George Verwer’s life changed dramatically when he became a follower of Christ during a Billy Graham crusade in 1957. Soon after his conversion, he began Operation Mobilization (OM), and in 1963 the mission sent 2,000 missionaries to Europe. OM went on to become one of the largest mission organizations of the twentieth century, sending out thousands each year. At the time of George’s death in 2023, the mission had more than three thousand workers from 134 countries working in 147 countries, and nearly 300 other mission agencies had been established as a result of contact with OM.

Like the apostle Paul, George had a passion to bring people to saving faith in Christ. After Paul’s dramatic conversion on the road to Damascus, he became a zealous missionary for the Lord, fervently following Jesus’ command to “go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19). In his missionary journeys, he also trained Timothy and others to go out and do the same.

Because of Paul’s Spirit-inspired writings, people throughout the centuries have been emboldened to share the gospel. He knew the vital importance of Jesus’ Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20). That’s why, in Romans 12, he reminds us: “Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord” (v. 11). When we have the Holy Spirit living inside us, He makes us zealous to tell others about Jesus.

Kim settled in by the window, bag packed, waiting eagerly for her daddy to arrive. But as the bright day darkened and then turned to night, her enthusiasm faded. She realized Daddy wasn’t coming—again.

Kim’s parents were divorced, and she longed to spend time with her father. Not for the first time she thought, I must not really matter. He must not love me.

As Kim later learned—and as all of us who receive Jesus as our Savior come to know—though our earthly parents and others will disappoint us, we have a heavenly Father who loves us and won’t let us down.

John, the author of three inspired, biblical letters and the gospel bearing his name, understood the depth of God’s love. In fact, he referred to himself as “the disciple . . . Jesus loved” (John 21:20), identifying himself as someone whose life had been changed by Christ’s love for him. “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” he wrote (1 John 3:1).

God loves us so much that He gave His Son Jesus who laid down His life for us (v. 16; John 3:16). He is always available to us in prayer, and He promises, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). We can rest secure in His love.

Phillips Brooks wrote the lyrics to the beloved carol “O Little Town of Bethlehem” after visiting Bethlehem. Brooks, pastor of a church in the US, was so moved by his experience that he wrote this to his Sunday school students: “I remember . . . on Christmas Eve, when I was standing in the old church at Bethlehem, close to the spot where Jesus was born, when the whole church was ringing hour after hour with the splendid hymns of praise to God, how again and again it seemed as if I could hear voices that I knew well, telling each other of the ‘Wonderful Night’ of the Savior’s birth.”

In 1868, Brooks put his thoughts into a poem, and his church organist set it to music. The song spoke stillness and peace into the unsettling aftermath of the American Civil War: “O little town of Bethlehem / How still we see thee lie . . . The hopes and fears of all the years / Are met in thee tonight.”

The apostle Matthew wrote of our Savior’s birth in Bethlehem in Matthew 2. When the “Magi from the east” (v. 1) followed the star to Bethlehem (see Micah 5:2), “they were overjoyed” to find Jesus (Matthew 2:10).

Today, as we celebrate Epiphany, we too need the glorious news of our Savior’s birth. He came to “cast out our sin and enter in” and “be born in us.” In Him, we find peace.

Where in your life do you need the peace the Savior offers? What aspect of the Jesus’ story touches you most?

We were seated around the dinner table when my nine-year-old grandson said with a smile, “I’m just like Grandma. I love to read!” His words brought joy to my heart. I thought back to the year before when he’d been sick and stayed home from school. After he took a long nap, we sat together side by side reading. I was happy to be passing along the legacy of loving books that I’d received from my mother.

But that’s not the most important legacy I want to pass on to my grandchildren. I pray the legacy of faith I received from my parents and sought to pass on to my children will also help my grandchildren in their journey toward faith.

Timothy had the legacy of a godly mother and grandmother—and a spiritual mentor, the apostle Paul. The apostle wrote, “I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also” ((2 Timothy 1:5).

We may think our lives haven’t been positive enough to be a good example for others. Maybe the legacy passed down to us wasn’t a good one. But it’s never too late to build a legacy of faith into our children, grandchildren, or any child’s life. Through God’s help, we plant seeds of faith. He’s the one who makes faith grow (1 Corinthians 3:6–9).

Four of our grandkids were playing with a miniature train set, and the younger two were arguing over an engine. When our eight-year-old grandson began to intervene, his six-year-old sister stated, “Don’t worry about their business.” Wise words for us all—usually. But when the argument turned to tears, Grandma stepped in, separated, and comforted the squabbling children.

It’s good to stay out of others’ business when doing so could make matters worse. But sometimes we need to prayerfully get involved. In his letter to the Philippians, the apostle Paul provides an example of when to do so. Here Paul urges two women, Euodia and Syntyche, “to be of the same mind in the Lord” (4:2). Apparently their disagreement had become so intense that Paul felt compelled to intervene. And because he was imprisoned, he urged his unnamed “true companion” to “help these women since they have contended at my side in the cause of the gospel” (v. 3).

Paul knew the women’s argument was causing disunity and taking focus away from the gospel. So, he gently spoke the truth while reminding them that their names were written “in the book of life” (v. 3). Paul wanted these women and everyone in the church to live as God’s people in thought and actions (vv. 4–9).  

When you’re unsure if you should get involved, pray, trusting that “the God of peace will be with you” (vv. 6–7, 9).

When my mom was in hospice and nearing her last days on earth, I was touched by the genuine kindness of a nursing home caregiver. After gently lifting my frail mother from her chair and tucking her into bed, the nursing assistant caressed Mom’s head while leaning over her to say, “You are so sweet.” Then she asked how I was doing. Her kindness moved me to tears then and still does today.

Hers was a simple act of kindness, but it was just what I needed in that moment. It helped me to cope, knowing that in this woman’s eyes my mom wasn’t just a patient. She cared for and saw her as a person of great worth.

When Naomi and Ruth were bereft after the loss of their husbands, Boaz showed kindness to Ruth by allowing her to glean leftover grain behind the harvesters. He even ordered the male harvesters to leave her alone (Ruth 2:8-9). His kindness was prompted by Ruth’s care for Naomi: “I’ve been told all about what you have done for your mother-in-law since the death of your husband” (v. 11). He saw her not as a foreigner or widow but as a woman in need.

God wants us to “clothe [ourselves] with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (Colossians 3:12). As God helps us, our simple acts of kindness can cheer hearts, bring hope, and inspire kindness in others.

The guest speaker spoke on the wisdom of trusting God and “stepping into the river.” He told of a pastor who trusted God and chose to speak the truths of the Bible in a sermon despite the new law of his land. He was convicted of hate crimes and spent thirty days in jail. But his case was appealed, and the court ruled he had the right to give a personal interpretation of the Bible and to urge others to follow.

The priests carrying the ark of the covenant had to make a choice too—either step into the water or stay on the shore. After escaping Egypt, the Israelites wandered in the desert for forty years. Now they stood on the banks of the Jordan River, which was at flood stage and dangerously high. But they took that step, and God caused the waters to recede: “As soon as . . . their feet touched the water’s edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing” (Joshua 3:15-16).

When we trust God with our lives, He gives us the courage to move forward, whether choosing to speak the truths of the Bible or to take a step into unknown territory. During the pastor’s trial, the court heard the gospel through listening to his sermon. And, in Joshua, the Israelites crossed safely into the promised land and shared about the power of God with future generations (v. 17; 4:24).

If we step out in faith, God will see to the rest.

When I was a young believer, I thought “mountaintop” experiences were where I would meet Jesus. But those highs rarely lasted or led to growth. Author Lina AbuJamra says it’s in the desert places where we meet God and grow. In her Bible study Through the Desert, she writes, “God’s aim is to use the desert places in our lives to make us stronger.” She continues, “God’s goodness is meant to be received in the midst of your pain, not proven by the absence of pain.”

It’s in the hard places of sorrow, loss, and pain that God helps us to grow in our faith and closer to Him. As Lina learned, “The desert is not an oversight in God’s plan but an integral part of [our] growth process.”

God led many Old Testament patriarchs to the desert. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob all had wilderness experiences. It was in the desert that God prepared Moses’ heart and called him to lead His people out of slavery (Exodus 3:1-2, 9-10). And it was in the desert that God “watched over [the Israelites’] journey” for forty years with His help and guidance (Deuteronomy 2:7).

God was with Moses and the Israelites each step of their way through the desert, and He’s with you and me in ours. In the desert, we learn to rely on God. There He meets us—and there we grow.

An old friend sent me a note after my husband’s death: “[Alan] was . . . a grappler with God. He was a real Jacob/Israel and a strong reason why I am a Christian today.” I’d never thought to compare Alan’s struggles with the patriarch Jacob’s, but it fit. Throughout his life, Alan struggled with himself and wrestled with God for answers. He loved God but couldn’t always grasp the truths that God loved him, forgave him, and heard his prayers. Yet his life had its blessings, and he positively influenced many.

Jacob’s life was characterized by struggle. He connived to get his brother Esau’s birthright. He fled home and struggled for years with his kinsman and father-in-law Laban. Then he fled Laban. He was alone and afraid to meet Esau. Yet he’d just had a heavenly encounter: “The angels of God met him” (32:1), perhaps a reminder of his earlier dream from God (28:10–22). Now Jacob had another encounter: all night he wrestled with a “man,” God in human form, who renamed him Israel, because he “struggled with God and with humans and [overcame]” (32:28). God was with and loved Jacob despite and through it all.

All of us have struggles. But we’re not alone; God is with us in each one. Those who believe in God are loved, forgiven, and promised eternal life (John 3:16). We can hold fast to Him.

When Keri’s young son was going through yet another muscular dystrophy-related surgery, she wanted to get her mind off her family’s situation by doing something for someone else. So she rounded up her son’s outgrown but gently used shoes and donated them to a ministry. Her giving prompted friends and family members and even neighbors to join in, and soon more than two hundred shoes were donated!

Although the shoe drive was meant to bless others, Keri feels her family was blessed more. “The whole experience really lifted our spirits and helped us to focus outward.”

Paul understood how important it was for followers of Jesus to give generously. On his way to Jerusalem, the apostle Paul stopped in Ephesus. He knew it would likely be his last visit with the people of the church he’d founded there. In his farewell address to the church elders, he encouraged and reminded them to continue to work diligently in service to God as he had while with them (Acts 20:17–20). Then he concluded with Jesus’ words: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (v. 35).

Jesus wants us to freely and humbly give of ourselves (Matthew 10:8; Luke 6:38). When we trust Him to guide us, He will provide opportunities for us to do so. Like Keri’s family, we may be surprised by the joy we experience as a result.