The Bible Story Family

  “I’ve made whatever God inspires me to make—to give to other people.” Laura Irirk considers herself a “maker” and believes that creating gifts is the plan God has for her life. Finding exactly the right gift to give requires her to consider the person for whom she is making the gift. “Maybe I can’t offer my friend a job,” she says, “but I can craft her a resume and at the same time petition God for her employment. Laura doesn’t sell her crafts because she has no desire to create the same item over and over again. She chooses instead to present unique, one-of-a kind gifts, designed for one-of-a kind friends. Over the years those creations have included a Christmas board game, baby socks, a wedding album, handwritten letters, quilts, masks, a porcupine (using the Rya rug stitch), wedding favor soaps, chocolate chip cookies and a sign made from railroad board with numbers inside a pocket to welcome home a child from a year at college. She finds designing, learning new skills, an...

  Blessing number one. SUNDAY IN NEW YORK- my first novel has been assigned a trade release day of October 1, 2021. Some personal copies will be available early in June and I will let you know how to obtain one of those.   The second blessing. MEGACHURCH – my second novel has been accepted by Wipf and Stock Publishers. I will also keep you informed about the publishing process on this book. Here is a brief summary of the new book.   Time is running out. A successor must be in place before megachurch pastor Ernst Edwards dies. He must meet the qualifications delineated by the Apostle Paul in Second Timothy three. He must also gain the approval of Serenity Edwards, who has been tasked with the choice. Serenity’s loyalty to her father compels her acceptance of the task. Her fear that he is playing matchmaker complicates matters, since all four candidates are young and single. InSpire Ministries, already the source of a worldwide revival, could march into the ...

  Jamaica Honduras Chile Panama Haiti Kenya Greece Amsterdam Cuba   The list sounds like the itinerary of a world traveler/tourist. Actually, it is a list of the places where medical doctor Tamim Khaliqi has ministered in creative medical missions. Dr Khaliqi serves as a physician at the Guthrie Cortland Medical Center in Cortland, New York. The trips he takes abroad have been with Medical Missions Outreach headed up by Brad and Kelleigh Edmonston.   During a recent visit to Honduras to help open a surgery center, Tamim had an oxygen tube explode on the anesthesia machine. “I had to figure out very quickly how to keep breathing for the patient, how to provide oxygen, and how to keep the patient asleep in order to finish the case. Thank goodness for a great team!” Those are the type of situations often faced, and one of the things he loves about missions trips.   On his trips to Greece, Amsterdam, and Cuba with The Southern Baptist Theolo...

  CREATIVE GRADUATION GIFTS When I graduated from high school everyone in the church my father pastored knew I was planning to attend a Bible college. Since Bible college students needed to dress up for class, I received seventeen white shirts for graduation. They were practical and I put them to good use, but they were not necessarily creative. When you start receiving those graduation invitations in the mail this spring, consider responding with gifts which are spiritually creative. College students need to be challenged to walk with God during their journey through higher education. A great incentive in that direction would be one of the books in the WALK ON WATER series. “Dare to Walk on Water: Treasuring God” focuses on fifty-two attributes of God, encouraging the student to mirror those attributes in Christian living. “Dare to Walk on Water: Transformed by God” offers fifty-two practical ways to apply scripture for personal spiritual transformation. “Dare to Walk ...

  The wiles of the devil would love to produce congregational cracks in church unity because of the pandemic. Some congregations have developed pro-mask and anti-mask factions, zoom only and meet in person factions, open schools and distance learning factions. The satanic tactic is not new, only the occasion has changed. What can believers do to avoid succumbing to his tricks and indulging in God-forbidden factionalism? We can follow the advice of the Apostle Paul when faced with cliquish small groups in Corinth. He outlines his response in I Corinthians 4:12-13. When faced with cursing, he blessed. He responded to those who criticized him by speaking well of them. We can do the same by speaking well of those who disagree with us about how to handle the pandemic. When faced with persecution, he endured. He refused to seek vengeance or retaliate against those who opposed him. We can do the same by not trying to reprove others who vote in opposition to what we desire. When ...