Difficult humility
Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. – Proverbs 16:18 One of my favorite basketball players over the past fifteen years has to be Brandon Roy. I was impressed with him when he was at Washington, but I was hooked when he came to Portland. He wasn’t much of a dunker, but […]
Worship is a response
Offer your bodies as the living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God- this is your spiritual act of worship – Romans 12:1b First, note that worship is a verb or action word; it’s something you do. Worship is a response to God. God initiated the relationship and we are to respond. God does many things […]
Who’s kingdom?
But seek first His kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well – Matthew 3:13a As men, we feel like kings of our domain; we are in control of our sphere. This is dangerous thinking and we should step back and concentrate on some key words in this […]
The choice to be free
Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. – John 8:32 A friend of mine is going through a season of discovery. He is looking for, what he describes as, his “inner truth.” Unfortunately, no one has their own inner truth. Unredeemed, we do have an inner problem. Our hearts […]
Ready to go hunting
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. – Ephesians 6:10 When I get ready to go hunting, there is a great deal of prep work that needs to be done ahead of the hunt. I need to gather my weapons, make sure they work right, and I need to have all […]
Values in you head
Commit your way to the LORD; trust in him and he will do this… – Psalm 37:5 When we commit to God, we are committing to a way of life that honors God. How do we know what honors God? It’s not anything we need to make up on our own, it is simple and […]
A barrage of information
He says, ‘Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. – Romans 12:1b The world around us constantly bombards us with counsel. People (including friends and relatives), television, magazines, web ads, emails, billboards and even our own voices in our heads, […]
Sovereign over everything
Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; – Proverbs 3:5 After His crucifixion and resurrection, just before Jesus ascends up into heaven, He reminds us that “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matthew 28:18). Not just some authority, but ALL of […]
Sacrifice personal comfort
Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. – 1 Corinthians 15:58 To stand up for anything is a sacrifice. Martin Luther King, Ghandi and William Wilberforce are […]
Inauthentic people
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up. – Ephesians 4:29a We all value authentic people. In fact, I don’t think there are many of us who would chose inauthentic people! We get a vibe from inauthentic people; they seem like they are […]