Cavin Harper

“’Awake, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.’ Be careful then, how you live—not as unwise, but wise, making the most of every opportunity because the days are evil.” Eph. 5:14-16 It was Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World, not George Orwell’s 1984 that got it right according...

“Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thess. 5:18 Thirty-two years ago I was a defeated young man with a bad case of the blues. Only a year out of seminary I found myself on the receiving end of the fury of several people in the church who wanted me...

“A good man leaves an inheritance for his children’s children.” Prov. 13:22 When our girls graduated from high school, Michael W. Smith’s song “Friends” was very popular and sung at just about every graduation around the country I think. You may remember the lyrics: And friends are friends forever...

“A good man leaves an inheritance for his children’s children.” Prov. 13:22 The first thing that most people think of when they hear or use the word “inheritance” is money or material wealth of some kind. However, a good man’s inheritance involves more than material assets because he knows there...

“A good man leaves an inheritance for his children’s children.” Prov. 13:22 In Jim Stovall’s novel,The Ultimate Gift, Red Stevens realizes at the end of his life that he made some poor decisions about how he used his wealth with his family. “One of the biggest mistakes I ever made was when I gave...

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Eph. 2:10 You’ve heard the saying, “where there’s a will, there’s a way.” How about “where there’s a will, there’s a purposeful life?” Think about it…every person has but one life...

“See to it that no one takes your captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.” Col. 2:8 It doesn't make much sense to walk around in a rainstorm with an umbrella that is full of holes, does it? Yet...

“He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” Psalm 91:1 There is nothing like a good umbrella for protection from the rain. People who live where rain is a frequent occurrence understand the value of a good umbrella. But what about the rainstorms of...

“Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; give me an undivided heart that I may fear your name.” Psalm 86:11 Oswald Chambers wrote, “The Sermon on the Mount is not an ideal; it is a statement of what will happen in me when Jesus Christ has altered my disposition and put in a...

“But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” Matt. 6:33 In 1931 James Truslow Adams first coined the phrase “the American Dream” in his book Epic of America. He defined the American Dream as “that dream of a land in which life should be...

“Teach them to your children and to their children after them.” Deut. 4:9 Yesterday was officially National Grandparents Day, a day that comes and goes without much fanfare or public attention. Both in our churches and on the national scene very little is said about grandparents and the vital role...

“Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men.” Colossians 3:23 Labor Day is now behind us, but how many of us actually think about the significance of labor (work), especially as followers of Christ?  I suspect that work is, for most of us, but a necessary...