Truth Pursuer

You’re smart. Just by glancing at the title of this story, you know where it’s going. But before you stop reading because you’ve already heard that Jesus is your best friend, stop and think about your other friends. Friendships can be fickle, which is just a fancy word for unpredictable. But you like having friends. …

1. You may not have an ice cream cone in your back pocket at any time. 2. It is illegal to wake a bear to take its picture. 3. No vehicle without a driver may exceed 60 mph. Believe it or not, these are actual laws from around the United States (Arkansas, and California). They …

“I will praise You, because I have been remarkably and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful, and I know this very well.” —Psalm 139:14 “Practice makes perfect!” Do you ever wonder why teachers and coaches want you to do homework, practice soccer drills or play a musical instrument every day? God has given you a …

Modern-day plants pop up all over the Bible, especially in the Old Testament. Dig into these biblical plants to get at the root of their greater meaning. Cedar of Lebanon: The cedar of Lebanon is referred to in 1 Kings, Ezekiel, Amos, Psalms, Jeremiah and several other book of the Bible. The cedar tree was …

Israel, 450 B.C. Benjamin loved numbers. “Seventeen . . . eighteen . . . nineteen . . .” He remembered counting his father’s sheep each night. If he missed even one, it might be snatched away by a hungry wolf or robber and not survive the night. Now Benjamin counted words, Hebrew letters inked onto …

Kate didn’t fear what lay outside the castle, but The Voice within the high, stone walls made her shrink inside her skin. Kate knew The Voice belonged to the lord of the land. She feared his condemnation as much as every peasant in the Kingdom of Krad. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t fear The …

How many names do you have? You probably have a first, middle and last name. Maybe even a nickname. Do you know what these names mean? Parents often choose a name for their baby based on the name’s meaning. Names in the Bible also had specific meanings. They often described something about the person’s characteristics, …

Clues about Jesus’ birth didn’t only come from Scripture. They were also displayed in the heavens. Matthew 2:1-12 tells how the wise men followed the star of the King of the Jews. Have you ever wondered about that star? Rick Larson did. And this lawyer found several astronomical events that signaled the birth of our …

In January’s Truth Pursuer, we talked about how much God loves you. He created every hair on your head, and He has amazing plans for your life (even if it doesn’t always feel like it). But if God loves you no matter what, why should you change? What’s the point of eating your vegetables, practicing …

In the March 2014 Truth Pursuer, we compared sinful hearts to messy rooms. Thankfully, God gives us lots of great heart-cleaning tips in His Word: 1. Don’t hide the mess. Examine your heart with the light of God’s truth. “For the word of God is living and effective and sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating …

“Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend.—James 2:23 (NIV) God wants to be your best friend, but it can be hard to figure out how that actually works. It’s not like we can shop for clothes together or ride bikes around the neighborhood. So how …

“The nations will put their hope in His name.”—Matthew 12:21 If you took one second to pray for each person in the United States by name, it would take 10 years (without stopping . . . ever) to finish that prayer. Thankfully, that’s not what we mean by praying for your country. A good way …

(Continued from the October 2012 issue of Clubhouse magazine.) By now, you know that resisting temptation is harder than just saying no to fresh-baked cookies. (Although that particular temptation never goes away.) Maybe there’s a TV show you’re not supposed to watch, or you feel tempted to use bad words around some of your friends. …

What do you picture when you think of Jesus’ 12 disciples? Old men with gray beards? You probably don’t imagine a bunch of scruffy, pimply teenagers. Yet some scholars believe that when Jesus called His disciples, many of them were no more than teenagers. The Jewish culture believed in educating children as young as 5 …

The word worship has more than one meaning. Devoted fans boldly worship a sports star or a movie hero. Kids at school may hungrily worship popularity or good grades. The children of Israel were commanded to only worship the One True God. The fact is, God designed worship as a core part of every human …