Archives: Episode

June 30. David Green. Green, with $600 in his pocket and a craft idea, founded the arts-and-crafts store Hobby Lobby. So far, his idea has grown into 900 stores and several major ministries.  

Still, the principles Green bases his decisions on are not always popular. Today’s story tells about a principle Green had to fight for. On this date in 2014, Green won his case in the United States Supreme Court. 

At the crossroads of Right–versus–Popular stands a man who can make a difference. 

His eyes closed, Green sat alone in his office, deep in prayer. This may be an atypical scenario for the CEO of a multibillion-dollar enterprise like Hobby Lobby, which is owned and operated by the Green family. But prayer had been a vital part of the fabric of Green’s life since his childhood.  

Growing up a pastor’s son, he had seen for himself how God moved through prayer and principled living. There in the quiet, Green called to mind memories of the many times over his lifetime God had answered impossible prayers. Today, perhaps more than ever, he needed to remember. 

Green found himself entangled in a ferocious legal battle and boxed his way from the Oklahoma US District Court all the way to the Supreme Court of the United States. And the controversy was still alive and well. For more than two years, Green and his family had been fighting to defend deeply held Christian values foundational to their lives and business.  

He said, “It’s amazing how God has blessed us beyond our comprehension. We see ourselves as stewards not owners.… This isn’t ours; it belongs to God.” 

With more than 900 debt-free stores nationwide, Hobby Lobby provides more than 32,000 jobs. It generates over $4.6 billion dollars in annual revenue and dedicates half of the corporate profit each year to Kingdom purposes. So the stakes that Green faced as he prayed that day were significant. 

The problem: In 2010, The Affordable Care Act mandated that all US companies provide twenty forms of contraception free of charge to all employees, four of which would terminate pregnancy after conception. To Green and his family, to support any form of birth control that would end a life after the moment of conception was unthinkable. It also violated the biblical principles, which their company bylaws mandated them to uphold. 

“There were four of the contraceptives that we could not agree with because we knew it would take life,” Green said. “We had to go against our government. We didn’t want to, but we felt we had to.” 

The government warned that if Hobby Lobby did not comply with this mandate, the government would assess the company a fine of $1.3 million per day for every day it was in violation. Unwilling to compromise his position, Green decided to take the issue to the Supreme Court and fought for his deeply held principles rather than cave in. 

“It’s our rights that are being infringed upon to require us to do something against our conscience,” said Green. “All the things we do, all our behavior, should let others know that we are living by, and operating in, biblical principles.” 

Knowing there was a possibility of losing the family business in the legal battle, Green called a family meeting to discuss the risks involved, and everyone agreed to proceed. 

“We believe that the principles that are taught scripturally are what we should operate our lives by… and so we cannot be a part of taking life,” explained Hobby Lobby President Steve Green, David Green’s son. 

At the end of a long, treacherous legal battle, Green’s prayers and uncompromising journey were rewarded when the Court ruled five to four in favor of Hobby Lobby and the religious freedom of Christian business owners in America. 

“The Supreme Court granted a landmark victory for religious liberty on June 30, 2014 in Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc., ruling that individuals do not lose their religious freedom when they open a family business.” 

“Love the LORD your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always” (Deuteronomy 11:1 NIV). 

How can you approach the battles you find yourself in today? At the crossroads of Right-versus-Popular stands a man who can make a difference. 

ChristiaNet. “Hobby Lobby CEO, David Green.” Copyright 2017. Accessed May 9, 2020. 

https://christiannews.christianet.com/1096289115.htm.

HobbyLobbyCase.com “Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Hobby Lobby: A Victory for Americans Who Seek to Live by Faith.” Accessed May 9, 2020. http://hobbylobbycase.com/. 

June 29. Richard Allen. Allen endured huge loss as a child. But even as a new believer, he stood strong in the face of gross injustice and became one of America’s most active and influential black leaders.  

Obstacles can cripple or cause growth. It’s your choice. 

Allen was a human being who was legally owned by another human being. In the United States.  

In the late 1700s, the cruel abuse Allen suffered could have made him bitter. But Allen chose a different path. 

He was born into a slave family owned by Benjamin Chew, the Attorney General of Pennsylvania, who soon sold the family to Stokely Sturgis in Delaware. Sturgis, always in need of money, later sold Allen’s mother and three siblings to another slave owner. Which, of course, left young Allen all alone in the world.  

The loss of his family was gut-wrenching, but Allen got through it. 

Sturgis was not cruel to his slaves. Unlike most slave owners, he allowed his slaves to attend religious services. So—with some of the other slaves—Allen went to hear a man preach the gospel. The meetings were often held in someone’s home, in open fields, or under a canopy of trees. 

At seventeen, Allen became a follower of Jesus Christ. He said, “I cried to the Lord both day and night… and all of a sudden my dungeon shook, my chains fell off, and glory to God, I cried.” 

Allen asked the slave-owner Sturgis to hold services in his home, and he did because he had noticed that Christianity had made Allen a better slave. Not too long after that, Sturgis became convinced that slavery was wrong, and he set his slaves free. 

Believing God’s call was upon his life, Allen started preaching to African Americans. Soon he returned to the place of his birth, and at St. George’s Methodist Episcopal Church, he held services for African Americans. Even though the service had to be at 5:00 in the morning, within a year attendance increased so much that the white people decided to build a large balcony where African American people could be segregated. 

But some African Americans were caught praying on their knees in another part of the church building and were forcibly removed. Allen and other African Americans decided to leave en masse and build their own church, something that wasn’t done in that time. 

But they did! 

They called it “Mother Bethel.” Methodist Bishop Francis Asbury, who had met Allen when he had preached at Sturgis’s farm in 1779, dedicated their church and building on June 29, 1794. It would become a stop on the “Underground Railroad,” the pipeline that runaway slaves took from the South to freedom. 

Allen was forever thankful to the Methodists even though he writes, “We bore much persecution from many of the Methodist connection, but we have reason to be thankful to Almighty God, who was our deliverer.” 

Allen was never a bitter man. Never resentful. Never vengeful. Mistreated? Yes. But he let it all go.  

“Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13–14 ESV). 

On April 10, 1816, Allen met with leaders of African American churches from Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland. After forming the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the first Black denomination in America, Allen was elected their first bishop. Today the church numbers nearly three million members—all because Allen let the past go and set us an example to follow. 

Do you ever dwell on some mistreatment you received in the past? If so, it’s time to let it go. God has great things for you to do. Obstacles can cripple or cause growth. It’s your choice. 

Biography.com. “Richard Allen.” Updated March 6, 2020. 

https://www.biography.com/religious-figure/richard-allen.

PBS. “Richard Allen.” Africans in America. Part 3. Accessed May 9, 2020. 

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part3/3p97.html.

June 28. Mike McNeill. Mike grew up with a dad who took him fly-fishing. But Mike knew that today in America, 50 percent of boys grow up in fatherless homes. Mike got involved in a group called Fathers in the Field, which pairs fatherless boys with Christian mentors. Today’s story is about how Mike got started with a boy we’ll call Dan.* 

Showing up—it’s often the way to break through. 

Dan was seventeen, older than boys usually accepted into the program, but Mike felt drawn to him. Since Dan was almost a man, Mike asked him to commit to three years of mentoring. And Dan agonized over the decision. 

Once Dan said yes, Mike was “all in.” But even after months of spending time together, the wall around Dan’s heart wore a Do Not Enter sign.  

“I don’t know if it’s going to work out with this kid,” Mike told his wife Maria. “He is so…broken down.” But Mike invited Dan to go fly-fishing. 

The afternoon before the fishing trip, Mike’s cell rang. He pulled into a parking space on the side of the post office and answered. It was Dan. 

Dan talked in overlapping circles. And Mike thought maybe Dan didn’t want to fish. He said they could do something else. But that didn’t fix whatever the problem was. The conversation was going nowhere. “Dan, what’s really up?” Mike asked. 

“Are you really going to pick me up tomorrow?” 

Mike sucked in a quick breath. It wasn’t that Dan didn’t want to go. It was how much he did want to go. Dan was afraid Mike wouldn’t show up. What should have brought excitement, anticipation, and joy had reawakened old fear. Memories of the million times he had been let down. 

Mike told Dan that nothing—short of death—would keep him away. He added that he believed God wanted them to go fishing, so he wasn’t worried about dying today.  

The next morning, it was still dark when Mike arrived at Dan’s condo. And he texted Dan to let him know he was outside: Come on out.  

But Dan didn’t respond. 

The neighborhood was quiet, and surely Dan’s family was still asleep. Mike walked to the front door and knocked softly.  

No answer. 

Mike hesitated only a minute before he rang the doorbell—repeatedly. Dan might not be all in, but Mike was in enough for both of them right now. He wasn’t walking away. He would wake up the whole house if he had to. 

Finally, Dan opened the door, his sun-streaked blond hair sticking up and sticking out. “I’m sorry. I forgot to set my alarm.” 

“It’s okay.” Mike understood what Dan hadn’t said. “I’ll wait in the car.” Dan had been afraid to set his alarm. Afraid Mike wouldn’t show. Afraid to risk disappointment again. Not setting his alarm was self-preservation. 

Twenty minutes later Dan appeared, climbed in, and they drove to Eleven Mile Canyon. Unloaded. Put on waders, boots, and fishing vests. 

One of the prettiest stretches of pristine water in Colorado, the Platte River flowed through a high rock canyon, and here Mike showed Dan how to cast. They fished up and down the river, but Mike was most excited to introduce Dan to his favorite spot—the place Mike’s dad had brought him as a kid. 

For a while, Mike and Dan cast below a little bit of a rapid—what fly-fishermen called a ripple. Then streaking lightning sent them scrambling for cover. Hunkered beneath a tree, they laughed and waited out the storm. 

That day Dan began to trust Mike. From then on, Mike invited Dan into his life, his family, and his heart. They did a lot of fun stuff together. They also faced Dan’s dark times: Drug addiction. Sexual addiction. Attempted suicide. Mike was always there—for a long time. And when Dan decided to follow Jesus, he asked Mike to baptize him—in their fishing hole on the Platt River. 

“But whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him” (1 John 2:5 ESV ).  

Who in your life are you all in for? Showing up—it’s often the way to break through. 

Based on an interview with Mike McNeil, 2019. 

NFL. “Players: Mike McNeill.” Accessed May 9, 2020. http://www.nfl.com/player/mikemcneill/2530977/profile. 

*Dan is not the boy’s real name. 

Do You Want to Learn More About This Man? 

Today in America, 50 percent of boys grow up in fatherless homes. Fathers in the Field pairs fatherless boys with Christian mentors. 

In his book Every Man’s a Mentor, Sam Mehaffie defines a mentor as “a man willing to serve; to share his life with a boy; to be a role model, an encourager, a listener. Mentoring helps to develop good character traits in a boy: fairness, decency, self-sacrifice, respect, loyalty, service, responsibility, integrity, unselfishness, honor, and self-esteem. And, when a godly man mentors a boy, he is helping to build Christian character into that boy, and hopefully will introduce him to Christ. A Christian mentor is a man reaching out to a boy to help him reach his God-given potential.” 

June 27. Ken Jacobs. Ken served his country, faced unspeakable horror, and set his own needs aside for the good of the country. On this date in 2019, Ken told what happened on D-Day—when he had a job to do.  

“You are expendable.” Survive that lie and live! 

US Army Private First Class Ken Jacobs tried peering out of the tall sides of the boat. All he could see were more boats like the one he was in with his best friend Danny and scores of other soldiers. He couldn’t see the stretch of beach in Normandy, but he knew they had to be just minutes away from the French coastline. 

Gunfire and explosions crackled around them, but in his ears his pounding heart almost deafened him. 

Suddenly, Commanding Officer Wright appeared on the deck.   

The Captain grabbed a soldier by his uniform, jerked him close, and shouted into his face, “You are expendable!” He released the soldier, and the guys staggered backward. 

The Captain spun and faced the tight group in the boat. “You are ALL expendable! That beach is our mission! You will go there, and there will be more soldiers following you, and there will be more soldiers following them! Take the beach! Follow the mission!” 

The boat landed. Ken turned to his friend, “See you on the beach!”  

Explosions all around him, Ken focused on moving forward, half-ran, half-stumbled across the beach. All around him, soldiers dropped, and Ken had to hop over them or maneuver around them, still heading forward. Danny ran just up ahead.  

But that instant, a hidden mine exploded, and Danny flew backward. When he landed, this man who had been his friend was now unrecognizable.  

Ken froze, his horror almost overwhelmed him, but he remembered the mission, put his head down, and pushed farther up the beach. 

Ken survived D-Day, the Normandy Invasion, a great victory for the Allied forces in World War II. 

Eventually, Ken went home and married a pretty nurse. But—in his head—he kept hearing the words of his captain. He was expendable! Why hadn’t he died with Danny and the other brave men? Did God have another mission for him? 

Ken began to ask God, “What do you want me to do? Show me where to go.” And God did. 

God led him to prepare for Bible-translation work at a Bible college in Minnesota, his home state.  

After finishing college, Wycliffe Bible Translators approached Ken and his wife Elaine with a challenge. Would they go to “The Impossible People?” 

Missionaries had gone before them and tried to bring the gospel to this threatening, closed people group in the jungles of Chiapas, Mexico. The Chamulan people were not above killing outsiders and anyone else who threatened their belief system of witchcraft and superstition. 

Ken and his wife did go and live with the Chamulan people for fifty years. They adopted a young Chamulan boy as their own son. Many who believed in the good news the Jacobs’ brought were killed or imprisoned, or their homes were burned. Still, the gospel spread, and the Chamulan church grew. 

Some visitors once came to hear Ken’s story of how a WWII veteran came to spend his life in a Mexican jungle. In the middle of the story, Ken grabbed a visitor by his lapels and shouted in his face, “Christ was expendable! He was expendable for you! YOU were His mission!” 

“Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19–20 NASB). 

What kind of mission has God assigned you? You are not expendable; believe that truth and live. 

Based on an interview with Joy Tuggy, June 27, 2019. 

Dierberger, Sharon. “D-Day plus 75 Years: God saves a soldier to save others an ocean away.” World Magazine. Published June 8, 2019. https://world.wng.org/2019/05/d_day_plus_75_years#.XRVWvBqr2mY.mailto. 

June 26. Francis Scott Key. Key was a serious believer in Jesus and an amateur poet. And he was against the War of 1812. Still his strong sense of personal duty drove him to join the Georgetown Light Field Artillery.  

So when a situation arose that called for a soldier and a skilled negotiator, they sent Key. Here’s what happened. 

Sometimes we think we’re powerless. But we can always pray. 

Key paced the deck of the sixty-foot American sloop, The President, and prayed for favorable winds. The good Dr. Beanes had been wrongly arrested, hauled off, and locked up on the British flagship, HMS Tonnant. Key, a lawyer, and John Skinner, a prisoner-of-exchange officer, chased the British fleet to negotiate Beanes’s release. 

Just weeks before, British troops had pillaged Washington and left it a smoldering ruin. Who knew where they would next attack—or what they would do to old Dr. Beanes? If only Key’s sloop could move faster! 

Two long days later, near the mouth of the Potomac River, Key and Skinner found the British fleet and boarded the Tonnant. 

The British Admiral said he planned to hang Dr. Beanes. But Key showed him letters from many British officers whom the doctor had helped.  

The British did release Dr. Beanes. But the Admiral feared Key and his companions would tell the American military about his plan to attack Fort McHenry and Baltimore, so he didn’t let them leave. Forced to travel with the British, Key was powerless to help his country. But he committed the fort and Baltimore to God.  

The formidable fifty-ship military fleet, with its trained troops, neared Baltimore Bay. And Key thought of the American soldiers—mostly shopkeepers and farmers. How could they fight such massive military strength?  

British Marines returned Key and his companions, still under guard, to their sloop, which had been towed and then anchored behind the fleet.  

For four grueling days, they waited. Then, while the helpless Americans watched from their moored vessel, the fleet formed a semicircle around Fort McHenry—just out of reach of American guns. 

On September 13 at 6:30 in the morning, the first British bomb burst in the air. Then it “seemed as though mother earth… was vomiting shot and shell in a sheet of fire and brimstone.” Key’s sloop tossed upon the angry sea. 

As night neared, a shell punctured the American flag and ripped away one of its fifteen stars. The flag hung limp. But just then—at “twilight’s last gleaming”—a breeze stirred. The proud banner stretched to defy British guns.  

Darkness fell. The British continued their unrelenting deluge. But there, in the red glare of the rockets and the white explosion of bombs, Key glimpsed the American flag. 

Groans of wounded men pierced the battle-worn night.  

Then—suddenly—all was silent.  

The blackness hid its secrets. Had the well-trained British troops landed as planned? Attacked?  

Gloomy hours lengthened.  

Rain clouds shrouded the long-anticipated dawn. Then, just after six, the clouds parted.  

At the first light of dawn, Key strained to see. Limp fabric dangled. At first, Key couldn’t discern whether it was the American flag or the Union Jack. Then a morning gust lifted the flag. And stars and stripes unfurled and snapped in the wind. 

Key thanked God for His “most merciful deliverance.” 

He reached into his pocket and found the only paper available, the back of a letter. On it he began, “O, say can you see…”  

Gratitude birthed poetry. He wrote four verses. In the last he poured the crux of his worship. “Blessed with vict’ry and peace, may the Heav’n rescued land, Praise the Pow’r that hath made and preserved us a nation.” A line later he added, “In God is our trust!” 

“Some nations boast of their chariots and horses, but we boast in the name of the LORD our God” (Psalm 20:7 NLT).  

When you are helpless to rescue someone, without options, what is your first go-to? Sometimes we think we’re powerless. But we can always pray. 

Key-Smith, F. S. Esq. Francis Scott Key: Author of the Star Spangled Banner; What Else He Was and Who. Washington, DC: Key-Smith and Publishing, 1911. 

Leepson, Marc. What So Proudly We Hailed: Francis Scott Key, A Life. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2014.  

Do You Want to Learn More About This Man? 

Lecture by Marc Leepson, author of What So Proudly We Hailed. July 2, 2015. Virginia Museum of History & Culture. https://www.virginiahistory.org/read-watch-listen/video-and-audio/what-so-proudly-we-hailed-francis-scott-key-life-marc-leepson.  

Key was a serious believer in Jesus and an amateur poet. And he was against the War of 1812. Still his strong sense of personal duty drove him to join the Georgetown Light Field Artillery.  

So when a situation arose that called for a soldier and a skilled negotiator, they sent Key. 

June 25. Phil Trujillo. Phil was stockbroker, who faced some hard things. Have you ever been accused of a crime? Have you ever been tried and acquitted? Have you ever been tried and convicted and sent to prison? Have you ever had to start life all over again? This story—about Phil—offers practical ideas for issues we may be facing.   

Prosperity is not just a condition; it’s a spiritual truth. 

Like many men, fear of failure drove Phil. His whole life, he had tried to get somebody’s approval. 

It didn’t matter what he chose to do. He had to reach the top, to be the very best. In sports it was becoming a world-record-holding powerlifter. In business it was achieving financial success as a stockbroker and financial planner. Failure was not an option. It was a plan that worked well until the day his life came crashing down.  

“I went from being very successful and controlling my own destiny to being out of control, alone at the very bottom. There I was, facing 12 years in prison because I made the mistake of trusting someone else’s investment due diligence. My life had been destroyed. I lost my business, my reputation was shot, and I was completely broken.”  

Phil was exactly where God wanted him to be.  

“I was a Christian when that cell door slammed shut, but I didn’t understand the spiritual issues that I had been dealing with all my life that were responsible for getting me there. My plan was to build my business and make the money I needed to provide for my family and live the good life. In prison I found out that God had another plan, and it began with opening my eyes to the reality that prosperity is not just a condition; it’s a spiritual truth.” 

While in prison, the Lord revealed that truth to Phil in His Word. God’s financial prosperity is based upon the principles of sowing and reaping. He has commanded us to bring Him the tithe, the first 10 percent of what we earn. Like many Christians, however, Phil chose to follow the world’s path to financial success, putting himself first and God last, or out of the picture all together if nothing was left at the end of the month. He was ignorant of God’s command to test His promise.  

“Moving into financial freedom requires us to be obedient to the Holy Spirit as He helps us shed the erroneous beliefs that we’ve built up over the years that have continued to negatively affect our prosperity, our health, and our spiritual life. The lies the enemy has fed us need to be revealed and replaced with the biblical truths about who we are, whose we are, and God’s promises regarding our prosperity.”  

After three years, Phil stepped through that prison gate a free man with the truth, a burden, and a mission. His life is dedicated to sharing the truth of God’s financial principles that he lives by, the truth that destroys the plans of the Enemy and brings about spiritual freedom and financial breakthrough.  

“God promises to prosper us if we hearken unto His voice, are obedient to His commands, and turn to Him with all our heart and soul. That is the message the Lord has called me to share, to help those whom the enemy has held captive with his lies to break free spiritually and financially.” 

“‘Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,’ says the LORD Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it’” (Malachi 3:10 NIV). 

Is there an area of your financial life that you are you holding back from God’s provision? Prosperity is not just a condition; it’s a spiritual truth. 

Flagstar Bank. Philip Trujillo 

Trujillo, Phillip. Flagstar Bank. “Crafting the right solutions for a diverse audience.” Accessed May 9, 2020. https://www.flagstar.com/commercial/homebuilder-finance/homebuilder-finance-team/philip-trujillo.html. 

Based on an interview with Philip Trujillo, 2019. 

June 24. Francis Xavier. Francis was born in the family castle in what is now Spain. When he finished his basic education, he earned a master’s degree in philosophy and taught it for four years at the University of Paris. Then he studied theology for two more years. But Francis never imagined that this God he was studying about would turn Francis’s life inside out. The big change came when he made friends with another Spanish nobleman named Ignatius Loyola.  

Ignatius had recently encountered Jesus Christ and told Francis how his life had changed. Soon, the Lord Jesus changed Francis too. Francis and Ignatius and five other men took vows and called themselves the Society of Jesus. On this date in 1537, Francis was ordained a priest. Today’s story is set in India, where Francis was a missionary, where—through Francis—God revealed His might and mercy. Here’s the story. 

Miracles can happen in the life of a man who believes God. 

The bitter weeping of a heartbroken woman rose from the church graveyard. Here, where her daughter had been buried just days before, a mother knelt and cried out to God. She cried out for answers. For comfort. For hope of any kind.  

Not long ago, her daughter had become suddenly ill, and she searched Malacca, trying to find the man who had recently led her to faith in Christ. He could have prayed for her daughter, and she would have been healed. If only he had been here. 

The woman composed herself and stood to leave her daughter’s grave. As she wiped the tears from her eyes and brushed the dirt from her knees, her heart was resolute. She would find Francis. He would pray for her daughter. God would bring her daughter back to life.  

Since Francis had arrived in her city, many people had experienced miraculous healings. And the news of how God was using this humble man to bless the people had been spreading by the day. Everybody was talking about it. But Francis had traveled out of town to take care of some people, and the mother was unable to find him to pray for her daughter before it was simply too late. 

The mother searched through Malacca until she learned he had returned to the city, and she felt new hope. She ran. 

And when she found him, she fell at his feet and explained to Francis her daughter had died while he was away. And if he would only pray for her to be healed, she was certain her daughter would be brought back to life. 

Francis stood speechless. 

He knew this dear woman had just recently come to Christ, and he was stunned at the purity of her faith. Moved with compassion for her and for her daughter, he prayed for God to grant her prayer and to console her broken heart. Then he told her to return to her daughter’s grave, that her daughter was alive. 

Now the mother was speechless. 

She started to tell Francis that her daughter had been dead for three days, but she stopped herself, turned, and ran for the church.  

A crowd of people had seen her with Francis, and they ran with her, back to her daughter’s grave. When they got there, several of them helped lift the gravestone away, and the daughter, who had been dead three days, came out alive! And her mother held the girl. And the mother thanked God. All the people praised God. 

“I tell you for certain that if you have faith in me, you will do the same things that I am doing. You will do even greater things” (John 14:12 CEV). 

Is there anything in your life that God wants to bring back from the grave? Miracles can happen in the life of a man who believes God. 

Hardon, John A., S.J. “The Miracles of St. Francis Xavier.” The Real Presence Association. Accessed May 8, 2020. 

http://www.therealpresence.org/archives/Miracles/Miracles_005.htm.

Hebert, Albert J, S.M. “Resurrection Miracles.” True Stories of 400 Resurrection Miracles. Jeevanjal Ministries. Accessed May 8, 2020. http://www.jeevanjal.org/jeevanjal/rm8.html. 

June 23. Manny Pacquiao. Manny had a dream, and he wasn’t afraid of the work it would require. When he was little, Manny lived in a shack in a dense Philippines jungle, where his father climbed seventy trees a day and gathered coconuts to get the family some food—not enough food. They usually couldn’t afford rice, and Manny’s ribs and shoulders were clearly visible under his skin.  

But Manny made up his mind to become a boxer, and when he was twelve, he quit school and started training hard. At fifteen, to ease the burden on his mother, he stowed away on a boat to Manila and slept on the street, but he got to the gym every day to train. 

Manny has won twelve major world titles. On this day in 2001, Manny won the Bantamweight title. And now he is a leading senator in his own country.  

“Approximately 19.6 million people have bought one of his pay-per-view fights over the years, with [more than a billion dollars] in revenue made from those 23 pay-per-view bouts.” Today’s story shows what Manny does with his money.  

Sometimes the best way to bring about peace is to pick a fight. 

It had already been a week, and Manny’s body was still sore. His joints felt stiffer than normal. These days the swelling from his bouts in the ring seemed to be taking their toll longer. Overall, his body just hurt. Age was definitely playing a major role in his less-than-speedy recovery. 

He was back home in the Philippines trying to get a few days, maybe even weeks, of rest before he picked his training up again. He mentally replayed the rounds from his last fight against Jeff Horn—a week earlier—in which Manny had lost by a controversial decision. Those losses were always the hardest to accept. 

His body was basically screaming at him that it was time to hang up his gloves. But it had been making that claim for years, so he pushed the thought out of his mind.  

He had retired once. Not long after the biggest fight of his career and the century, if not of all time, his much-anticipated brawl against undefeated Floyd Mayweather, Manny walked away from boxing. He gave it up. But only for a little while. 

Deep down Manny always knew he would fight again. His motivation was just too great. As a matter of fact, that motivation had just showed up and was forming a line outside his house that stretched several blocks. Manny, you see, is a Christ-follower. 

He got to his feet while his aging body creaked and shuffled out in his sandals to meet the masses of children who lined the street. 

He handed out money to every kid in line. This line was very long, but Manny’s pockets were very deep. And it took some time. 

But Manny made sure every child was taken care of.  

News reporters didn’t document this charitable act. It wasn’t a publicity stunt. The only certified proof of this great kindness came from random cell phones that waved in the crowd. 

“This is why I fight.” Those in need have always been his reason for fighting. “Every income I receive in boxing, almost half of it goes to the less fortunate.” Evidence: he’s had 1,000 houses built in the Sarangani Province, and he’s given them away. No strings attached. Stepping in to help those in need motivates Manny to keep stepping into the ring. 

The motivation for his last fight was the same as the motivation for his first fight. When Manny was around nine or ten, his brother was being bullied for being “poorer than dirt.” This didn’t sit too well with the future Hall of Fame boxer. He found the boy who had been tormenting his brother and unleashed his first lightning-fast jab. It only took one punch from Manny to floor his brother’s bully. And he’s been fighting for those in need ever since.  

“Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed” (Psalm 82:3 NIV).  

Who do you know who could use someone to fight for them? Sometimes the best way to bring about peace is to pick a fight. 

Boon, Jon. The Sun. “PACMAN Manny Pacquiao’s amazing life story, from sleeping rough in Manila to becoming king of the ring and thought of as the future president of the Philippines.” 

Accessed May 11, 2020. https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/9523488/manny-pacquiao-life-story-philippines/. 

Collins, Penn. “Manny Paquiao Was Handing Out Cash to Kids in the Philippines.” Total Pro Sports. Video. July 10, 2017. https://www.totalprosports.com/2017/07/10/manny-pacquiao-hand-cash-kids-philippines-video/. 

Velin, Bob. “Manny Paquiao builds and gives away 1,000 houses in Philippines to poor and homeless.” USA TODAY. October 27, 2016. https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/boxing/2016/10/27/manny-pacquiao-builds-and-gives-away-1000-houses-in-philippines-to-poor-and-homeless/99720880/. 

June 22. Chris Quilala. Chris was an on-fire worship leader. When things were good, he worshiped God. When things went wrong, he had to learn what to do.  

When pain paralyzes you, hang tight to the truth you know. It can hold you up. 

 
Chris sat down limply. Out of habit, his arm reached for his guitar propped against the couch where he had left it this morning—this morning, when life had been full of hope. He automatically formed chords and began to strum. Hoarsely, barely above a whisper, he sang about a great and loving God. The words seemed ironic at first. The darkest time of his life hardly seemed like a time for praise. But as he sang, he felt hope returning to his shattered soul. 

Earlier that day, Chris and his wife Alyssa, nearly nine months pregnant, had driven to a prenatal appointment where a doctor performed several tests. 

“I’m sorry,” said the doctor, with real sympathy in his voice. “There is no heartbeat.” 

The words hit them like a brick. They could only stare back, dazed. 

The doctor told them to go home and process. He would set up an induction to deliver the baby later that afternoon. 

Still trying to register the news, Chris helped his wife off the exam table. They held each other and sobbed. Just days ago, his wife had laughed, feeling the baby’s kicks. Now, all was still and quiet. The reality of their baby’s death slowly sunk in.  

How did this happen? 

God was good. He was merciful, kind, and always loving. These things were still true—right?  

On the drive home, Chris kept replaying the truths in his head. As a worship leader, he had sung about them in front of thousands of people. But now, he felt frozen with a horrible choice. Would he choose to believe the truth? Belief, real belief, required action. And he felt tired. Too tired to hold on. It would be easier to let go of the struggle to believe a God who, in this moment, didn’t seem good. But could he just let the storm of his grief and doubts smash every tower of truth he had built? 

When they got home, Chris called some close friends and family to come over. He stood in the living room and listened to his pastor pray intensely over his wife. Chris was in awe of the boldness of those prayers. He realized now was the time for his choice.  

He walked over to his wife and took her hand. Together with the little group, they began to proclaim God’s deep love in song. They sang about how God always stayed the same, no matter the circumstance. In this dark hour, Chris’s response wouldn’t change either. No matter if it was life or death. No matter if it was perfect joy or deep sadness, he chose faith in the One who holds it all in His loving hands. Chris ran to find refuge in the strong tower of God’s promises and worshiped Him like he never had before.  

A few hours later, Chris and Alyssa drove back to the hospital. The sun was still out, warmer and stronger in the late afternoon. Soon they were set up in a hospital room and the painful process of labor and delivery began. Chris held his grieving wife’s hand through it all, praying and worshiping his Lord. 

At last, the doctor handed them a little wrapped bundle. They held their lifeless, beautiful child, who was now safe in the arms of Jesus. And they were too. On earth or in heaven, Jesus was their only hope and life.   

In an interview, Chris shared, “…Eternity’s real, and I want to anchor myself in eternity. Even though circumstances here on Earth change or there’s mountains and there’s valleys, God doesn’t change. I want to anchor myself in that truth.” 

Chris ran his rough, guitar-trained fingers lightly over his baby’s head. He didn’t think he ever would have been prepared for this day, but the truth and promises of God were the strong roots that held him in this storm.  

“…We’re going to worship,” said Chris, “We’re going to still proclaim those things that we’ve proclaimed all our lives, that God is good, that He’s our healer, that He’s faithful.”  

“The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed” (Psalm 34:18 NLT).  

“Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock” (Matthew 7:24–25 NLT).  

What truths are you building into your life to handle the storms of life? When pain paralyzes you, hang tight to the truth you know. It can hold you up. 

Goodwyn, Hannah. “Split The Sky: Jesus Culture’s Chris Quilala Looks To Heaven.” CBN.com. Accessed May 8, 2020. 

https://www1.cbn.com/music/split-the-sky-jesus-culture-chris-quilala-looks-to-heaven.

Quilala, Alyssa, and Chris Quilala. Mending Tomorrow. Pennsauken, NJ: Bookbaby, 2016. 

June 21. Andy Stanley. Andy will tell you he’s an introvert. He says, “Crowds kill me.” At a party, he wants to find one person and sit and talk to him. 

But Andy is the senior pastor of North Point Ministries, which includes North Point Community Church, Buckhead Church, Browns Bridge Church, Gwinnett Church, Woodstock City Church, and Decatur City Church. And the weekly attendance for North Point alone is more than 40,000 people.  

Today’s story is about a time before he came to North Point when Andy was pastoring the same church as his father Charles Stanley. Listen to this.  

Anger can hold a relationship hostage, but love can set it free. 

Andy and his dad had been living in the everyday tension of leading the same church with two opposite leadership styles. And that strained an otherwise devoted relationship. The two men refused to let it affect their father-son bond, and they continued to strive for unity. 

“We had no tolerance for father versus son,” Andy said. 

But then—Andy’s mom filed for divorce. 

Heartbroken and frustrated at how the divorce was being handled, Andy wanted to help his dad, but it only created more tension. The father-son team grew further apart. Suspicion and frustration nearly wrecked their relationship. 

Andy had watched his parents continually try counseling, to no avail. He didn’t know who to blame for the marriage failing, but he was angry. 

And this anger made it too difficult to continue working with his father, so he prayerfully made the decision to leave the church. He walked into his dad’s office and gave him the news. 

“It signaled the death of an unspoken dream. What could have been, and perhaps should have been, wouldn’t be. So, we just stood there and cried,” Andy said. 

His father felted betrayed. 

Not wanting further damage to scar their relationship, the two made weekly counseling meetings together the norm. It was hard. Once Andy asked his counselor, “When can I give up on my relationship with my dad?” 

The counselor said, “When your Heavenly Father gives up on His relationship with you.” 

Andy realized how his stubbornness and resentment were keeping him from true relationship. 

His dad continued to reach out to him, asked him to lunch. And the meetings were awkward, but the two men kept pursuing full reconciliation. “The conversations were stilted, to say the least,” Andy said. “We were both so mad and so hurt. But he kept initiating. And I kept showing up.” 

During one of their strained lunch dates, Andy’s dad said, “We both know what usually happens to fathers and sons who go through something like this.” He looked him in the eyes and said, “Andy, I don’t want us to end up like that.” 

Andy let out a broken whisper, “Me neither, Dad.” 

“So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God” (Matthew 5:23–24 NLT). 

Is there a relationship in your life that God is asking you today to reconcile? Anger can hold a relationship hostage, but love can set it free. 

Stanley, Andy. Deep & Wide. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012. 

Blake, John. “Two preaching giants and the ‘betrayal’ that tore them apart.” CNN November 19, 2012. http://www.cnn.com/2012/11/17/us/andy-stanley/index.html.