It will become easier
This has been my practice: I obey your precepts. – Psalm 119:56 I’ve been a machinist for thirty years. I work eight hours a day, five days a week, sometimes Saturday’s, 52 weeks a year (except vacation). You do something for that long, you get pretty good at it no matter what it is. Obedience […]
Lists grab our attention
Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest. – Mathew 11:28 Everyday life is filled with demands. Lists grab our attention and, at times, it feels as if we are being pulled in every direction. Even our breaks, lunch hours and evenings are filled with screens competing […]
People keep it hidden
But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called “Today,” – Heb 3:13a Most of the people you come into contact with on a daily basis are dealing with discouragement on one level or another. Discouragement feels like a weakness, so people keep it hidden. But the truth is all of us could […]
Back pain
Set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. – 1 Timothy 4:12b “Just Stop!” I screamed this as the therapist pushed and prodded on my back as I writhed in pain. She was trying to find the source of my pain in order to heal me […]
Is He in control of them?
For the battle is not yours, but God’s. – 2 Chronicles 20:15c Wait… What? So, what God is saying is that I have no responsibility to make the battle decisions? These battles are His, not mine. Do I have to fight in them? YES. Is He in control of them? YES. So, if I follow […]
Can I actually finish this thing?
And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. – Hebrews 12:1c Have you ever been in a long race? There’s a point in a race when you begin asking yourself questions. “Why in the world did I do this” or, “Can I actually finish this thing?” It’s almost inevitable. The questions […]
Walk by the Spirit
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 from things that […]
To get out of whack
Those who cling to worthless idols turn away from God’s love for them. – Jonah 2:8 It is incredibly easy for our priorities to get out of whack. For example, Thanksgiving is just a few days away. Yet most in our culture treat this “day of giving thanks” as the obligatory stepping stone to Black […]
I forget to exalt him
For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. – Matthew 23:12 To exalt is to praise and lift up. On Sunday, many of us attend church to worship and praise Him. We sing, we pray, we listen to sermons, and we serve. These are all great and […]
You won’t follow him
But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. – Matthew 6:33 “What do you want in life?” The answer to that question will guide you throughout your days, weeks, months and years. If you are driven by pride, pleasure, or power; then you will […]