Tag Archive for: Bible study

ODJ: boys to men
Studies of children who grow up in fatherless homesreveal that they often face major challenges in life. The statistics are alarming. Youths who grow up in fatherless homes are twice as likely to end up in jail as those who come from traditional two-parent families. Eighty-five percent of children who exhibit behavioural disorders and ninety percent of homeless and runaway children are from father

ODJ: remind me
I’ve always needed to be reminded of things, but latelythe problem has reached critical mass. A cycling accident left me with a temporary black eye andnot-so-temporary short-term memory loss.
Recently my daughter found a hot iron plugged in long after I had left the house. On another occasion the sink overflowed when I forgot I was doing the dishes. I constantly forget where I park my
Recently my daughter found a hot iron plugged in long after I had left the house. On another occasion the sink overflowed when I forgot I was doing the dishes. I constantly forget where I park my

ODJ: youth ministry 101
If you read some recent books on youth ministry, it’shard not to get the sense that this part of churchministry is experiencing some major struggles. And nearly everyone has an opinion about how youth ministry should be improved. Parents, youth workers and young people themselves have expectations and demands that don’t always agree. So, what should we do?
In Acts 2 we read about
In Acts 2 we read about

ODJ: a living picture
On a visit to an Interactive Bible Exhibit, I was reminded of the beauty and scholarship of Scripture. Accustomed to the modern day, gold-filigree edging, I was impressed with one particular exhibit that showcased fore-edged printing—beautiful pictures, some representing events from Scripture and others with countryside scenes—that graced the outer edges of the Bibles. Interestingly, the pictu

ODJ: the big chill
Recently, scientists discovered the answer to why we
occasionally experience that dreaded ‘brain
freeze’ when eating ice cream. The piercing pain in the temples is caused by an increase in blood flow and the enlarging of the anterior cerebral artery—located in the middle of the brain behind the eyes. This phenomenon occurs when our icy, sweet treats come into contact with the roof of

ODJ: God’s garden
Last spring I planted a herb garden, even though I don’t have a ‘green thumb’. In fact I only sporadically watered the plants when their environment reached desertlike conditions. But, fortunately, I was able to enjoy cooking with the fresh produce of my work throughout the summer. A year later, though, I looked out at my garden and realised that my garden—like my life—was in a different

ODJ: needing God
When Palestinian Tass Saada was just 17 years old, he joined the Fatah movement in the West Bank. Tass hated Jews and engaged in guerilla warfare against them. He was known as “Butcher” due to the many Israeli soldiers he killed as a sniper. But later, Tass surrendered His life to Jesus and now loves God and the Jews. With his ministry, Seeds of Hope, Tass works to provide modern necessities f

ODJ: no tampering
Kim Peek, a savant who inspired the film
Rain Man, once went to a performance of a
Shakespearean play. As the performance was ending, Peek stood up and shouted, “You’ve got to stop it, stop it, stop it.” Why? An actor had skipped the second to last verse of the play. The actor apologised and said, “The verses are so much alike, I didn’t think it would matter.” Peek is quoted a

ODJ: in God’s presence
During a military operation in Iraq in 2003, military
chaplain Cary Cash served with the American military’s 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment as they battled their way to Baghdad. After the regiment secured Saddam Hussein’s Almilyah presidential palace, a young marine—ministered to by Cash—bowed and received Jesus as his Saviour. Later the chaplain baptised the young man in the inner
