Help to prepare our hearts for Easter

Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” (1 Cor 3:16-17) If you are a Christian, you (fill in your name)Continue reading “Help to prepare our hearts for Easter”

Is it I?

The One who had been laid in a manger, the One of whom the angels sang, the One shepherds told, and the wise men travelled to see —had grown up to be their friend. Their friend.  They had fished together and watched Him feed the five thousand together.   But they had also walked milesContinue reading “Is it I?”

Alarm clocks and eyeballs

We jokingly call it the “family curse”. Like my dad was, most mornings I’m up around 5am without an alarm clock, and one of my kids is just like me. It’s been great to help me get in the Word; but this morning, I was fast asleep when I heard an alarm clock going off,Continue reading “Alarm clocks and eyeballs”

Did you blow it? Another reason to celebrate Easter!

Did you blow it yesterday? Did sin raise it’s ugly head in you again? Did something you thought you had mastered, master you? Are you disappointed in yourself? Friend, it’s a great date for a clean slate. And this day IS a clean slate, brand new, a blank page, a total do-over for those whoContinue reading “Did you blow it? Another reason to celebrate Easter!”

An invitation to reflect and confess and prepare our hearts for Easter

“Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? If anyone defiles the temple of God, God will destroy him. For the temple of God is holy, which temple you are.” (1 Cor 3:16-17) If you are a Christian, you (fill in your name)Continue reading “An invitation to reflect and confess and prepare our hearts for Easter”

Hard words as we prepare our hearts for Easter.

He came for the messed up sinner. I think a lot about that as Easter approaches in just a couple of weeks. We love that He ran after the prodigal, ate with the tax collectors and stepped in to prevent the stoning of the woman caught in adultery. We love that He left the 99Continue reading “Hard words as we prepare our hearts for Easter.”

“Is it me?”

The One who had been laid in a manger, the One of whom the angels sang, the One shepherds told, and the wise men travelled to see —had grown up to be their friend. Their friend. They had fished together and watched Him feed the five thousand together. But they had also walked miles ofContinue reading ““Is it me?””

A BRUTAL indictment.

Matthew 23 is nothing short of a brutal indictment of the scribes and Pharisees. Jesus calls them hypocrites and fools. He says they do what they do to be seen by others. He says they put heavy burdens on others that they themselves do not follow. Jesus says, they look good on the outside butContinue reading “A BRUTAL indictment.”

The Word draws us back to freedom—again and again.

Well, I didn’t want to read that. Yes, I’ve heard the Holy Spirit pressing on my heart, but I’ve thought I could just scoot past the nudging. And if I’m real honest, just between us, this thing has been an issue for me before and I thought the same sin wouldn’t be a problem forContinue reading “The Word draws us back to freedom—again and again.”

Freedom from Dying

Matthew chapter 3 opens with the radical locust and wild honey-eating, camel hair clothed, John the Baptist preaching in the wilderness, and exclaiming- “Repent, for the kingdom of Heaven is at hand!” (Matt 3:2) Repent. Oh, that’s a word we seldom hear. Go ahead, tweet it or post it. I bet you won’t get tooContinue reading “Freedom from Dying”

Have you ever laughed out loud as you’ve read your Bible?

I laughed out loud as I read my Bible. This doesn’t usually happen but sometimes, I find myself chuckling. Luke described the time Jesus healed a boy possessed by a demon after His disciples failed to do so. Jesus, then, prophesies His coming death and steadfastly sets His face to go to Jerusalem. Along theContinue reading “Have you ever laughed out loud as you’ve read your Bible?”

The Two Beside Him

Those two criminals.Bleeding.Bruised.Guilty. In the Savior’s final moments, one criminal hung on each side of Him. Those two represent all of us. We are each likeoneor the otherof them. It’s no accident, this true picture. There they were.So close to Jesus.Can you imagine? They both knew who He was.But only one of them would beContinue reading “The Two Beside Him”

Our God is a CONSUMING FIRE!

The sky looked like fire last night. It was breathtaking. It was glorious, mesmerizing. Our family snapped photos. And I woke up thinking about that fiery sky. And God. Hebrews 12:29 says “Our God is a consuming fire” (Heb 12:29) who “will judge His people” (Heb 10:30). It’s a hard passage with a serious warning.Continue reading “Our God is a CONSUMING FIRE!”

Have you noticed this?

It’s so easy, especially this month, as our world so lavishly, every-where-you-turn, celebrates sin to think, “I’m in the world but not of it” (John 17:15). But it’s so easy, for the evil ways of this world to get into us and for our sins to become acceptable and unnoticed. By us! Let’s not forget,Continue reading “Have you noticed this?”

The way to joy and freedom often starts here.

It seems to be out of style. I don’t hear it spoken of often, not even in many pulpits. It is the job of the Holy Spirit (John 16:8) and is likely happening in the believers life every day, though I wonder if most notice it. It’s the voice of the Holy Spirit convicting usContinue reading “The way to joy and freedom often starts here.”

Watch for THIS so you can run your race!

It’s one thing to be sick over the sin in our culture, but it’s entirely another, and necessary, to have times when I’m sick over my own sin. When you ask the Lord to show you your sin, He does. And it is always out of His kindness that God shows us and leads usContinue reading “Watch for THIS so you can run your race!”

A Time of Personal Reflection and Confession as we approach Easter

Coming Before The Holy God For those who want more of Him… a personal time of reflection and confession Coming Before The Holy God (Scripture from NKJV and NIV)  We want to hear from God.   We know we need Him.   We know our own strength will only carry us so far.    But we sometimes needContinue reading “A Time of Personal Reflection and Confession as we approach Easter”

A little confession

In First Timothy, Paul talks about benevolence. First, he makes it clear that a man is to provide for his own family. He is to work. (1 Tim 5:8) And your first thought might be, like I confess mine was— “they” need to reform those welfare programs. But hang on. Paul is getting into theContinue reading “A little confession”