God did not place you on this earth to notice Him at work only once or twice in your whole life.
—Bruce Wilkinson

When we get to heaven, I believe we’ll be surprised just how many everyday miracles happened to us while we were on earth. Miracles are not limited to “super saints,” but each of us is a candidate for miracles—not just as recipients, but as participants.

Human beings spend many of their waking hours seeking something to fill the emptiness in their souls. That something is joy, and if you can offer someone joy, you will be a winner and an influencer far beyond your wildest dreams.

If you are going to maximize your influence and leave a lasting impact on others, you must become contagious with joy. There are two practical ways to do this.

“Above all, ISIS seeks the fulfillment of prophecy, and even accepts it will come close to extinction in the process.”*

Defeating a rogue military force that believes it will come to extinction in the process of ushering in the end of days is not an easy undertaking. For them, death is victory. But the world seems to be slowly gathering the will to crush ISIS.

Of course, no one knows for sure if, when, or how ISIS will meet its demise.

God, in His mercy, has not only given us the free gift of salvation, but He also gives us an opportunity to invest a portion of our “treasure” in rewards in heaven.

Any faithful Christian can earn at least one of the following crowns mentioned in Scripture, and many will earn several:

It happens more times than I care to admit. I overestimate my own awesomeness and believe I am capable of more than I truly am.

This usually happens when I need to run a quick errand and suddenly every child in my house wants to tag along. “Mommy, can I come, too?” they sing in four-part harmony when I’m trying to quietly sneak out the door.

While many factors may play a role in the rise of ISIS, the end of days is the linchpin of ISIS ideology and propaganda. It drives everything.

In The Complete Infidel's Guide to ISIS, author Robert Spencer wrote:

“The Islamic State is thus positioning itself as the harbinger of the end times—of the final and decisive battle between the Muslims and the enemies of Allah, from which the Muslims will emerge victorious, after which peace—the peace of total Sharia adherence—will prevail over all the earth.”*

The Islamic State was proclaimed on October 15, 2006, and the announcement was based on a precise apocalyptic schedule.** ISIS believes their messiah will be preceded by an Islamic caliphate and views itself as the restoration of the caliphate—and thus, the harbinger of the end times.

I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing (John 15:5).

Of all the information I could share about gardening, my greatest desire is to tell people about using and growing heirloom plants. The vastness of variety and flavor is beyond anything you’re used to finding on your grocery store shelf or in the small set of hybrid seed packets for sale in many stores.

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love (Ephesians 4:1-2).

Tolerance can be positive and negative. Traditionally, tolerance was seen as a virtue where opposing ideologies were allowed to compete at the table of ideas. Great value was placed on accepting people even though you disagreed with them.

But today, tolerance has been embedded with new meaning: If you disagree with me, you’re a bigot. If there was ever a sordid view of tolerance, that’s it.

The truth is that, in every human life, times of joy and sadness follow one another, almost like day and night. It may be, as dark nights help us appreciate daylight more, so too sorrow makes us better appreciate joy. 

The trick here on earth is to live through sadness hopefully, so that joy persists even in the presence of sorrow.

Have you ever not been able to help your child?

I’ve experienced that debilitating feeling at pivotal points throughout my daughter’s life—when she was hospitalized as a toddler for what we believed was leukemia; when she felt betrayed by a friend in high school; and when she was out of the country as a college student and I couldn’t get to her during her homesickness.