The U.S. is not alone in its disrespect for women. In China, an official "one child per family" policy has resulted in millions of little baby girls being aborted before birth, or murdered shortly after birth. A similar pattern occurs in India, where the culture gives strong preference to male children, and poor families may even fear having to pay a dowry at the marriage of a daughter. And throughout the Muslim world, women are systematically held down, degraded and often treated as less than human.

Many of today's wars are over control of the dwindling supplies of natural resources needed to keep nations' economies afloat—and their people alive. As population pressures grow in arid parts of the globe, nations are even competing for the most basic resources of all: arable land and water.

The pace of modern life puts great strain on our relationships. Acquaintances come and go. Friendships are put to the test. Are you doing all you can to be a true friend to others—and to make friends with the truest friend of all?

Human beings may say they want peace, but their actions again and again lead to war. Mankind's best efforts to bring about a world free of conflict and suffering have inevitably failed—but your Bible reveals that a time of world peace is coming!

Are you finding joy and fulfillment in your work? Does your work have a purpose? Scripture gives vital guidelines to help you make the most of your work, and to understand it as part of God's plan for all humanity.