Becky Fischer, founder of Kids in Ministry International, is brokenhearted to see scores of children in Islamic countries indoctrinated to be radically devoted to Islam.

As impressionable as children are, what if they were exposed to the power of the one true God? What if they encountered the love of Jesus for themselves?

She says that when adults let that happen, there are no limits to what the Holy Spirit can do with children.

Watch the video to see how these children are holding nothing back from the Holy Spirit.

Among the most highly anticipated offerings of the forthcoming Museum of the Bible, opening this November in Washington, D.C., is the use of Digital Guides designed to optimize the touring experience for guests of all ages and backgrounds. The tablet-based technology allows users to set their tour times, interests and rendezvous points as the system intelligently navigates visitors through the museum. For families and groups with children, the Digital Guide provides another opportunity: to engage and educate younger guests by “gamifying” the touring experience.

After an adult has personalized his or her itinerary for the day, the child’s tour is dynamically created based on the preferences set by the parent or chaperone and tailored to the age of each guest.

Catering to ages nine to 12, Museum of the Bible and New Zealand-based gaming studio Scarlet City have modified the studio’s proprietary “The Aetherlight” biblical allegory to create a completely unique gaming environment for Museum of the Bible.

“Partnering with Museum of the Bible has been an incredible experience. We believe understanding the Bible is essential, and our passion with The Aetherlight is to get kids immersed in it through a language children gravitate to—games,” shares Tim Cleary, Founding Worldbuilder at The Aetherlight. “To have the opportunity to work with a museum that inspires people of all ages to get excited about the history, narrative and impact of the Bible is directly in line with our work. We are excited to see all of this become a reality when the museum opens this November in the U.S.” 

“We’ve partnered with Scarlet City, for the innovative and amazing work they do in the area of gamification and educational storytelling for the digital generation,” says Jeff Schneider, vice president of interactive systems at Museum of the Bible. “Together, we’ve taken The Aetherlight, their biblically inspired narrative, and modified it to create a completely unique story for the museum. It’s at the forefront of museum technology, and we think it will deliver a truly unique experience for families and school-aged visitors.” 

Museum of the Bible’s modified “The Aetherlight” narrative takes the story of the Bible and reimagines it as a steampunk, industrial allegory where a pervasive fog has overtaken the museum.

The story follows a time traveler who collects historical artifacts from different time periods. When he hears about Museum of the Bible, he opens a wormhole to visit the museum, but something goes wrong in the process: robots have also gotten through the wormhole, and they are spewing out a toxic fog that has caused the museum electronics to malfunction.

Players are paired with MBOT, a robot companion that assists in completing the various missions users encounter at each exhibit. Users can also collect other helper bots inspired by the museum galleries and can upgrade their capabilities along the way. Presented as an over-the-shoulder, 3-D environment, each player must gather clues found throughout the museum to complete missions and, ultimately, to drive out the fog and finish the game. {eoa}

One of the great resources available to those interested in learning from the past is the Biblical Archaeology Review magazine.

The BAR, as it is affectionately known, provides current information on historical and archaeological finds which impact the biblical lands. But the BAR is not the sedate scholarly magazine you might expect. Instead, interspersed between discoveries, the religious and political fault lines of the Holy Land are played out in the scholarly and legal controversies covered in the BAR.

One of the major fault lines comes between the religious and the secular world views of scholars. The secular scholars are constantly attacking the work of earlier Christian and Jewish archaeologists, with a “Minimalist” school which argues that such biblical giants as David are mythological. Another line of attack comes from Palestinians who, for political reasons, want to deny Jewish history and try to prevent archaeologists from digging up the Jewish past. There is also an occasional conflict between Jewish and Christian acceptance of findings.

While the BAR is a secular, not religious, publication, they do try to fairly present the issues. They gleefully reported an artifact which substantiated the existence of the “House of David”, to the chagrin of the Minimalists. In their January/February 2014 issue, they published an article which proves that the site of David’s palace in Jerusalem has been found. Some years back the BAR demolished Palestinian political arguments by proving that the very name of Palestine was derived from the Greek word for “wrestler,” which translates into the national Hebrew name of “Israel”. In their January/February 2016 issue they exposed a New York Times article which falsely cast doubt on the historicity of the Jewish temples, a favorite technique of Palestinian propaganda. Now, in the May/ June 2017 issue, eminent archaeologist William G. Dever expose the fallacies of the “minimalist” view in his article entitled “Whom Do You Believe—the Bible or Archaeology.”   

Our prayer is that secular, political and religious attacks of biblical archaeology will not be allowed to obscure the truth of God’s word. We pray for the BAR and biblical archaeologists who will fearlessly stand up to those who want to rewrite history to suit their agendas.

And we thank the Lord that He has left us plenty of evidence to confirm the veracity of the Bible as the solid rock on which our faith can rely. {eoa}

Ron Allen is a Christian businessman, CPA and author who serves in local, national and international ministries spreading a message of reconciliation to God, to men and between believers. He is founder of the International Star Bible Society, telling how the heavens declare the glory of God and the Emancipation Network, which helps people escape from financial bondage, and co-founder with his wife, Pat, of Corporate Prayer Resources, dedicated to helping intercessors.

To excel at anything in life, we have to learn to handle adversity and persevere when it’s easier to quit. Long-term success is only achieved by persistence.

Recall the timeless quote by President Calvin Coolidge: “Nothing in the world will take the place of persistence. Talent will not; the world is full of unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. The slogan ‘press on’ has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”

Two thousand years ago, Jesus Christ told us a parable about a sower planting seed (Luke 8:1-15). He stated emphatically that it was only by “persevering” that an individual will eventually produce a crop. The problem is many of us throw in the towel prematurely and as a result don’t find the achievement and success for which we long.

One of the very best contemporary examples of this character trait is Christian athlete Tim Tebow. He’s currently drawing fans in droves to watch him play professional baseball in a late-in-life career change in Columbia, South Carolina.

Critics and naysayers of Tim say, “It’s unrealistic. He’ll never make it!” Yet this 6 foot 3 inch, 233-pound 29-year-old athlete, surrounded by aspiring 19- and 20-year-old teammates, is on a mission to fulfill his destiny.

 Who Is Tim Tebow?

Many sports aficionados believe Tim Tebow is easily one of the 10 most recognized sports figures in America. He is second only to Tiger Woods and LeBron James over the decade in terms of appeal.

In the mid-’80s, his parents were Baptist missionaries in the Philippines. While there, Tim’s mother, Pamela, contracted amoebic dysentery and fell into a coma, then discovered she was pregnant.

She developed a severe placental abruption, and doctors told her to get an abortion because the child would be stillborn. Because of their strong Christian faith, Mr. and Mrs. Tebow believed God for a miracle promising to consecrate their son for God’s work. And that is just what happened, as little Timothy was born a healthy baby, to the glory of God!

He was one of five children, and they were all homeschooled even into high school. Tim was able to play on the high school football team, winning the state title with him honored twice as “Florida Player of the Year.” Subsequently, he was named one of the top 33 football players in Florida’s 100-year history of high school football.

Advancing to the University of Florida, Tim became the first homeschooled high school athlete to ever be nominated for the Heisman Trophy that he won as a sophomore. While there, he played on two national championship teams, both with records of 13–1.

Going on to play for four teams in the NFL, he competed in 34 games until eventually being released. Even though he took a team to the playoffs, many football experts said he just didn’t have what it takes.

Every time he faced another setback, Tim was interviewed and displayed grace along with exemplary determination to follow the will of God every step of the way. Eventually, he sensed he should pursue a baseball career, even though he had not played in organized baseball since high school in 2005.

Tebowmania Comes to Columbia

Not since Michael Jordan attempted a baseball career with the Birmingham Barons in 1994 has there been such a stir in minor-league baseball! Fans fill the seats, and Tebow T-shirt sales are brisk.

Although there are a few success stories in switching from football to baseball, like Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders, the odds are slim Tim will make it to the pros. Hitting a baseball unleashed at 90-plus mph is one of the most difficult things in sports. Yet if anybody has the determination and athletic ability to be the exception, it’s our favorite son.

In his first three games, Tim hit two home runs (one in his first time at bat, which ignited a frenzy) and was 3-for-13 with 5 RBIs. The Columbia Fireflies, farm team for the New York Mets, are elated to have such a star attraction, and so are tens of thousands of devoted baseball fans, even though he’s struggling at the present time.

Only time will tell if Tim Tebow can achieve his goal of playing major-league baseball at the ripe old age of 29. In the meantime, he stands on the field and in life as an inspirational role model whom all of us can pray for and emulate.

Behind the Scenes

I had the privilege to meet Tim Tebow not long ago and count it a privilege to validate his authenticity and humility. Tim says, “Trophies don’t last. Awards come and go. Impressive titles move from one person to the next. But how we live can make an eternal impact.”

This man of God is an outspoken Christian who faces mockery and criticism with dignity and divine strength. He has a winsome personality and takes his position as an ambassador for Jesus Christ most seriously.

Tim still returns to the Philippines to preach the gospel in schools and assemblies. He speaks in prisons and schools throughout America, supports more than 40 Filipino evangelists and works with The Tim Tebow Foundation to establish children’s hospitals in the Philippines.

He unashamedly claims his commitment to moral purity and abstinence until God brings the right one to be his covenant partner in marriage. Wanna’ bet there are more than a few Christian ladies-in-waiting taking note of this special man of God?

For decades, I’ve tried to encourage people to not let failure make them fearful of trying again. Turn your trials into triumphs; your stumbling blocks into steppingstones; and, your tests into testimonies has been my motivational challenge.

When Tim spoke to 20,000 people at an Easter rally in Florida not long ago, he put it this way, “I still have my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, because at the end of the day, that’s what’s important, win or lose … We need to get back to one nation under God, and be role models for kids!”

Here’s the deal: In a day in which the American dream has been twisted to mean entitlements and material things—automobiles, free education and a guarantee of future increase—we need to recapture the original meaning of starting from nowhere and achieving something through persistence and hard work.

In an hour when there are so few godly role models, Tim Tebow is a bright, shining light. May we follow in his footsteps as we share these words with our family and friends.

Thanks, Tim. Now go hit a grand slam and set off some fireworks in that beautiful South Carolina sky! {eoa}

My friend Cathy, a Wharton grad like President Trump, recently posed this question that pretty well sums up how we conservatives ought to look at President Trump’s first 100 days: “What’s our return on investment, or ROI, in our vote for President Trump?”

We know what the establishment media is already saying: President Trump’s first 100 days have been a failure.

Indeed, The New York Times’ op-ed pages claim President Trump’s first 100 days are “the worst on record” and New York Magazine‘s far left writer-at-large Frank Rich and contributor Alex Carp said, “As someone is writing every 10 minutes now, Trump’s first hundred days have been marked by no major achievements beyond the successful nomination of a Supreme Court justice.”

However, in terms of conservative ROI, the confirmation of that one Supreme Court Justice might have been worth the whole election.

At least that’s what our libertarian-oriented friend Representative Thomas Massie (KY-4) thinks.

Massie, who is not necessarily always a fan of the president, said the president is off to a great start and told Sean Moran of Breitbart News that the nomination of Neil Gorsuch was a defining moment for the Trump presidency:

I’m excited for the wins that we got already, which includes Supreme Court nominee Gorsuch being confirmed and that’s going to last for decades. Neil Gorsuch was worth the entire election; everything else is a bonus.

Among the “bonus” items Massie identified were President Trump’s rollback of the EPA’s Waters of the U.S. rule and the Social Security gun grab, and the President’s executive order attacking the regulatory state.

President Trump’s attack on the regulatory state brings to mind another important data point in the calculation of the conservative ROI in a vote for President Trump, what our friend Rick Manning of Americans for Limited Government called, Trump’s crash course in “creative destruction.”

Manning reminds us that “creative destruction” is the term MIT economist Joseph Schumpeter used to describe the capitalist process where business constantly seeks product and process upgrades that result in the development of new and improved ways of doing things and new products that drive out the old and outdated ones.

In Rick Manning’s analysis Donald Trump’s first 100 days should be judged on whether he is successfully generating the creative destruction the voters demanded, and by any standard, says Manning, he is doing just that.

By exiting the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Trump is resetting what it means to be a trade partner with the United States.

Donald Trump’s budget is equally transformational, says Manning.

In proposing the elimination of agencies like the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities, Trump is signaling that his administration will end government payments to organizations that could be better supported by the private sector.

And perhaps most consequentially, said Manning, Trump has re-ordered how the United States is going to interact with the rest of the world.

Each of those is a significant return on the vote conservatives invested in Donald Trump.

Measured strictly on a quarterly basis, the conservative ROI on our vote that we achieved with the Gorsuch confirmation was stellar, and that investment is likely to continue to pay dividends for years to come.

Likewise, the conservative ROI on regulatory reform will pay dividends, not just in the short-term, but for years to come.

However, American business is often criticized for having a shortsighted quarter-to-quarter focus on profits, and American politicians are likewise criticized for focusing on today’s polls rather than doing the hard work to sell long-term policy results.

From our perspective, having worked at the White House, the Senate, the House of Representatives and an executive branch agency, those same critiques apply to complaints about President Trump’s first 100 days.

The establishment media will look at President Trump’s campaign promises and “what I’m going to do on Day 1” rhetoric and claim the President’s first 100 days have been a failure.

Many Trump voters are frustrated, and might be tempted to agree.

Some of President Trump’s biggest promises, and the ones that are likely to pay some of the greatest returns on the investment we conservatives made with our vote for President Trump, such as the executive orders on border security and sanctuary cities and the repeal and replacement of Obamacare, aren’t giving us any return—yet.

But that’s not because President Trump didn’t put them in motion; it’s because they were stymied through the overreach of liberal judges and the failures of the Republican leadership in Congress.

The establishment media and the #NeverTrump crowd will focus on what isn’t yet final and judge President Trump’s first 100 days a failure. However, ignoring President Trump’s successes and judging the president’s results strictly by what investments haven’t yet come to maturity is a shortsighted view of the conservative ROI of President Trump’s first 100 days.

As a builder, President Trump understands that you aren’t going to book a profit in the first quarter after you break ground on a new project—what’s important is keeping the project on schedule and under budget.

The executive orders on immigration, the Obamacare repeal and replace, and the sanctuary cities order were investments in creative destruction that are going to take more than one quarter to mature, but the fact that those actions are in the pipeline and have by no means been abandoned bodes well for future dividends.

George Rasley is editor of Richard Viguerie’s . A veteran of over 300 political campaigns, he served on the staff of Vice President Dan Quayle and as spokesman for now-Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee Mac Thornberry. He has served as a staff member or consultant to some of America’s most-recognized conservative political figures. He is a member of American MENSA and studied international relations at Worcester College, Oxford.

This article was originally published at . Used with permission.

 As Christians, we believe the power of Christ is sufficient to change lives and cultures.

A great example of this is in the Hawaiian Islands, where missionaries first landed in 1820. The Hawaiians were a warlike people, constantly fighting each other on the various islands. And they made many human sacrifices to appease the goddess of the constantly erupting volcano.

Within a couple of decades, the king of Hawaii had become a Christian and with him, the entire Hawaiian population. The missionaries created an alphabet and translated the Bible into the language of the people. Within 25 years, this illiterate society had a literacy rate of 75 percent, far above many more “advanced” countries of the world during that era.

And instead of being warlike, the Hawaiians became the gentle people we associate with the lovely aloha spirit.

I learned this on a recent trip to Kona, Hawaii, on the Big Island. I had the privilege of meeting with Loren Cunningham, the founder of Youth With a Mission (YWAM), which is headquartered there, along with the University of the Nations. Listen to my podcast with Cunningham, who says he believes great revival is coming.

When Loren met me at the dock while my cruise ship was in port, he showed me a historical marker put up by the local ministerial association that calls the spot the Plymouth Rock of Hawaii. Here, 23 missionaries landed at a place that had been prophesied by one of the local tribal leaders.

Today, I recorded a podcast about this in which I go into much more depth. Please listen to and share it.

The historical marker in the above photo is much more detailed than I can be here, so I’ve typed it below for those of you who are history buffs like I am.

Let’s praise God for the change in the Hawaiian Islands where, I was told, churches outnumber bars four to one. And let’s be thankful for this silent witness at Kona telling tourists and others the mighty things God has done.

THE PLYMOUTH ROCK OF HAWAI’I

Kailua-Kona pier covers most of the lava outcropping here on Kai-a-ke-akua (Sea of God) Bay. A vestige is still visible on the north edge. On April 4, 1820, American Protestant missionaries aboard the 85-foot brig Thaddeus landed on this site where Kahuna Nui (high priest) Hewahewa had prophesied the new God would land. Today this site is known as the Plymouth Rock of Hawai’i.

In 1808, two native Hawaiian boys left this island and were educated at the Foreign Missions School in Cornwall, Connecticut. They became accomplished scholars and also sincere followers of Jesus Christ. As they prayed together, they felt they were to return to share the message of God’s Word with their countrymen. They were known as Henry Opukaha’ia and Thomas Hopu.

After Opukaha’ia’s untimely death in 1818, his journal was published. It inspired 23 Americans and Hawaiians in New England, including Thomas Hopu, to bring education and the gospel to the Hawaiian islands.

On arrival in Hawai’i, the missionaries stepped onto the exact place Hewahewa had prophesied. Liholiho (Kamehameha II) and co-regent Ka’ahumanu gave permission for the missionaries to stay to establish schools and churches. The people welcomed them with aloha and Liholiho gave them a home and a royal canoe shed, which they used as the first house of worship. With the help of Hawaiian teachers, they created a written language and finished a complete translation of the Bible by 1839.

In 25 years, the literacy rate of Hawai’i was one of the highest in the world. Ships called “Morning Stars” carrying native Hawaiian missionaries sailed to the Pacific Islands and Oregon with the message of Christ.

“A great God, a mighty God, a living God, an everlasting God is Jehovah … a rainbow standing in the sea is Jesus our Redeemer…” —Hewahewa

UA MAU KE EA O KA AINA I KA PONO

“The Life of the land is perpetuated in righteousness.” —King Kauikeaouli (Kamehamena III)

This sign is a gift from the Kona Ministers Fellowship and the Christian churches of Hawai’i. {eoa}

When I look back at childhood, I think about my decisions when I came into my adolescence. The early years were perfectly happy and normal, but the later years led me to places that make me cringe when I think back on it. I can pinpoint the triggers that caused the good and bad choices. But a 10-year-old boy has no ability to understand what is happening in the moment.

As parents, it is an important duty to monitor our child and their activities. This allows us to decipher what paths they are headed down. When you just focus on punishment and not the root of the issue, there is a good chance he or she could become a problem child. Here are some of the common signs of a child heading the wrong direction. It is important to recognize these and take the appropriate steps to guide your child back down a positive path.

1. Mood Swings

Everyone experiences the occasional change in moods. Teenagers with exploding hormones, in particular, are prone to ups and downs. The key here is to determine if the lows and highs are too excessive, or if your child quickly shifts from euphoria to depression seemingly without cause. Be empathetic and a source of stability. Be calm. Adding to the drama will only make things worse. Finally, try to get your child to communicate what he is truly feeling in the moment.

2. Withdrawal

Not every child is a social butterfly, but that doesn’t mean there is a problem. However, if you see signs of withdrawal, it could be cause for concern. Watch for signs of depression, lack of confidence and if he feels rejected by other children.

3. Hiding Things

When you find out they have been hiding something, even if it’s trivial, it should tell you that they have entered into suspect behavior. At the very least they are creating habits of secrecy. It either says they are fine with bad behavior or they don’t trust you. Each of those is dangerous.

4. Dropping Grades

If a child is getting lower-than-normal grades, something is wrong somewhere. It could be a learning disability, laziness, need for more instruction or any number of social or domestic issues. It could also be a sign of depression or discontentment. Get to the core of the matter instead of just punishing.

5. Sudden Change of Friends

Making new friends is a good thing. A red flag is when your child stops spending time with one friend group and start hanging out with a totally new group of people. It’s important to find out what they are drawn to with the new group and what the breakdown was with their former friends. Relationships have a complexity, and kids need their parents’ help in navigating them. Breakdowns in friendships hurt. Wounded hearts often gravitate to unhealthy coping mechanisms to numb or distract from the pain.

6. Fluctuating Weight

Sudden weight loss and gain are normally associated with an unhealthy desire to control. Being a child can feel turbulent and unstable. As a way to deal with the stress, eating disorders or mass consumption can emerge. With these dysfunctional coping strategies, food can easily be replaced by drugs and alcohol or cutting as a way to control feelings of fear, anxiety and insecurity.

7. Personality Changes

Puberty is bound to bring some personality changes, but keep an eye on it. When a generally upbeat kid becomes more pessimistic or an outgoing kid becomes quieter, there is something driving the negative change. Perhaps they are doing things they know you wouldn’t approve of or they are being bullied at school. Maybe they are desperate for approval they aren’t getting. Ask them questions such as, “Do you feel like your world is changing a bit? How do you feel about that?” You may also try, “You know when I was your age I had a hard time. How are you coping with the changes going on around you?”

8. Changing the Way They Dress

It’s fine to experiment with new looks. After all, kids don’t develop a full sense of identity until their mid-twenties. However, a sudden change in dress and image could be more than experimenting. It may be a deep sign of insecurity. Starting to wear more revealing clothing tends to be a step towards sexual activity, while baggy/over-covering can be a sign they are hiding something. For example, when a kid always wears long sleeves, even when it is warm, they are usually hiding scars from self-cutting. As it has been said before, get to the heart of the issues. Ask questions and be a safe place for your kids as they try to navigate life.

What other trouble signs are there? {eoa}

This article originally appeared at .

“Why, God? Why can’t I have a baby? Why is this happening to us? What do we need to do?”

Like a helpless rag doll, I surrendered again to the sobs that consumed my entire being. This was such a feared, yet familiar, darkness. The pain of infertility was brutal and all-consuming to my soul. The shame of infertility stole every ounce of my self-worth. Was there any hope that I would ever conceive a child?

Because you are reading this book, I assume you can identify with some of my experience. The pain and hopelessness of infertility is quite universal. More than any other time in documented history, women and men are battling infertility. While both men and women can have a fertility problem, current statistics (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2015) show there are about 6.7 million women in the US and over 70 million worldwide who struggle with infertility. You are not alone in your pain or your mercurial hope.

But I want to do more than comfort you with the patronizing sentiment, “I know how you feel.” I actually do not know how each of you feels deep down in your aching heart. But I do know I want to give you hope. Fresh hope. I want to say to you, “Yes, there is hope.” And, I want to share with you our story of how we were filled with hope, cured of infertility and now enjoy a vibrant, albeit chaotic, family tribe of 28 and counting. This is our story, but it can be your story, too.

How do I know? I have learned many valuable lessons over the years that have convinced me how much God loves each person, including you. You may be a person who does not know God, or maybe you do not even know He exists. Maybe you’re of another faith or maybe you’re an atheist. You may be a committed disciple of Jesus or a lukewarm Christian. No matter where you may be on your personal spiritual journey, I am confident of God’s love for you. This is a bold statement, and it is OK if it seems untrue to you. It took me time to grasp this life-changing truth. I desire to impart God’s love to you in a way you can experience for yourselves. The same God who loves me, loves you.

I am also confident that it is God’s deep and even passionate desire to give you children. Again, this is a truth I had to learn. I had many mixed-up beliefs about God, His character and His will. Now, I believe God is eager to bless every couple with children. This may sound audacious or presumptuous to you.

It certainly did to us at one time. You may be asking, as we did, “If God is so eager to give us a child, why can’t we get pregnant?” My husband Happy and I were told there was a slim to no chance of our ever conceiving our own child. We both had serious medical issues. We had exhausted the available treatment options. Our cries to God went unanswered. We certainly had no idea God wanted to do miracles for us or anyone else.

Then, all of that changed. Not only did we receive God’s cure and healing from infertility for ourselves, but we also went on to share with over  500 couples who, like us, received God’s cure and the blessing of children. Many of these couples likewise shared with other infertile couples and rejoiced as they, too, were cured and had children.

Contrary to popular belief, God wants to bless every couple and He does not play favorites. He is truly a loving Father, and He designed the human race to enjoy family life. Again, this may be foreign to your beliefs, as it was at one time to ours. That’s OK. I will share with you the many important lessons we learned on how to receive God’s cure for infertility and His gift of children.

No matter the severity or impossibility of your current diagnosis, I encourage you to read this book. I am aware of the courage that may take. I am well aware of how dangerous hope can be. I often wanted to protect my heart from even daring to hope again when we were in the throes of treatment and trying. I invite you to open your hurting heart just a bit. I take this very seriously. I know how fragile I was when we struggled month after desperate month. It was often excruciating to lay down my armor of self-protection, crack open my heart, and hope again. I do not want to give you false hope. I do not want to add more disappointment to your shattered emotions. I want to give you fresh hope. {eoa}

Happy and Dianne Leman have been leading The Vineyard Church of Central ever since the Holy Spirit rocked their lives in 1977. Together they boldly proclaim: “God is still doing miracles!” to their multi-campus church of over 3,000 people. In addition, both Happy and Dianne serve on the National Vineyard Executive Board. Dianne leads teams for Women in Leadership and Spiritual Renewal and Happy oversees Finances and Strategy. In their free time, they love playing with their growing brood of grandchildren, taking long walks together and loving the Holy Spirit more and more each day.

“Those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of goodness” (James 3:18, TLB).

Our natural tendency is to hate our enemies or at least to avoid them at all cost. But if you run from conflict, you’re going to be miserable most of your life. Jesus calls us to a higher standard. He calls us to be peacemakers—not peacekeepers. There’s a huge difference. Peacekeepers avoid conflict and pretend it doesn’t exist. But peacemakers resolve conflict and reconcile relationships.

The Bible promises this: “Those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of goodness” (James 3:18 TLB).

When you plant a seed, you always get back more than you started with. If you plant an apple seed, you get a whole tree full of apples in return. It’s the law of sowing and reaping. If you plant a seed of conflict, you’ll wind up with a lot more trouble than you bargained for. But the Bible says if you plant seeds of peace, you will reap a harvest of peace, kindness and goodness in return.

So how do you do that? One of the most important life skills that you will ever learn is conflict resolution. Over the next two devotionals, I’ll share with you seven keys to becoming a peacemaker in the midst of conflict. Here are the first three.

Make the first move. Don’t wait for the person to come to you. You take the initiative. Buy that person a cup of coffee or go to lunch together. Jesus took the initiative to show mercy to us. The Bible says, “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us … For while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son” (Rom. 5:8b, 10a, MEV). Jesus didn’t wait for us to apologize. He didn’t even wait for us to feel bad about our behavior. Jesus made the first move. And he wants us to do the same thing.

Ask God for wisdom. God is always glad to help you when you’re doing what he says. The Bible says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives it to all men liberally and without criticism, and it will be given to him” (James 1:5a). Ask God to help you decide the right time and the right place to plan a peace conference. Ask him to give you the right words to say and the right way to say them. The Bible says, “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver” (Prov. 25:11).

Start with your own confession. Don’t start with a bunch of accusations. Don’t start with the ways you’ve been hurt. Start with what’s your fault. The conflict may be percent the other person’s fault. But you can find something to confess. Instead of accusing the other person — and instead of excusing yourself—start with your own mistakes, even if it was your poor response. But you begin with what was your fault.

We’ll look at four more keys to peacemaking in tomorrow’s devotional.

Talk It Over

• If you make the first move and reach out to someone who has hurt you, what assurances do you have that the person will change his or her behavior and/or apologize to you? Does it matter, from an eternal perspective?
• How should this make a difference in your life: Jesus didn’t wait for us to apologize. Jesus made the first move. {eoa}

Rick Warren is the founding pastor of Saddleback Church. His book, The Purpose Driven Church, was named one of the 100 Christian books that changed the 20th century. He is also founder of , a global internet community for pastors.

This article originally appeared at .

The secular Yeshiva in Ein Kerem has a special program for soldiers being inducted into the army, and God has given us (at Beit Netanel) such favor with their leaders. This last month, one officer, who had been with us before, asked if he could bring 30 more young soldiers specifically to hear me teach about Yeshua!

So, as usual, Gilad and I prepared a large meal, because in our culture, when they sit to eat, it breaks the ice and they are more open to hear what I have to say. I was surprised to find how hungry these young people were to learn about Yeshua. I told them about how the Son of God put on flesh and how He came to take away our sins and give us His righteousness. They asked so many questions.

One of them asked, “What can we do to make Messiah come? I said that first of all you need to ask God to show you the truth. If you read the Tenach, the first mention of the Messiah is in Genesis 3:15 (NKJV) is, “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”

What does it mean the “seed of the woman”? There is no other woman where this is mentioned because the Messiah must not be born of man. Look at what is written in Isaiah 7:14, “The virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Isa. 7:14).

They were amazed and said, “What? This is in our Tanakh?”

This conversation lasted more than three hours after lunch. They were so happy and several want to come again and bring their families. Before they left, they presented me with an award for my service to the soldiers which said, “In appreciation for the enlightening atmosphere and fascinating conversation.” Praise God! {eoa}