Joe Barnett

[B]e clear minded and self-controlled.                           —1 Peter 4:7 You are living well . . . When you let go of the past, enjoy the present, and face the future with faith. When you focus on your responsibilities instead of your rights. When […]

My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow.                       —Mark 14:34 In Gethsemane, Jesus “began to be filled with horror and deep distress” (Mk 14:33 NLT). He needed companionship in those agonizing hours. He asked Peter, James, and John, to stay close—to watch and pray—as he went

Love does no harm to its neighbor.                —Romans 13:10 You’re facing a “Do I?” or “Don’t I?” decision. It may be about spending, temptation, habit, gratification, or dealing with a difficult person. Put your finger on the pause button and measure what you’re thinking about doing by these

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths.       —Ephesians 4:29 You’ve been hurt, offended, mistreated, and you’re hotter’n a microwave. You’re not going to take it anymore; you’re going to give her a piece of your mind. Before you do, punch the pause button and measure what you’re about

When I consider your heavens . . .             —Psalm 8:3 President Theodore Roosevelt and his friend, naturalist William Beebe, allegedly had a ritual of surveying the sky at night, searching for a tiny patch of light near the constellation of Pegasus. When sighted, Beebe would say, “That is the

[L]ive in harmony with one another.                       —1 Peter 3:8 In the September 2, 2017, issue of Time, columnist Susanna Schrobsdorff wrote about “the scenes of kindness after kindness,” in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey’s hammering of Southeast Texas. It was a welcome reminder, Susanna

By grace you have been saved . . . it is the gift of God.        —Ephesians 2:8 “What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if everything you have is from God, why boast as though it were not a gift?” (1 Cor 4:7 NLT). Augustine said the entire doctrine

Go, tell his disciples and Peter.                 —Mark 16:7 When the sound of the rooster’s crow filled Peter’s ears, remorse filled Peter’s heart, and “he broke down and wept.” Peter’s weekend was drenched in tears. On Friday, his Lord had gone to the cross carrying the grief of

Go into all the world and preach the good news.        —Mark 16:15 What is the good news? That we get to go to heaven when we die? That God is a loving Father, not a hostile deity? That God’s grace, accepted by faith, brings his gift of salvation? Those are marvelous truths;

Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.              —John 20:29 When his fellow-disciples said Jesus was alive, and they had seen him, Thomas retorted, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands . . . I will not believe it.” Seven days later, in a