Faithful Writers

ChatGPT "But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man.” -Genesis 2:20–25 A question single believers often ask is “ how proactive should I be in trying to find my soul mate? ” Should I hit all the single bars? Should I attend every singles event that my place of worship sponsors? Should I register my profile on 20 billion matchmaking date sites? Well, I think Genesis has the answer to that question. We can see that God first appeared on the scene of human history as a matchmaker. Based on chapter 2, we can derive the following principles when it comes to marriage. 1) God Himself discerned Adam’s need and initiated marriage. Minus divine assistance man cannot understand nor make marriage a part of his experience. 2) The decision to marry proceeded from God, not man. 3) God knew the kind of partner man needed. Man did not. 4) Preparing the woman for man was 100% God’s responsibility 5) Introducing the woman to man was 100% God’s responsibility. Man did not have to make an effort to seek her out via internet dating or bar hopping etc. 6) God established the purpose of marriage which was to be a harmonious and perfectly reciprocal union between the man and woman. 7) Jesus upheld the pattern of marriage established in Genesis and maintained that it was binding on all who would be his disciples. Now am I saying that you should deliberately avoid all social situations or relationships with other singles? Of course not. What I’m saying is don’t be frantic and frazzled. Instead, be deliberate and methodical in going about your work for the Lord. I really think too many people get married because of stupid societal pressure period. I surmise that the over 50% divorce rate in our country ( I’m talking about the US ) is a reflection of this panicky “ I gotta get married now, so I don’t appear like a loser at social functions ” mentality. They’re afraid of being looked down on or being seen as a loser at parties or church gatherings. Seriously, how insecure can you get? What I can say on the authority of Scripture is that whenever man takes matters into his own hands, the results are less than pretty if not disastrous. For example, the whole problem in the Middle East today is due to one reason. Abraham and Sarah didn’t trust God that he would supernaturally provide a first-born son from Abraham’s own loins. Instead, they took matters into their own hands and now we got groups like ISIS running around cutting people’s heads off. Anyway, I’m getting ahead of myself. CONNECTING THIS TEACHING TO THE NEW TESTAMENT He replied, “Haven’t you read that at the beginning the Creator made them male and female, and that he said, ‘ For this reason a man should leave his father and mother and be united with his wife, and the two are to become one flesh’? Thus they are no longer two, but one. So then, no one should split apart what God has joined together. ” -Matthew 19:4–6 © Richoka

Photo by Dingzeyu Li on Unsplash I used to chase the next thing like it was my job. Actually, it was my job. One international teaching contract after another.One new country, new curriculum, new goal. One more training, one more leadership role, one more shiny thing to add to the CV. I told myself I was doing it for the growth. For the cultural exposure. For the calling. And in many ways, I was. I’ve always been curious about people, about places, about what God might do in unfamiliar soil. But if I’m honest? I was also chasing numbers. Contract amounts. End-of-year bonuses. Goals I could cross off like spiritual gold stars. Productivity Became a Proxy for Purpose The modern world is fluent in hustle. And so was I. I was the kind of teacher who couldn’t just teach. I had to lead a workshop about it. Attend every PD. Start a new project. Write a curriculum. Post about it, reflect on it, optimize it. All for the sake of “making the most” of my season. But somewhere between the planning meetings and the PowerPoints, I stopped hearing myself think. Worse, I stopped hearing God. Because hustle, even in the name of service, can get so loud that it drowns out holy whispers. The War in Sudan Was My Wake-Up Call I was just about to complete another teaching contract in Khartoum. I was already planning my next move. Thinking about which school, which country, which salary bracket. And then the war began. April 15, 2023 Suddenly, the plans I was building on certainty collapsed into grief, fear, and forced stillness. Friends were displaced. Routines evaporated. My future became a question mark. And for the first time in a long time, I wasn’t busy. I was broken. But in that painful silence, something shifted. I realized I had been building my faith on momentum more than intimacy. I had been serving, running, producing, while quietly drifting from the very God who called me. The war didn’t just disrupt my career. It interrupted my self-reliance. Sometimes Burnout Is a Message, Not a Moral Failing For the longest time, I thought needing rest meant I wasn’t strong enough. That if I had just planned better, prayed harder, managed my time more righteously, I wouldn’t feel this way. But Scripture doesn’t shame the weary. Jesus withdrew often. God built a whole day into the week just so we wouldn’t forget: you are not a machine. “Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”— Matthew 11:28 Rest isn’t a reward for the productive. It’s a gift for the human. And sometimes, God allows us to run out of our own strength so we can return to His. I’m Learning to Measure My Life Differently These days, I’m trying to slow down. Not to quit dreaming or growing, but to grow on purpose . To say yes from a place of peace, not pressure. I still teach. I still write. I still set goals. But I’ve stopped confusing constant motion with meaning. I’m building a deeper, quieter kind of faith now. The kind that doesn’t panic in stillness. The kind that finds God in pauses, not just in plans. Maybe You Needed This Reminder Too If you’ve been chasing the next thing, feeling like you’re falling behind, wondering why you’re exhausted even though you’re “doing everything right”, this is for you. You don’t need to earn rest. You don’t have to outperform your exhaustion. Your worth isn’t in your output. Sometimes burnout is God’s way of saying, “Child, I miss you when you’re like this. Come sit with Me awhile.” And in my case? He used a war to get my attention. Now I’m finally listening. © The Blooming Educator Whiteboards and Crossfire A Teacher’s Lessons on Fear, Fragility, and Faith Inside a Sudanese Classroom at War

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” — Psalm 119:105 Photo by Emmanuel Phaeton on Unsplash I grew up as a conservative, evangelical fundamentalist. When I read the verse or heard it from the pulpit, I thought it meant: Read your Bible. It’s the inherent, infallible Words from the mouth of God. And, in reality, the belief was intended to reinforce the notion that the preacher’s dogmas (called doctrines) represented God's word and will on the matter. But here’s the thing : this verse isn’t about the leatherbound book we were holding in our hands. In Psalm 119:105, King David was honoring a reality about something much bigger, deeper, older, and more alive than that. Not Ink on a Page, But Voice in the Dark The Hebrew word translated as “word” here is dābār (דָבָר). And boy, does it carry some weight. It doesn’t just mean a written sentence. It’s not “Bible” in the way we think of the Bible today. When Psalm 119 was written, the Scriptures were still being formed. There was no complete canon. No table of contents. Not even a New Testament. Dābār means “spoken word, utterance, message, command, or promise.” It’s what is said , not just what is written . Dābār is a revelation. A promise. A direction. God’s heartbeat. Think of it like this: If you’re walking a dark trail and someone hands you a flashlight, you’re not going to stop and analyze the flashlight’s owner’s manual. You’re going to use the light to take a step. That’s what the psalmist is getting at. God’s word isn’t just an instruction manual — it’s a presence that leads . What “Word” Really Meant Back Then To the original audience, “God’s word” would have meant everything from: The spoken commands of God The laws and promises passed down The stories and songs of His faithfulness The whispers of God’s voice in prayer and dreams It’s not limited to a scroll or a chapter-and-verse reference. It’s not confined to ancient ink. Does It Breathe? Today, we often ask: is the Bible literal or metaphorical? Is it fact or fiction? But maybe the better question is: does it breathe? When we read Scripture just to win arguments or prove our side, it becomes a dead thing. But when we read it like we’re sitting in a quiet room with a loving Presence just waiting to whisper through the pages — that’s when Scripture becomes alive again. It becomes more than words . It becomes something that lives inside you. Jesus Is the Word, Too Let’s fast-forward to the New Testament. John 1:1 says: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Jesus is called the Word (Logos in Greek). Which means the fullness of God’s message isn’t even a scroll — it’s a person . So when you read, “Your word is a lamp to my feet,” it could just as easily be understood to mean: Jesus is the one lighting my path. The Spirit’s whisper is showing me the next step. God’s presence is what keeps me from tripping over the rocks in the dark. Guidance, Not Control Let’s be real. Sometimes we want the Bible to be a GPS. Turn left in 400 feet. Forgive your ex. Reconcile by Thursday. But more often, it works like a lantern in the fog. It gives us enough light to take the next step , not the whole map. Brian Zahnd says: “God didn’t give us a road map. God gave us a traveling companion.” The Word of God is that companion. What This Means for You So when you open Psalm 119:105 now, read it with bigger eyes: Yes, read your Bible. But more than that, listen for God’s voice behind the words. Trust that God’s light shows up in more ways than just print. Know that you’re not walking alone. The same God who spoke stars into being still speaks into your dark places . Because the lamp isn’t a book. It’s a Presence. Not Just a Verse. A Lifeline. Psalm 119:105 isn’t decor or a particular doctrine. It’s survival. It’s what we cling to when we can’t see past the pain or fear or confusion. God’s word — spoken, written, whispered, felt — lights the next inch. And that’s enough. Richard Rohr puts it this way: “God comes to us disguised as our life.” So the path you’re on? The doubts you carry? The moment you need direction? God is speaking there. Right in the middle of it. Not just through chapter and verse, but through the flickering light of His nearness. Final Thought: Let the Word Be Bigger Let God’s word be bigger than the Bible , not instead of it, but beyond it . Let it be the whisper in the silence. The friend with wise words. The story that heals you. The nudge you can’t explain. The Jesus you meet when you least expect it. Because His word is more than pages. It’s the lamp that shows us how to take just one more step. And that, my friend, is enough light for the path. © Gary L Ellis

Where there’s a will, there’s a destiny. Photo by Nikolas Noonan on Unsplash Have you been to a wedding lately? The officiant asks the bride and groom to make a vow to each other and God. They are asked something like “Will you love, honor, and cherish…” And their response is usually “I will.” On the wedding day, their will is strong. However, years later, if one of them violates their covenant, it is usually because their will has become weak, diluted, or distracted. How does that happen? What is the human will? Can we control it? When my children became toddlers, I read books on “strong-willed children”. I’m glad I did because they became magnificent adults and excellent parents themselves. I never squelched their will. But learned how to channel it in the right direction. And to teach them to do the same. In my limited understanding, I believe the human will is the God-given capacity to choose . It’s the seat of decision-making, where we exercise our ability to say yes or no, to obey or resist, to surrender or rebel. It’s what makes us morally responsible before God. He gave us a will so that love and obedience could be genuine, not robotic. God doesn’t force obedience — He invites it. The will is where we answer that invitation. When someone commits a horrific act, many people seek answers. And the usual response is, “Because God gave man free will.” Choices have consequences. And “ the butterfly effect ” causes ripples with far-reaching collateral ramifications. How is your will these days? Strong? Tired? In neutral, waiting for someone or something to put it back into drive? We can’t surrender our will. We must engage it. “Choose this day whom you will serve” (Joshua 24:15). Our will is where the real battle takes place. It’s not just about feelings or thoughts, it’s about deciding. We must “will” to obey God. We must “will” to renounce the ways of this present world. When the Lord shows us what could be or what should be, the question isn’t, “What will God do?” The question is, “What will we do?” “I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore, choose life…” Deut 30:19 Just like Isaiah, when he heard the Lord ask, “Whom shall I send?”, the response must come from a willing heart: “Here am I. Send me” (Isaiah 6:8) . In the old paradigm, there were heroes, villains, and spectators. Most of us were spectators. However, in this changing and chaotic world, that is not the case. God is demanding that we choose. No better Bible story exemplifies that point than Elijah versus the prophets of Baal. “And Elijah came near to all the people and said, ‘How long will you go limping between two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Baal, then follow him.’ And the people did not answer him a word.” 1 Kings 18:21 By not deciding, they were, in effect, making a decision. By not answering a word, they were speaking volumes. The chosen people of a mighty God had been reduced to being spectators. That might have been OK in 867 BC. But not today as we close this present age and usher in the redemptive age of the Messiah. We Must Choose a Side. We Must Get in the Game. We Must Set Our Will Like Steel. We Must Stand Under an Unseen Chuppah and Recommit Our Will to God. Is God laying big decisions in front of you? If so, don’t rush. Think back. What did you do when you became aware of your divine destiny, when the truth first broke through your darkness? Remember how easy it was to trust Him back then? That was the Spirit of God at work in you. “You were running well,” Paul says in Galatians 5:7. Go back and remember that first love (Revelation 2:4) . The same God who stirred your heart then is stirring it now, inviting you again to say yes, to be loyal, to recommit. Every temptation and every crossroads comes down to a battle in the will. It’s where we either bow to God or don’t. Obeying God isn’t something we drift into. It’s a deliberate, conscious choice of will. Everything else in life waits until that choice is made. And when it comes, we shouldn’t poll the crowd, seek a sign of confirmation, or make sure our circle of influence is “OK with it.” As we continue to walk with God, fewer people will understand the steps we’re taking. That’s where the strain comes in. It’s lonely sometimes. But it’s holy ground. We don’t need to figure out where God is taking us. That’s His job. “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105) . It’s not a spotlight showing the whole road. He may not tell us the destination. Do you remember what He did with Abram? But He will reveal more of Himself. That’s the only explanation He owes us: His presence. So, today, right now, speak it out loud: “I will be loyal. I will not be moved. I will persist. I will obey.” Say it to God. Say it in prayer, in tears, in faith, in repentance. Open a new door to greatness. It’s been there the whole time, waiting for you. Make the way to your destiny straight. Clear any mental obstacles. Ponder what God is saying to you today. Then move. Go! Take action! “My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed” (Psalm 57:7). The moment we choose loyalty to God, to His plans, to His people, to His nation, we stand as a witness. It’s not just to the world, but against our selfish tendencies. We are drawing a line in the sand. We have learned to choose the good and refuse the evil. (Isaiah 7:15) We have set solid, unchangeable boundaries for ourselves. No more wavering. No more hypocrisy. No more sitting in neutral, idling, burning holy gas, and going nowhere. Spiritual maturity occurs when the human will aligns with God’s will. That doesn’t happen by accident. It takes daily surrender and discipline. It’s hard. But everything memorable and lasting is hard. Be tough. Will yourself to be loyal. And give honor to those who choose loyalty also. God’s people are called to strengthen, teach, sharpen, and lift one another for His glory. That’s how our Kingdom grows strong. Thank you for reading this. You might also like: Are There Mexican Angels? Where Have You Pitched Your Tent? The Real Difference Between Christians and Jews. You are here for a time such as this. God believes in you more than you believe in yourself. “Chazak, chazak, venitchazek!” ( Look it up, Christians ) -Issachar © I.M. Koen

Editor for Faithful Writers Nora Gwen was born and raised as a strong believer who later went astray as a prodigal, struggling in sin and suffering its consequences as a result. Since repenting and being born again, experiencing a spiritual awakening, Nora has returned home to Our Heavenly Father (by inviting Jesus into her heart forever-literally) who has blessed her with a new name “Grateful Gwen” and a clear purpose to be salt and light through reading, writing, praying, counseling, and mentoring. She knocked and the door opened. She continues to seek and find, more is revealed one day at a time!  YouTube - @GoodReadsChannel Nora Gwen

Stephanie M. is a Christian writer and devoted mother whose work blends heartfelt reflection with Biblical truth. Her writing tackles real-life struggles—sin, faith, storms, and the challenges of motherhood—always pointing readers toward hope and redemption in Christ. With a style that is both conversational and deeply thoughtful, she weaves Scripture, personal experience, and honest observation to illuminate the spiritual and emotional battles her readers face. Through her essays, Stephanie invites readers into a space of reflection, encouragement, and practical wisdom. Stephanie M.

I am a 19-year-old Christian student at DePauw University, majoring in communications. In the past, I wrote about New Age spirituality, but after an encounter with Jesus during a breaking point in my life, I gave my life to Him. He took away the depression and gave me a purpose in life. I now focus on Christian-based writing to spread the word of God to as many people as I can.  I became a Christian in the winter of 2025, and now I am incredibly passionate about planting seeds to both nonbelievers and believers. Through this, I've learned that God has blessed me with the gift of working with multimedia, including writing, photography, and podcasting. I also have my own website where I publish my works. I want to help others see His reckless love and His incredible power. He saved me. He can do the same for you.  Sienna Krieg www.siennakrieg.com

Sierra is a recent Graphic Design and Interactive Media graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Stout. During her time at Stout, she came to Christ and is now following Him wholeheartedly. Sierra has always had a passion for anything creative, especially when it comes to writing and photography. She is hoping that her creative outlets can make an impact on others and bring them closer to God. When she’s not doing something creative, you can find her reading, spending time with friends (and her cat), or exploring God’s creation. Sierra Loew

Issachar Koen is a Christian Zionist who writes nonfiction books and articles to inspire and educate the Kingdom as we approach the end of this age. He is a Senior National Representative with Bridges for Peace and a contributing author to "Faithful Writers," "Biblical Christian Worldview," Israel365, and Medium.  He teaches online courses on Torah and the Jewish roots of Christianity and creates content for the Your Torah Study YouTube channel. Issachar also leads tours throughout Israel. According to Deuteronomy 20, a priest is anointed for war. He is a husband, father, grandfather, and an avid motorcycle rider who believes the church should prepare to endure rather than escape. I.M. Koen Israel365News Biblical Christian Worldview

I write Scripture-anchored devotions and theological reflections for the quiet pursuit of Jesus. I’m the creator of Rooted Devotionals, simple printable guides that help tired hearts build 10-minute rhythms in real life. Nathan Cole Rooted Devotionals on Etsy