Over the last few years we have watched closely as the European Union has emerged as a growing world power. The value of the Euro has surpassed that of the dollar, and in May the EU will welcome 10 new members, increasing its influence in the UN and expanding its potential for growth.

Last month many of us availed ourselves of the opportunity to celebrate our loved ones with a traditional remembrance. As I did so, it occurred to me that this should be an appropriate time to remind ourselves that we are the recipients of the ultimate "valentine."

Whose sermons are quoted most in the Bible? The answer may surprise you. Just as the New Testament epistles are our primary interpretive commentary on the historical narratives (the Gospels and Acts), the most venerated portion of the Old Testament - the Torah - has, within it, its primary commentary in the form of three sermons by its principal author, Moses.

If you examine the continuing articles in the vanguard of the "new sciences," it is interesting to recognize how much of our current understanding of the nature of our universe is built on disturbingly small glimpses of actual data. It appears that many writers consistently draw vast conclusions from half-vast information.

Over the last several weeks, we have been talking about making emotional choices or "fleshly choices" as Christians. These are choices to follow what we think and feel and see, rather than choosing, by faith, to follow what God has asked us to do. These choices immediately quench God’s Spirit in us.

There are many Christians who do not take the record of the Flood in Genesis seriously. They consign the account to a moral lesson without regarding the narrative as actual fact.

Despite much activity and wishful thinking about diplomatic progress, the real question is whether there will be a formal cease-fire. Even this cannot be taken for granted. Still, the intifada seems to be winding down.

Three Things God Can't Do:

Geneology Table

The ancient pagans worshiped idols of wood, brass, or stone. Modern society has invented an even weaker idol - clearly the most insulting of all. It is ironic that it has become fashionable to attribute the creation of this universe - and of ourselves - to randomness.

So far in our overview of Against the Tide , we've focused on the importance of our day-to-day choices and how they are the key to our Christian walk. We've talked about "faith choices" - choosing something we don't feel by saying, "Not my will, but Thine" - and how God has given us the authority and the power to make this kind of choice.

Most of us take our physical world for granted. To many, our physical world is all that is truly "real." But the more we learn from modern science, the more illusive and intangible our "reality" becomes.

Each year as we approach the holiday season, our preparations for Christmas include revisiting the events surrounding the birth of Our Lord. Bethlehem,1 the shepherds, and the angels are all familiar to us. But not much is generally known about the mysterious "Magi" who came to worship the infant Jesus.

What a wonderful topic to discuss this month: Knowing how much God loves us! It's amazing to me that we "happen" to be in this particular section of the book at this time, but certainly, it's not by coincidence. The whole reason for the season is God's Love!

We don't like to think about death. It's not a pleasant subject, and we avoid even discussing it seriously or giving it any diligent study. If our career plans involved a foreign assignment, our desk would be littered with brochures and travel folders as we would try learn all we could about our forthcoming destination.

Can we choose to go "against the tide" and do what God has asked when we really don't feel like it, want to or even think it will work? Will God honor a choice like this?

The Book of Genesis presents a disturbing problem for many Bible-believing Christians. Did God really create the heaven and the earth in just six 24-hour days? How does a serious student of the Torah - the five books of Moses - reconcile the Genesis account with the "billions of years" encountered in the dictums of astronomy, geology, et al?

We have found that even as Christians, our own thoughts, emotions and desires determine most aspects of our lives. The question is: How can we go against the tide and choose to do what God has asked, when we really don't feel like it, want to or think it will work? Will God honor something we choose by faith, but really don't feel?

This is always a difficult time for Christians, especially those with children. It has been suggested that for a Christian to be asked to celebrate Halloween is like asking a Holocaust survivor to celebrate Hitler's birthday! It is also a dangerous time for some, since many of the seemingly "harmless" involvements associated with Halloween can also be "entries" for the occult, and can prove very tragic for the unwary.

There are some surprises - and some very serious concerns - lying behind the meaning of "a name." (Hebrew: shem; Greek: onoma; Latin: nomen.) A "name" is that by which a person, place or thing is marked and known.