Victim or Victor?
When things aren’t going your way, how do you see yourself? Do you have a tendency to put yourself down, or feel sorry for yourself? Do you feel like the world is against you and you’re all on your own? These types of responses only compound the problems that are a part of life for everyone. There’s a better way to react when we inevitably go through things that are difficult or painful.
God Doesn’t Make Mistakes
How many of us have sometimes felt like we were inadequate, or even defective? Maybe the better question is, who hasn’t felt that way at one time or another? And just to pile on, we’re all surrounded by images and messages (subtle or not-so-subtle) that reinforce the idea that there’s something wrong with us. It can be very tempting to try to change into someone that we think would be more interesting, more popular, more… Well, you fill in the blank. We all have our own struggles and hang-ups that we are solving for when we try to be someone we’re not.
The Only Opinion That Counts
Sometimes, it can be hard to remain unmoved by what everyone around us thinks. Whether it’s positive or negative, the opinions of our friends- or even of strangers- can have a real impact on us. But what about when those opinions are not favorable towards something that you know God wants you to do? Standing for what is right isn’t always popular, and we will all face times when we have to choose between pleasing God or pleasing people. In these moments, we have to settle within ourselves:
How to Get Close to God 101!
Have you ever had a desire to get closer to God but didn’t know where to start? I’ve definitely had those questions and found it hard to know where to put my focus. But I was really encouraged by a sermon I heard recently that not only admonished us to pursue God by digging into the scriptures a lot more, but also offered a simple starting point:
Gifts from GOD? YESSSS!
Reading through this list of gifts (some people call them the “motive gifts,”) I just love how we are directed to put into action the skills that God has already put inside us. There is a purpose for them! And as the scripture points out, we don’t all have the same natural gifts and so we will all need to do different things to fully utilize them. I find it easy to forget that and instead imagine that I need to do things like someone else (or everyone else!) in order to fulfill God’s purpose for me. But that is not the case at all. God wants us all to flourish in what He has uniquely given to each one of us. However, that only happens if we cultivate the gifts inside of us. Here are some practical steps:
Adventures With God!
How would you like to go on an epic adventure? One full of thrills and excitement where you never know what’s around the next corner? That’s actually the life that God calls us to, and the Bible is full of role models who came before us and heeded that call.
Scary as Hell! (Halloween Devotional)
What’s scarier than ghosts, goblins, witches, and haunted houses?
Politics!!!!
When did you first become aware of having political opinions? Who or what do you think shaped them?
Showing Jesus to the World
If we are followers of Jesus, it is our job to not only tell people about Him (although that is important, too,) but to give our lives over to Him to such a degree that it’s actually Him working through us in everything that we do. How else will people have a chance to see how much Jesus loves them, except by letting Him show it through us?
The Narrow Gate
Do you ever feel like doing the wrong thing is like rolling downhill? Like it’s an inevitability that is bound to happen as soon as any restraints are removed or even relaxed? Well, if so, it’s not just you- that’s pretty much how it is for all of us. Sure, it looks different for different people, but it’s pretty much always going to be easy to go the wrong way and resisting temptation will often be difficult. The problem is, it doesn’t matter how easily we can all find ourselves on the wrong path- there are real consequences.
Look in the Mirror
When I heard this in Bible Study recently, it was a real gut-punch. To tell the truth, up until recently, I have behaved as if unbelievers were the only ones who were resistant to submitting to the Lord. My thinking was that other people didn’t want to believe in God because they wanted to be in charge of their own lives. I ignored the reality that the same could be true for me, and that whenever I refuse to give up control of my life to the Lord, I hinder my own growth. How can I expect to grow if I insist on being in charge?
Love = Truth Over Feelings
What do you do when your feelings are saying one thing but the Bible says the opposite? Showing love to someone who dogs you out is a perfect example. Of course, you know you should “do the right thing,” but isn’t it dishonest and hypocritical if you know your heart isn’t really in it?
Making a Change
It’s hard to change. It just is. We can know we need to do better- stop cursing, stop lying, be more loving, whatever our “areas” might be- but knowing we need to clean up our act is a long way from making that change. In fact, many would say that people don’t really change much at all. But God calls us to walk uprightly and be holy like Him, so He makes sure to give us some tools to help us toward that end. One of those tools is His Word, aka the Bible.
Why Did I Do It?
Have you ever done something that you were ashamed of and then asked yourself, “Why did I DO that?!” I can think of all kinds of examples… There were times I tried to show off… Sometimes successfully, but usually not! Other times, I put someone else down, or lied, or cheated, or agreed to something I knew was wrong… Well, you get the point. Without going into too much detail, I can just say that there were plenty of times that I did things I was immediately ashamed of, and often found myself wondering, “Why?” I’ve learned that there’s a common explanation that accounts for many of these transgressions.
You Are Here For A Reason
Let that statement soak in for a moment. It has so many implications, it’s worth pausing to consider a few of them:
Kesha WeekesYour Mind: Renovated
What do our minds have in common with a dilapidated old house? More than you might think… hear me out.
Revelation: More Than Knowledge
Have you ever thought you knew something, then suddenly it really just clicked and you understood it so much better that it was almost like you really hadn’t known it at all before?
A Prayer for Character
Heavenly Father...
The “Why” Matters
Imagine this scenario:
Judge Not
I don’t know about you but when I see something wrong, I can be pretty quick to form an opinion on the matter, take sides, and even pronounce judgment on whoever I consider to be the guilty party (or parties.) Often, I even feel justified- after all, there are plenty of bad things being done all around us all the time. And it can almost distract me from my own shortcomings when I focus on how bad I think someone else is! But that’s just the problem- it might distract me, but it doesn’t fool anyone else, and certainly not God.
What God Wants
Have you ever wondered just what it is that God wants from us? After all, He is all-powerful and all-knowing. What could we have to offer Him? It turns out, it’s the one thing we have the power to withhold or give freely.
New Year's Resolutions?
Listen or Read - you choose!
Go Back to Start
In many board games when you get sent back to start it’s a penalty. However, in the Lord it can be a good thing - because “in the beginning, GOD.”
No Regrets: God First
What happens when we know what God wants us to do, but it’s totally at odds with our own desires and preferences?
