Bruce Snavely

Have you ever heard those words? I am confident you have if you are anything like me.  It's never easy when we forget an appointment because it usually comes as a surprise.  We are subsequently embarassed and can't believe it happened.  This is because we assume something that is just simply not the case.  You know, the wrong day, the wrong calendar date, or even the wrong week or month.  By the time we see the error, its too late, we missed the appointment.  In most areas of our lives, this can be corrected fairly easily.  We just pick up the phone and set a new date that fits our plans and desires.  Normally, we move forward and hardly give it a second thought. Whether it’s the dentist, the doctor, the optometrist, or whoever, the missed appointment is not a life-changing problem.  However we need to be reminded of something very important about appointments.  We have  at least one  appointment in life that canno...

For an individual who may not yet be a believer in Jesus, this question may sound absurd.  However, for the Christian, it is anything but insignificant.  For one thing, it gets to the issue of our spiritual walk more succinctly than any other way. Let me explain.  Paul the apostle made this amazing declaration in his letter to the Galatian church(es).  He said something which, on its face, sounds completely untenable at first blush.  It is both a contradiction and a statement of fact.  You say, how could it be both?  The answer is simple.  It aptly describes the  Christian's actual nature.   In fact, it couldn't have been said any clearer, and notice that Paul was saying this about  himself  first of all. Here it is, I have been crucified with Christ.  It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.  And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gav...

We have often heard it said about the continent of Africa that it is the last great frontier.  In other words, it is raw and untamed.  It is in its virgin state and has not yet been fully developed.  I know this to be true because I spend alot of time there throughout the year teaching for our foundation.  Africa's greatest potential politically, socially, financially, and spiritually remains untapped. In a similar fashion for the Christian, there is another frontier that can remain raw, undeveloped, and undisciplined, and it can remain so for many years after an individual becomes a believer in Jesus Christ.   That frontier is the mind.   For many Christians, the mind represents the last vestige of personal identity and ownership.  For many Christians it remains that stubborn dimension of life that is never fully surrendered and sanctified by the Holy Spirit of God.  It is in fact, the final frontier! The Bible says in Luke 6:45, "Out of the...

I remember on many occasions as a Christian some of the difficult trials God has led me through.  I certainly wouldn't have chosen them myself or envisioned God may have had them planned for me as a way of strengthening my faith or deepening my walk with Him.  The fact is, we just don't think that way.  We constantly choose the the path of least resistance, and, if left to our own devices, we would pattern our lives that way.  In doing so, however, we are forgetting one very important thing.  Nothing in this world grows or prospers without some kind of adversity.  Everything from blood pressure to big oak trees require resistance if what we call " normalcy or growth"  are to occur.  Even in the garden in the aftermath of sin's entrance into the human experience, man and woman were introduced to "labor" in each of their respective roles in the family experience.  God was simply saying, "From now on, nothing is going to be easy." My questi...

As a believer in Jesus Christ, can you accurately fill in that blank?   Or maybe you might ask, Does it really matter?  Yes it actually does matter because the Word of God offers us clear information about both death for the believer and the eternal state. But it also offers clear information about what death looks like for the unbeliever as well. Christians need to be clear about both. I have noticed that many Christians have drifted with the culture into using unclear and frankly, un-Biblical, terminology when discussing death and the afterlife, and it is concerning.  I have noticed it again it in the wake of this recent spat of suicides being committed by the comments made by believers regarding the deceased.  Such epitaphs as RIP and similar sayings really have no Christian basis in Biblical truth and do not accurately reflect the state of things for the dead.  First , the person who dies as a Christian does not enter into a state of soul-sleep or...

In Mark 8:36, Jesus asked, What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? That question strikes at the very heart of any worldview that bases its meaning upon the accumulation of things. Americans struggle with this concept because, of all the competing worldviews, the American dream remains the standard for many.  Unfortunately, it seldom turns out the way it is described.  Those who attach happiness to the accumulation of material wealth usually arrive at the conclusion that the one is not synonymous with happiness or satisfaction, in fact it's just the opposite.  Once we reach the pinnacle of what we consider to be success, we realize it was not what we thought it would be........at all. Famous singers and songwriters strive to sell a million records and wake up to to the realization that instead of producing peace they are overwhelmed with depression and emptiness.  Business entrepreneurs who finally create a multi-million...

  In Romans 1:17 , the Bible gives us a verse which capsulates the entire Christian walk in just one brief statement.  Romans is the doctrinal book of the all the New Testament letters the Biblical writers penned.  In it Paul walks us through all of the critical issues related to our salvation and righteousness in Christ.  It is the standard by which Christianity is differentiated from all other belief systems.  If you were an alien and wanted to understand the  modus operendi  of the earthbound Christian. this verse would be in the underlined section in the Cliff notes for Christianity.  Its so important and vital to the Christian's walk and relationship to God that it is the  absolute imperative  for us to understand as Christians.  Ready?  Here it is. The just shall live by faith.  Are you saying right now,   That's it?   The answer is a simple yes, That's it!  If you know this truth and live out...

Just as Jesus was tempted by Satan to depart from His earthly mission of redemption,  we too are tempted to change our direction from following Christ.  The devil mocks,  slanders, and detests  our obedience to Jesus Christ, beginning in our thought life,  followed by our actions.   In  I Corinthians 19:13  the apostle Paul said,  No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man.  God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation He will also  provide a way of escape, that you may be able to endure it. Remember that God is not the tempter!  The Lord's brother told us that  every  man is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. (James 1:14)   Realizing  the source of our sin and temptation is key to winning our personal battle with sin.   The answer to your temptation to sin is three-fol...

Most of us, if we are indeed human, suffer through periods of discouragement.  The fact is, this is an unavoidable issue for everyone, including believers in Christ.  The difference for believers is that we have Biblical reasons not to be discouraged as well as a remedy if we are overtaken by it. In the post-exile period of Israel in the fifth century BC, Nehemiah was commissioned by God to rebuild the wall which surrounded Jerusalem.  During this rebuilding period, Nehemiah literally rebuilt the devastated walls in an amazing fifty-two days!  What most Christians don't realize is that Nehemiah faced incredibly hostile and vicious opposition during that nearly two month period.  We might be tempted to think that with God's power and provision, Nehemiah went through this task like a hot knife through butter!  Ah, think again! On several occasions, the workers were accused of tyranny, treason, and threatened with constant physical attack, verbal abus...