You can’t learn to trust unless you are willing to take a risk. If you want to be safe all the time, you won’t trust anyone. But that “safety” is an illusion and chasing after the wind. It is when we take a risk and do something “unsafe,” that is when we are truly safe. […]
Psalm 4:4-5–Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent. Selah 5 Offer right sacrifices, and put your trust in the Lord. I’m always reminded in traffic just how impatient I am, and reactionary I am tempted to be. As if life, especially traffic, is to flow […]
Mondays are my favorite (Although, I love Sundays, too!). I am not being sarcastic. Although I go to work on Mondays (school), compare to other days, it is the lightest and the furthest away from the stressful days. As a pastor, my tough days are Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. I’m usually finishing up the sermon, at a […]
As I am reading through the Book of Genesis, I’m struck by how one act of either obedience or disobedience makes such a huge impression on God that it will determine for many generations how things will go for them. For example, the act of Abraham willing to sacrifice his son, Isaac, at the altar. […]
Galatians 5:30–But what does the Scripture say? “Cast out the slave woman and her son, for the son of the slave woman shall not inherit with the son of the free woman.” If you recall the story of Abraham, Sarah, and their servant Hagar. God promised Abraham a child, that both he and Sarah […]
What is it that you fear? We fear many things if we are honest with ourselves. See if you do not fear these things: – We fear death. – We fear going bankrupt. – We fear getting hurt. – We fear growing old. – We fear losing our loved ones. – We fear being shamed. […]
John 3:8–The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Working in youth ministry around 15 years ago, one youth testified that they were afraid to submit to […]
Would you be happier if God made much of you (you becoming famous, for example) or if God made much of Himself (Him becoming famous) through you? One of the sure signs of our growth in Christ is that we become happier when God is made much of rather than ourselves. We are happier when we […]
God is like a loving parent. He will patiently encourage, correct, and chide the child when he does wrong. However, if the child continues to rebel and do wrong, he will spank the child and make him miserable for a time. But this, in order to bring the child back from his error and not […]
2 Corinthians 1:12-For our boast is this: the testimony of our conscience that we behaved in the world with simplicity and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God, and supremely so toward you. Last night after being awoken by the heavy rains here in Lacey, and then struggling for […]