The Victory Of Light
“The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it” (John 1:4-9 NLT). Jesus is the true Light. The darkness cannot put it out. The dark world cannot put it out; the dark heart cannot put it out. The Light has come to triumph over darkness. It has. It does. It
Worth And Value
The English word worthy has its roots in worth. We are prone to use the word worthy only in reference to the Lamb of God; certainly He alone was worthy to open the seven-sealed book. Yet, Jesus said that the worthy are those who take up the cross and follow Him (Matthew 10:38). However,
Faith As Faithfulness
“God’s covenant justice comes into operation through the faithfulness of Jesus the Messiah, for the benefit of all who have faith” (Romans 3:22 KNT). In the NT the “faith of Jesus” is really better translated “the faithfulness of Jesus”, as in this translation. Notice it says, “for the benefit of all who have faith”.
Life’s Problems
Life is full of difficult problems; we feel they are a curse. We believe that they should never be a part of life, however, we are here to deal with life with all of its problems, to deal with what we have been dealt. There are no solutions without problem solving. There is no
Choosing Our Attitude
We somehow think that our attitudes are mere spontaneous reactions to what is going on around us. We seldom think about choosing our attitude. We can meet harshness with harshness, hostility with hostility, but where does that get us? When we intentionally build into our personality humility, gentleness, kindness, love and caring, it will
Representing The Father
Father, may I never misrepresent You. May I show to others what You have shown me about Yourself. May I be as kind, loving and generous to others as You have been to me. May I be a mirror reflecting Who You really are to all of those who come into my life. May
Live Life In This Moment
Life is empty without Christ filling this present moment. It is drudgery without the knowledge of Presence. It is sadness not yet walking with joy. It walks in grief as the two Emmaus’ disciples did, not knowing that Resurrection was walking with them. The Jews looked back to salvation in the Exodus. Some only
Yes, Lord!
Spiritual progress is a series of “Yeses” to the Lord. To say, “Yes” affirms His Lordship in our lives. To say, “No, Lord” is a contradiction. We are saved by confessing and living out “Jesus is Lord”. There is an initial “Yes” that is reaffirmed by a lifetime of “Yeses”. The first surrendering “Yes”
Truth Pairs
These things are mutually exclusive: Worshiping God and worshiping idols, serving God and mammon, living in the flesh and living in the Spirit, loving the world and loving the Father. These things must go together: faith and works, trust and obedience, love and action, prayer and service, justification and sanctification, justice and righteousness, the
Self-Pity or Fruitful Ministry
We heal others out of our own brokenness. We comfort others with the comfort God has given us in our trials. We give grace out of our own wounds. Our weaknesses, failures, and handicaps do not excuse us from ministry, but make a way for it; this keeps us from ever being victims. Keep
Believe Into Me
John 3:16 is a believing that is more than a mental conviction. It is a belief (full trust) on which you stake your whole life. The NT word “believe in Christ” has been oversimplified. In the NT it carries the idea of “believe into.” Try reading it that way for new insights. This is
A Welcoming House
Some houses are welcoming and inclusive to all; some shut others out as not worthy. God looked down and envisioned a hospitality house where strangers and aliens could come into the house as full-fledged family members. This is what the church is supposed to be. This is the kind of house where God will
Living Stones
We view stones as cold, solid, static and lifeless. Temples throughout the ages were built of this kind of stone. The early church had a vision of a new temple made up of living stones. Jesus was the living Cornerstone, proven by His resurrection from the dead. He had built around Himself disciples and
God Loves The World
God chose, in His magnificent mercy and super-abounding love, to enter the stream of human history as a human. He did not abandon His creation, but came to it. He not only came to it, He came fully into it. The Creator became the creature. “He was in the world and the world was
Debt Of Gratitude
Every stream we ride flows in a channel prepared by water that went before it. Some of these waters have persistently cut their way through rocks. So much of the wisdom and ways we have learned, we owe to rich traditions that went before us. Knowledge did not start with us. We have walked
Captured By Gratitude
I am not sure that I know how to explain this, but there have been moments in my life when I have been captured by gratitude. It is like it just comes and takes me away. Oddly enough, it can come in sad times when grief wants to run out of my eyes, but
Spiritual Worship
Calling emotionalism the work of the Spirit is a detour from real Presence. There is a passion in worship that is right and there is a sensuality in worship that is about us and not about Him. We do not work up what has already come down. We do not generate the Power; we
Christian Humility
Christian humility does not seek advancement or recognition for itself, but rather its’ Lord. It finds meaning in the shadow of Christ. It finds direction in following His steps. It is happy not to be known, if He can be made known. It is happy to be demoted, if He can be promoted. It
Watering Someone Else’s Seed
There is no place for pride in God’s field. We are laborers together with each other and God. You may not have planted the seed, but you can water it. You may plant the seed and pray for someone else to water it. It is very unlikely that you will be the sole influence
Initiate Good
God is waiting on us to use the freedom He gave us to initiate something good. When we see needs, we are not to say, “What is God going to do?” Instead, we are to say, “What am I going to do for God in this situation?” We are already commissioned. We have eyes
Let Light Arise
“Light arises in the darkness for the upright; He is gracious and compassionate and righteous” Psalm 112:4 (NASB). Darkness can come and settle on our souls, leaving us unable to move, because we do not know which way to step. Sometimes the darkness is so powerful that it seems to be in us and
Freeing Power
Paul’s problem with “sin that dwells in me” (Rom 7:20) was solved when “the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus” set him free. We need the power of the indwelling Spirit to free us from the power of indwelling sin. We need the mind-set of the Spirit to defeat the mind-set
Joy And Devotion
True devotion should have joy in it. There is nothing more pathetic than those whose religion is without joy. Piety without joy can be legalism or self-worship. Such persons are captives of a toxic faith. They are slaves to forms that have, long since, lost meaning. If we love the Lord, it is a
Fresh Manna Or Stale Manna
In the wilderness, Israel was to gather manna everyday, except the Sabbath. None was to be kept until the next day. The Father was providing fresh bread for them every morning, but for those who tried to hoard extra, the next day found it to be foul and inedible. Yesterday’s bread is not good
On To Maturity
Doing yesterday over is not possible, as much as we would like to go back and correct some things. Yesterday needs forgiveness and today needs wisdom. Yesterday’s bad must be released so we can embrace the good of today. Lord, help us learn from bad decisions to make better decisions. Help us to see