…

Look for reasons to be grateful. Even when everything seems to be going wrong. “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thess. 5:18). Decide to rejoice. Paul encouraged the Philippians to “rejoice in the Lord always” (Phil. 4:4). Happiness depends on what’s happening. Joy…

Imagine that your brief stay on this earth ends at midnight. The sun will rise in the morning, but you won’t see it. People will go to work and to school tomorrow, but you won’t. Birds will sing tomorrow. Children will laugh and play. Happy people will whistle Christmas carols. But you won’t hear a…

On one occasion Jesus asked the Pharisees what they thought of the Christ (Matt. 22:42). In context, the question pressed for an acknowledgment of the Lord’s true nature as the Son of God. But like many other things asked by biblical characters, this question has assumed a life of its own. That is, it’s worthy…

Suffering is inescapable. Some people battle sickness – relentless pain, clinical depression, spinal cord injuries and paralysis, cancer. Others wrestle with the mental anguish caused by childhood abuse, death, family turmoil, or divorce. In developing countries human suffering often means hunger, lack of medical care, and the endless nightmare of civil war or oppressive dictatorship.…

Naaman, commander of the Syrian army, was a leper. After hearing from a Hebrew captive in his household that a prophet in Samaria could cure leprosy, Naaman traveled to Israel and arrived at Elisha’s door. The man of God instructed the decorated general to “go and wash in the Jordan seven times” (2 Kings 5:10).…

By Brent Smith [Brent is the preaching minister of the Trenton Church of Christ in Trenton, TN.] Is a child born with guilt inherited from dad and mom? God answers with a resounding “No.” In the 18th chapter of his prophetic book, Ezekiel says that “the soul who sins shall die. The son shall not…

(Author Unknown) In my adult Bible class on Sunday morning, I read a letter written to Abigail Van Buren by a woman in Georgia. She explained to the famous advice columnist that her mother and her friends were polite to each other’s faces but habitually critical behind turned backs. The mother defended the behavior as…