Never Again
“Why ‘Fortitude’?” I surprised myself as I asked the young man about his arm’s length tattoo. His response got my immediate attention. “It means courage. There is a story behind it and it reminds me I will never be a coward again. I will never let fear make me cower.”
The chairs in the coffee shop became pew-like in this sacred space. The conversation unfolded easily.
“The do-not-fears in the Bible have really helped me this year. Fighting fear is real to me, as well. I started studying this because it dawned on me even in the Bible fearful people made really stupid decisions. I looked at my life and saw the same pattern. Fear is no friend of clear thought.”
He nodded, picked up his iPad and started searching the do-nots. His face brightened and the interest increased. Two strangers engaged in life-strengthening.
We talked for a few more minutes, and as he left he stopped to say, “This was meant to be.”
“Start with Joshua 1:9 – it is the cornerstone; and be fortified.”
A brief exchange with the thumbprint of God all over it.
I have no idea why he fervently inked the reminder on his arm… it doesn’t matter. His resolve to stand fearlessly marks him more deeply than the tat.
What is your word? What is your story? Then whose story are you missing because you don’t ask the question? Open eyes, minds, and hearts lead us into the most exceptional surprises.
Prayer Network
by Brenda A. Smith, BWFLI.com, BreakfastWithFred.com
“I spread my hands out to you in prayer; my soul thirsts for you in a parched land.” (Psalm 143:6 NET Bible)
To start this New Year, thank you for joining with us to lift up our Christian schools in prayer. These are times to both stand and kneel. The abiding commitment of our co-laborers in Christ drives us to partner with them as they build generations of men and women. We understand their purpose, their dedication, and their struggles.
Now it is time for us to link hands and hearts as we go before the throne of God. We continue to be grateful you choose to enter into the holy of holies on behalf of higher Christian education.
Amazing Mission Fields
by Bob Deffinbaugh, Bible.org, BWFLI.com
This week my wife and I shared dinner with a lovely couple that I met in Indonesia. Both are vitally involved in a vibrant church in their homeland. Hendra’s parents sent him to attend a university in the Pacific Northwest. One of his classmates invited Hendra over to his room to study. On the way to this student’s room they passed by a stack of Bibles. Hendra had never read a Bible, and so he asked his classmate if he could have one. “You’ll have to ask the man who owns them,” he replied. The owner was an ISI (International Students Incorporated) worker. He gladly gave Hendra a Bible, with one additional benefit – a teacher, who would help him understand what he was reading.
In time, Hendra trusted in Christ as his Savior, and then went on for additional Bible training during the summer. After graduating, Hendra went on to Purdue, where he obtained his doctorate in electrical engineering. There a godly man mentored him in his relationship with Christ. Upon completing his education, Hendra returned to his homeland where he continued to grow in his faith, married a godly wife, and has served as a leader in his church.
This kind of thing is happening in the U.S.A. and in countries around the world. Foreign students come to be educated in our colleges and universities, and Christian ministries are here to meet them and share their faith with them. A number who are saved return to their homeland, where they bear witness to their faith.
Our college campuses are an amazing mission field. Pray for the colleges and universities where these students attend. Pray for Christian students and professors who will befriend these internationals and share Christ with them. You may even wish to become involved yourself.
Sign up for the monthly Prayer Network newsletter to be delivered to your email on the first Monday of each month by clicking here.
Oswald and Me
Weekly Thought – January 13, 2026
Fred attempted to capture everything he thought or found of interest in his reading and hearing. His work pattern for most of his life was sleeping, waking up at 2 a.m., working until 5 a.m. and then either going for donuts on his motorcycle, or in later years, going back to sleep. Consequently, there are thousands and thousands of pieces of paper in BWF files.
Oswald and Me
I find no difficulty in naming my most significant book. It is Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost For His Highest.
I have read it since December 1955 when Grant and Orean Howard gave it to Mary Alice and me which started a chain of our gifting it to others. My mentor and friend, Maxey Jarman, wrote “I’ll always be grateful for the introduction that you gave me to Oswald Chambers.” We plant seeds when we give vital books; we see delightful and fruitful harvests from these gifts.
His thought has become part of my reflexive thought. As the mind of Christ transforms us, so do the minds of our favorite authors. They take up residence in us.
Let me give 5 key thoughts that influence my attitude toward life given by Chambers.
1) Sit loose to things. Enjoy them, work for them, use them, but sit loose to them.
2) Lust says I must have it now. Psychiatrists tell us the most common evidence of American immaturity is the inability to delay gratification. Lust is refusing the natural rhythm of life and failing to mature.
3) Scripture is too often abused. Chambers says, “So often we sharpen a verse of Scripture and jab another with it.” I see those who know chapter and verse use it to intimidate the less instructed.
4) If we do not stand in small things, we will fail in the large. It is so easy to think we would be true and courageous in the weighty matters when we are making exceptions to the Christian code in smaller daily routines.
5) Go through the white funeral. The physical death is the black funeral, but the death self is the white funeral. Out of this comes the complete resurrection of life, unhampered by the problems of human ego and self-righteousness.
My Utmost For His Highest is not just entertaining, nor even exciting – it is compelling.
This week think about: 1) What books influence me? 2) Who has molded my thinking? 3) What book have I shared with others?
Words of Wisdom: “As the mind of Christ transforms us, so do the minds of our favorite authors.”
Wisdom from the Word: “Let the wise also hear and gain instruction, and let the discerning acquire guidance!” (Proverbs 1:5 NET Bible)