Use your creative intellect
Exalt the Lord our God and worship at his footstool; he is holy. – Psalm 99:5 “Exalt” is not part of my conversational vocabulary. I looked at synonyms and got “elevate” and “glorify” which is not much help. How do we “exalt the Lord our God” in a way that feels natural and genuine? Here […]
Encouragement takes courage to give
Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” – Hebrews 3:13a Encouragement takes courage to give. For some people it comes more naturally than others, but it always requires that you offer something to someone else – and you have to risk that your words will be spurned or ignored. This week, […]
My broken life
Offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. – Romans 12:1b Our word “worship” comes from an Old English word that can be roughly translated “worth-ship.” What do my actions in this body (physical, mental, and emotional) show about where, or to whom, I […]
Courage is something we receive
Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” – Hebrews 3:13a Courage is something we receive. Most likely your courage was a gift from someone else – possibly years or decades ago, a father, a teacher, a friend or a coach encouraged you. Enabling courage in others is a gift in itself […]
Sat // Build :: Encouragement
Encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” – Hebrews 3:13a A consistent message from heaven is “don’t be afraid.” Angels spoke it, and Jesus spoke it. In the first chapter of Joshua, God told Joshua multiple times to “take courage.” It often takes courage to encourage someone. We have to step […]
Mon // Surrender :: Pride
Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. – Proverbs 16:18 Sin is a state of being, a disease – and one of its nastiest symptoms is pride. Lucifer was cast down to the earth because of pride – a self-sufficiency that placed his allegiance on himself rather than God. [Isaiah 14:12-15] Our […]
Sat // Build :: Authentic
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up. – Ephesians 4:29a To be authentic we need to be the same person in every situation. For instance, at work, at home, at social functions. This “sameness”, or lack thereof, certainly shows up in the […]
Tue // Fuel :: Listen
He says, Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. – Psalm 46:10a To actively listen, we have to stop talking, and usually stop what we are doing. God tells us to “be still” because he knows that’s usually not our […]
Mon // Surrender :: Idols
Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them. – Jonah 2:8 “Their land is full of idols; they bow down to the work of their hands, to what their fingers have made.” Are we just talking gold statues and ornate shrines here? Is this relevant today? Any man-made thing that […]
Sat // Build :: Kingdom
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. – Matthew 6:33 Jesus often spoke about the kingdom of God during his ministry, and continued to speak about it after his resurrection. He suffered, died and rose from death so that each of us could […]