The valley takes on many forms. The valley is a difficult season at work, a troubling time with your family, the loss of a loved one, a battle with addiction. Many seasons of life are lived in the valley.
Read MoreGod hates sin. The scriptures are clear that God and sin cannot co-exist. Therefore, with God as the ultimate judge, a price has to be paid for that sin. The payment, or wage to pay for this sin is death. But through Jesus, we are given the gift of grace.
Read MoreScripture tells us that God has made himself plainly known to humanity. And yet, so many struggle with doubts of God’s existence, and even more of his goodness. But the realness and merciful supremacy of God is evidenced in his eternal power and divine nature by which he created the entire universe.
Read MoreA fashion fad pops up out of nowhere. The problems of racism and sexism have persisted for centuries. A rock in your backyard could well be thousands of years old. Whether it’s pocketless jeans, social injustice, or limestone, the things of this world will eventually fade. Certainly they wash away at differing frequencies. After a few short season, no one wore pocketless jeans anymore. Racism and sexism have thrived for centuries, but progress is being made all over the world to eliminate that way of thinking. And eventually, that rock in your backyard will be ground down so small that it too will cease to exist.
Read MoreLight does not need to be manufactured. It isn’t the result of a long process where if you follow all the proper instructions, include all the ingredients, then light is produced. It can’t be pushed, pulled, muscled, or forced. When you have a light, the only thing to do is let it do it’s thing, shine.
Read MoreMuch is made about the grace of God, the power of God, the wisdom of God, the kindness, love, goodness, and mercy of our Heavenly Father. But what about the reliability of God? Ever hear a sermon on that?
Read MoreAnyone can work hard. You don’t have to be a Christian to be dedicated to your craft or persevere through a difficult time. There are a lot of things in this world that can be accomplished using merely human strength. Just because you work hard, labor long, and endure hardship doesn’t necessarily mean you’re working for God.
Read MoreWhether we mean to or not, we either give our hearts to Christ, or we give our hearts to sin. The spiritual realm is very binary in that way. Both the way of sin and the way of God will require payment of your life. Sin will take your life, while Christ will ask you to lay it down. This difference is subtle, but important all the same. It hints at the truth that sin is out to get something from you while Christ is out to give something to you. That’s where the true difference comes in.
Read MoreDo not be afraid. These four words are famously echoed throughout scripture 365 times (depending on the translation). We can hear this command from God so many times that we forget why. Why should we not be afraid? Why can we be strong and courageous? Why do we have no need for discouragement? Does our lack of fear come from an abundance of good circumstances? Does it come from the earthly relationships that we cling to as a security blanket? Do we draw our courage from our talent, money, connections, or status?
Read MoreYou may not be able to understand the bible, but the bible understands you. The bible holds a mirror up to our souls and confronts us with exactly who we are and who we are becoming. There are a lot of metaphors about scripture being a lamp unto our path, about it being sweet nourishment for the soul. It is “pure milk” (1 Peter 2:2). It is an “imperishable seed” (1 Peter 1:23).
Read MorePsalm 107 repeats this phrase at the end of every stanza. After describing some affliction or hardship of a certain group of people, the turning point of each story is the people’s cry to the Lord, and his faithful deliverance of them from their trouble. The more I read this Psalm, the more I am encouraged by several things…
Read MorePaul ends each of his letters expressing the prayers he has for the church he is writing to. He begins with thanksgiving, gives some commentary and instruction, and always ends with a reminder that he is praying for them. What a wonderful structure for us to model in our correspondence and interaction with fellow believers.
Read MoreWhen I was younger, I suffered from what my mother called “growing pains” in the middle of the night. I would wake up at 2 am to terrible muscles spasms in my lower legs that would go on for ten or twenty minutes at a time. It was extremely painful, especially for a six year old.
Read More“No human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so.”
Read MoreThere are many reasons for us to want to walk in with God. We want a better reputation. We want to experience the good things of God. We want his favor. We want to be obedient. We want to impress that girl. We think it will lead to a better life for us and our family. There are any number of motivations. Some are worldly, yes. But others are completely pure and biblical.
Read MoreJoseph endured a lot. He was betrayed by his brothers, framed for a crime he did not commit, and thrown into prison to be forgotten about. However, a story with God at the center never ends in isolation. Life, and the people in it seemed set on harming Joseph, on bringing evil and darkness and isolation into his life. But what man intends for evil, God will use for good if we let him.
Read MoreDid you ever make a mess as a kid? Did you ever spill cranberry juice on your mother’s brand new white rug? This seemed to be a weekly occurrence for me as a child. The first time it happened, my immediate reaction was to grab a rag and start scrubbing the stain as hard a I could like the Karate Kid. Wax on, wax off, right? For me, it was wax on, stain spreads.
Read MoreCharacter take time to develop, and it’s rarely a comfortable process. Integrity means making difficult decisions, even when you may not want to. Humility can taste real sour at first, because it feels like a loss. Wisdom often means putting aside immediate satisfaction and striving toward something we can’t exactly see yet. Serving can leave us feeling unnoticed, unrecognized, and unappreciated for a while. Forgiveness doesn’t seem fair in a time where revenge is easily found at our fingertips.
Read MoreIn high school, I took choir all four years. In choir, you learn the difference between dissonance and harmony. Harmony is the combination of two simultaneously played music notes that sound pleasing to the ear. They complement one another. They exist seamlessly together. Does this sound like your family? Your church? Your friend group? Mine neither most of the time.
Read MoreHuman beings eat food for many different reasons. It gives us nutrients for the health of our bodies. It gives us the energy we need to get through the day. It tastes good. Eating is an enjoyable experience. Sharing food with one another draws us into loving community. There is something about good food shared with good people that does something special for the soul.
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