Stepping Stones Years ago a small group of Japanese believers were hackled and abused whenever they assembled to worship the Savior. But the persecutors could not shake the faith of the new converts. ...
In 1820, a man named Yorgos was digging in his field on the island of Milos in Greece. As he was digging, he hit upon some stones. ...
One of the loveliest structures in Constantinople was the throne room of Constantine. It was called the Hall of Gold. Even the banquet table was of gold and silver. A curtain hung on the wall woven wi...
Jesus did not liken the kingdom of God to a diamond, but to a pearl. Of all precious stones, the pearl has the humblest origin. It begins with a wound and is created out of God's resources for heali...
A penitent monk single-handedly carved steps in the stones leading to the top of Mt. Sinai where Moses received the Law from God. There are 1,360 steps to the pinnacle. Pilgrims still climb those step...
In the Sixth century the Emperor Justin II presented to the Vatican a cross. It was made of gold and covered with precious stones. The value of it is beyond calculating. In the center was a splinter o...
In the Sixth century the Emperor Justin II presented to the Vatican a cross. It was made of gold and covered with precious stones. The value of it is beyond calculating. In the center was a splinter o...
At church camp when I was a teenager, an ugly rumor about two of our counselors quickly became the talk of the camp. The next day, at morning prayer, the minister read the story of the adulterous woma...
In a cemetery in Hanover, Germany, is a grave on which were placed huge slabs of granite and marble cemented together and fastened with heavy steel clasps. It belongs to a woman who did not believe in...
The Romans built a wall across Europe, intending for it to go all the way to the Black Sea. ...
Unamuno, the Spanish philosopher, tells about the aqueduct built by the Romans in Segovia in 109 A.D. For 1800 years, that aqueduct carried cool water from the mountains down to the hot, thirsty city....
A young couple moves into a new neighborhood. The next morning while they are eating breakfast, the young woman sees her neighbor hanging the wash outside. "That laundry is not very clean," she said. ...
In her book It Only Hurts When I Laugh, Ethel Barrett tells about a king of Sparta in ancient Greece who boasted to a visiting monarch about the mighty walls of Sparta. But the guest didn't see any wa...
The War Cry carried a story about a tenant farmer who had worked hard for many years to improve the production of the land. Then something happened that caused him to become very bitter. When it was...
Acres of Diamonds Many people are not content with the work they are doing because the grass always looks greener on the other side of the fence. They are dissatisfied even when their circumstances ...
Rick is the co-author of The Externally Focused Church and 60 Simple Things Every Pastor Should Know, and his newest book is Living a Life on Loan. He was recently interviewed by Preaching editor Mich...
Prior to the revelations concerning Teg Haggard, Ray Pritchard received an email from a woman distraught about repeated pastoral problems in her local church. Her words speak for multitudes who have b...
Matthew 4: 1-11 The challenge of taking tests starts rather early in......