Mon // Surrender :: Pride
Title: The Helper 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 – self-sufficiency that placed his allegiance on himself rather than God. [Isaiah […]
Tue // Fuel :: Spirit
Title: Turn away So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. – Galatians 5:16 Later in this chapter, the “desires of the flesh” are described, and first on the list: Sexual immorality. We have daily opportunities to choose to walk by the Spirit and turn away […]
Thu // Warrior :: Engage
Title: Our war 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 We may carry “the sword of the spirit” metaphor too far, envisioning ourselves hacking through […]
Sat // Build :: Encouragement
Title: 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 shunned or ignored. This week, […]
Tue // Fuel :: Listen
Title: Rest 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 often […]
Sat // Build :: Authentic
Title: Sameness Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up. – Ephesians 4:29a We need to be the same person in every situation to be authentic. For instance, at work, at home, at social functions. This “sameness,” or lack thereof, certainly shows up […]
Sat // Build :: Encouragement
Title: 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 […]
Wed // Grit :: Committed
Title: Don’t fully understand him Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this… – Psalm 37:5 The “C” word! Why do we fear this? Probably because when we make a real commitment, there will be times that the action it requires may run contrary to our current desires. Committing to God is hard […]
Sun // Sacrifice :: Exalt
Title: Real Men exalt God 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.” Not much help. How do we “exalt the Lord our God” in a way that feels natural and […]
Sun // Sacrifice :: Worship
Title: My broken life Offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. – Romans 12:1bOur word “worship” comes from an Old English word that can be roughly translated as “worth-ship.” What do my actions in this body (physical, mental, and emotional) show where or to whom […]