Mankind has always fundamentally relied on the same three questions: who are we, why are we here, and where are we going? Individuals of every generation explore these questions, examine for themselves and pass on what they have learned to their children. Each generation scrutinizes the old traditions and considers new innovations, attempting to find a balanced harmony for the future. Yet, what if you were told that these questions could be answered by a book written over hundreds and thousands of years ago? As war wages on in the Middle East, most of the 21st century wonders why it is happening, what it is all about and if it will ever end. Many have forgotten that this conflict, and many like it, began long ago as tribes, city-states, empires and nations fought for identity. There is an ancient book that tells the origins – historical, cultural, and religious – of one such nation, which began as a single family through whom all other nations have been blessed. Curious men still wonder what purpose mankind serves. Some suggest man is an accident of atoms. The complexity of existence is said to have started simple and grown into its present form. Having no way to observe and verify these speculations, it seems pointless to debate; however, there is an account of the universe’s beginnings. There is an ancient record of the beginnings of time, the world and mankind, whose existence and purpose on this earth is nowhere near accidental. The unfolding

When we are faced with hardships, trials or unexpected misfortunes, it is easy to lose sight of the Lord in the midst of the storm clouds that plague us. In situations of distress, it is tempting to take the easy way out and give in to the pressures of the world. When confronted with our stresses, temptations and problems, it is hard to imagine anything worse than what we are going through. Sometimes, instead of resisting temptation and choosing the right path, we justify ourselves and choose the wrong path. Each temptation we face becomes the greatest temptation imaginable because in that moment it is the only one, the biggest one we can see. Paul encouraged the church at Philippi, “Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:5-8). One of the greatest temptations Jesus faced was being God. The Book of Matthew records Satan’s temptation of Jesus in the wilderness. First, Satan told Jesus, who had been fasting for forty days, to turn stones to bread so that He could eat (4:3). Next, he suggested Jesus preform an undeniable miracle before the worshipers