Tag Archives: walk in truth

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.”

Peace, be still!

I had woken up to a horrific storm. Wind howling. Sheets of rain. Booming thunder. The storm outside passed, but I couldn’t sleep. Another storm, the one affecting us all, the condition of our world, was on my mind. In Luke 8, Jesus is exhausted from his busy ministry. He tells his disciples to getContinue reading “Peace, be still!”

Hard things, but God.

Right now, so many I love are facing what seems like a pile on of hard things. They love Jesus.They seek to follow Him.They are hurting. Really hurting over hard things. But again, and again, I’ve heard each of them talk of their hope. One by one they have each arrived at almost the exactContinue reading “Hard things, but God.”

When you try to follow Jesus and keep messing up!

Do you have trouble following Jesus? Do you ever wonder if you are really a Christian? And how can we tell if we truly love God? John tells us we will love others and keep God’s commands. (1 John 4:20-5:3) And, he tells us, the keeping of God’s commandments won’t seem burdensome (5:3). We willContinue reading “When you try to follow Jesus and keep messing up!”

You can’t kill sin with easy strokes

Stick with me on this one… I once heard a pastor preach about not taking sin seriously and not monkeying around with it. The point was, we have to KILL SIN immediately (the pastor used the illustration of the Prophet Samuel hacking the Amalekite king to death when King Saul had disobeyed God and refusedContinue reading “You can’t kill sin with easy strokes”

Real Help! Real Hope!

Many of us are concerned as we look at our world. I see people posting about praying who typically do not do such things. Hard times certainly cause us to look for help anywhere we can get it and to think about the fragility of life and eternity. And, many reason, “Heaven sounds like aContinue reading “Real Help! Real Hope!”

Has God given us over to a debased mind?

He said his “marriage ended in his mind in 2015” though he was still married when recently taking money for lavish vacations and having his famous affair with Fannie Willis. “Ended in his mind” ? The mom says her preteen girl feels that she is a boy and insists everyone refer to her child asContinue reading “Has God given us over to a debased mind?”

When the ungodly lead.

A while back, I sat with some young adults who talked of some who were leading worship and small groups while living very ungodly lives on the other days. I listened as they said, rarely, have they themselves, been asked what they believe before they had been asked to lead in church. And as IContinue reading “When the ungodly lead.”

Monday Morning Hope

It’s not all up to you! Feeling burdened and overwhelmed this Monday morning? Remember- We have one job—to trust and obey the One who is powerfully at work in this world. Everything else is His job! Hallelujah! It’s not all up to us! The author of Hebrews explains that Jesus is the perfect priest ofContinue reading “Monday Morning Hope”

Be BOLD in a GOOD way!

I suppose we all have our own list of reasons we fail to talk about Jesus and what the Bible says is true when we could. Maybe we don’t feel prepared. Maybe we leave it up to the preachers. Maybe we hate conflict and want everyone to like us. Maybe we are afraid our businessesContinue reading “Be BOLD in a GOOD way!”

Bigger-than-I-know…and PEACE.

Do I want the things God wants, or do I still want my way just a little bit more? Am I really making EVERY effort to be fruitful in my faith? Inspired by God, Peter said to “make every effort” to possess things like faith, virtue, knowledge, self control, perseverance, godliness , kindness, and loveContinue reading “Bigger-than-I-know…and PEACE.”

When they call you names…

A while back, a young, full of himself and this world person, called me “”Karen” after I had written something he didn’t like. While he meant it in a derogatory way, I smiled because one of the most godly women I have ever known was named “Karen”. She is with Jesus now, and she wasContinue reading “When they call you names…”

Chasing Contentment

Great gain.We want that.We all want that. Paul said, “Now godliness with contentment is great gain”. (I Tim 6:6) How true.Godliness with contentment. “So, I’ll follow God and be content with where He leads and what He gives.” But, that’s easier said than done for our flesh-filled wandering hearts who are constantly chasing contentment. SoContinue reading “Chasing Contentment”

You can’t be NEUTRAL on your FAITH.

You can’t be neutral in your faith. If it impacts you, you should want it to impact those you care about. John Piper went so far as to say, “If you don’t want people to believe what you believe about God, your views of Him are not functionally significant for you.” The fact is, ifContinue reading “You can’t be NEUTRAL on your FAITH.”

It’s HARD to die to self!

It’s far from easy.It’s stinking hard. It’s a hard and holy thing to die to self.And you aren’t the only one struggling with it. For many, who walk with Jesus, it’s a slow thing as we learn little by little, year after year, to die to things that don’t really matter and hold on toContinue reading “It’s HARD to die to self!”

Hold Tight

Take a slow read of these words the Apostle Paul penned so very long ago. May we take them to heart in this day. May we not live in fear, but be warned and so very careful about who we allow to speak into our lives – “If anyoneteaches otherwiseand does not consentto wholesome words,evenContinue reading “Hold Tight”

When you need hope…

God sees.He knows.There’s rest to be had in this truth. But how? Let’s remember our Good Father always and accurately sees everything. Everything. (Heb 4:13 and Job 28:24) He does. We can take that to the bank. So, let’s don’t spin our wheels, wring our hands, and lose sleep over what we can’t control. Instead,Continue reading “When you need hope…”

When the Hard Things Pile Up

Sometimes, the hard things pile up, and we can feel like Job. Even those who don’t read the Bible know about the tragedies of Job. In the midst of it all, the Bible tells us, Job walked forward, but could not see God. He looked backward, but could not perceive Him. (Job 23:8) Where wasContinue reading “When the Hard Things Pile Up”

Is God shaking us?

As craziness and immorality continues to be justified and celebrated in this country, and scary things continue to happen around us, I’ve wondered if God is shaking us. There’s part of me that still holds out hope that better days will come through the election of God-fearing leaders. But that hope has continued to dwindle.Continue reading “Is God shaking us?”