The Good News Blog

The Enemy of Love: Bitterness
by Charles Stanley

The story of the prodigal son gives us a wonderful illustration of God’s love. Jesus told the Pharisees this parable to reveal how the Father cares for human beings and delights when an errant child returns home. However, the Pharisees were lovers of law, order, and the appearance of righteousness. They probably identified more with the angry sibling than with the prodigal or the father.

The older son had already allowed bitterness to take root as a result of his younger brother’s departure. Even so, he was apparently proud of his appearance as the “good son,” just as the Pharisees would have been (Matt. 23:27). Often forgotten in this story is the fact that there was an inheritance for the older brother too—the land he was working and the animals he tended would all one day be his. In other words, he

by Victoria Osteen

This weekend people all over the country will celebrate the people they love. I think about all the things people do to go out of their way on Valentine’s Day—cards, surprises, candy, presents. I wonder how it would affect people’s relationships if they celebrated the ones they love like this all the time.

I think it’s important that we learn to be comfortable with saying “I love you” as often as possible. We need to allow these words to flow freely in our homes to create an atmosphere of love. At the same time, we need to get comfortable with hearing those words spoken to us.

A young woman heard me speaking on this subject and wrote to tell me how much she appreciated my encouragement to embrace those words, “I love you.” “I really want to do that,” she wrote, “but I get so down on myself, and