Longing for Home

Ruth 1:5 “Naomi was left without her two sons and her husband” (NIV). Observation: Naomi and Ruth’s story is a portrayal of loss, commitment, restoration, and divine provision. Naomi had gone with her family to live in Moab due to Bethlehem’s famine. There, her...

The Strategy of Abandonment

2 Corinthians 2:1 “I made up my mind that I would not make another painful visit to you” (NIV). Observation: Much of 2 Corinthians and the beginning of the second chapter seem to be travelogue. Paul wrote in 1:15 about having tried to arrange his itinerary so as to...

Saturday’s Dance

Psalm 42:2 “When can I go and meet with God?” (NIV). Observation: This psalm expresses the passionate cry of David’s heart to once again be in the presence of God. David was exiled from the house of Saul, hiding in a very small country with 3,000 soldiers in pursuit....

Armed to the Teeth

Judges 6:13 “Where are all His wonders?” (NIV). Observation: Israel was living under God’s judgment, having been overrun by the superior, oppressive power of the Midianites. Reduced to living in caves and mountain clefts, Israel watched helplessly as marauding enemy...

The Problem with Restraint

Judges 4:2 “So the LORD sold them into the hands of Jabin, a king of Canaan” (NIV). Observation: Ehud delivered Israel from its Moabite enemy. He had personally killed the Moabite king and then led the Israelite army to victory over Moab, ushering in an eighty-year...