Joe Barnett

[T]he Lord has heard of your misery.                    —Genesis 16:11 Hagar’s life had become intolerable, so she ran away. No money, no family, no place to go. Homeless. It was hard to see anything good in this, but God assured Hagar that he would be with her, […]

[O]ut of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks.    —Matthew 12:34 The debate had been acrimonious. Each candidate was now instructed to make a two-minute uninterrupted closing statement. The first had barely begun when he was interrupted by his angry opponent screaming inflammatory accusations. The speaker who had the floor calmly waited for

I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.        —Habakkuk 3:18 How’s your day going? Helen’s wasn’t going well. She lived in a nice house, drove a nice car, and wore nice clothes. The good in her life far outweighed the bad, but she was in a

Every good and perfect gift is from above.  —James 1:17 Seventeenth-century British poet George Herbert, in his poem Gratefulness, wrote: “Thou that hast given so much to me, give one thing more: a grateful heart.” Is a grateful heart a missing ingredient in your life? The solution is easy: intentional awareness of the blessings God

The integrity of the upright guides them.                   —Proverbs 11:3 Bobby Jones is on every Who’s Who list of the greatest golfers in history: winner of thirteen major championships, and the only player to win the Grand Slam (all four major tournaments) in the same calendar year

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins.           —Ephesians 1:7 Alicia cried when she browsed the bill for her medical treatment. Payment was impossible. She nervously called the doctor’s office, explained her family’s financial status, and requested an installment-payment plan. After leaving her on hold for

God exalted him . . . and gave him the name that is above every name.               —Philippians 2:9 Elvis, Cher, Oprah: celebrities so well-known they are recognized by a single name. But there is one name that is exalted above every other: Jesus. His earthly parents were told

[M]y words will never pass away.              —Matthew 24:35 Jeff Jacoby, a columnist for the Boston Globe, wrote a piece about the “uncanny ability of experts to get things hopelessly, cataclysmically wrong.” Here are a couple of examples: (1) In 1928 Henry Ford said, “People are becoming too intelligent ever

[G]odliness with contentment is great gain.                              —1 Timothy 6:6 According to a Houston Chronicle column (10/25/17), Albert Einstein, arriving in Tokyo in 1922, didn’t have any “tip” money. So the Nobel-winning scientist scribbled a note and gave it to the bellhop,

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. —Psalm 107:1 Early this morning I gazed for several minutes at a portrait of my late father. Today would have been his 112th birthday. I stood there thinking about him and thanking God for him. I owe him much . . . and much to my