Today’s Walk in the Word

Whenever a piece of pottery turned out imperfect, he would . . . make it into something else.                —Jeremiah 18:4 Kintsugi is the ancient Japanese art of repairing broken pottery. Shattered pieces are glued back together with a secret lacquer mixed with powdered gold, creating a beautiful, one-of-a-kind, […]

Your word is a lamp for my feet and a light for my path.    —Psalm 119:105 Dr. Charles Eliot, Harvard University president (1869–1909), once said a five-foot shelf of books could provide “a good substitute for a liberal education” to anyone who would devote fifteen minutes a day to reading them. Editors from Collier […]

What profit is there if you gain the whole world—and lose eternal life?       —Matthew 16:26 I remember when I first saw an IBM Selectric typewriter: “That’s the ultimate,” I thought—“they’ll never improve on that.” If you’re looking for a Selectric today, your best bet is a museum. Alistair Cooke, host of Masterpiece […]

Love each other as brothers and sisters.                 —Romans 12:10 You didn’t choose me. I didn’t choose you. But God chose us both, so we are family. Do we have differences? Sure. Differences can lead to divisiveness—but don’t have to. There are some to the “right” and some […]

The Lord bless you and keep you.               —Numbers 6:24 Some churches close their services reciting the benediction of Numbers 6:24-26. The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and […]

“I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord.    —Jeremiah 29:11 “Your prayer has been heard,” angel Gabriel told Zechariah—“Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son” (Lk 1:13). The old couple had given up that dream long ago—hadn’t prayed that prayer in years. But it had been heard back then and […]

This man is my chosen instrument. —Acts 9:15 Deceiver Cheater Adulterer Denier Persecuter Match these names with the word above that describes them: David, Paul, Jacob, Abraham, Peter. These single-word epitaphs could have been chiseled on their gravestones, but weren’t, because each was forgiven and used. Jacob was on the lam, running away from the […]

Go with the strength you have. —Judges 6:14 The greeting to Gideon was laughable: “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior” (Jgs 6:12). Mighty warrior? “My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe,” Gideon protested, “and I am the least in my entire family.” “Go with the strength you have,” the Lord said, “I […]

First I prayed to the God of heaven.             —Nehemiah 2:4 Nehemiah had a good job as the king’s cupbearer, but he was depressed. Jerusalem, where his ancestors were buried, was in shambles: its wall flattened, its gates burned, its citizens dejected. He wanted to go to Jerusalem and rebuild, […]

Happy are those . . . who don’t go where sinners go.         —Psalm 1:1 Maybe it’s because I live in Houston, Texas, where flooding isn’t a matter of “if” but “when,” that I found the name of a street in Santa Barbara, California, intriguing. The street name is “Salsipuedes”—Spanish for “leave […]