Tue // Fuel :: Spirit
Title: Live from the Spirit So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. – Galatians 5:16 Play to win. Don’t play not to lose. For anyone who’s ever competed in sports or any other type of contest, you know the difference. Think about it too long, […]
Thu // Warrior :: Engage
Title: Spiritual Forces For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. – Ephesians 6:12 As boys, how many of us were convinced at times of scary things lurking under […]
Wed // Grit :: Perseverance
Title: He has yet to fail me Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us… Hebrews 12:1c Typically, I abstain from corporate motivational posters. The one exception: A majestic sunrise, underscored with, “PERSEVERANCE: Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising each time we fall.”Honestly, there are moments I […]
Thu // Warrior :: Engage
Title: Believe in a Spiritual Battle and Pray For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. – Ephesians 6:12 As boys, how many of us were convinced at times […]
Real men take a stand against evil
“Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed.” – Psalm 82:3 The saying, “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing” comes to mind upon studying the above verse, especially in its context. God is calling out those who […]
Real men are counterintuitive
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. – Proverbs 3:5 Counterintuitive. I love writing this word on a whiteboard and asking a group what it means. After a lively discussion, it’s established . . . “to go against what comes naturally (our intuition).” We are separated from […]
Real men acknowledge Jesus
Whoever acknowledges me before others, I will also acknowledge before my Father in heaven. – Matthew 10:32 Martyrdom. Not exactly a pleasant topic, but one repeatedly addressed in Scripture—including the context for this one—as well as throughout church history and in headlines today. Apparently, holding a belief that a benevolent Creator has chosen a particular […]
It’s up to us
Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them. – Jonah 2:8 I believe that to the degree you and I turn and cling to would-be substitutes for God’s loving provision, we experience its absence. Conversely, to the degree we turn and cling to God Himself in order to get our […]
Play a little game
I will not deny my integrity. – Job 27:5b I periodically utilize a method designed to reinforce someone’s resolve to resist old beliefs about themselves and begin thinking anew. It involves identifying a truth they wish to uphold and then handing them a couch pillow. “We’re going to play a little game. This pillow represents […]
Equal and opposite reaction
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. – Gal 5:16 Newton’s Third Law of Physics, “For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction” suggests that forces always come in pairs and act equally and oppositely from each other. There are few competing forces […]