The Lie That Sounds True
◆ “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces.For you neither enter yourselves nor allowthose who would enter to go in.” – Matthew 23:13 ◆ How to Obey God: The Lie That Sounds True Have you ever noticed that Jesus would get furious with religious leaders […]
Between the Ache and Hallelujah
◆ . . . when the ache outscreams the hallelujah and hope feels out of reach,God does not hand us a formula. He gives us Himself. ◆ Listening Prayer: How to Hear God’s Voice When Hope Feels Out of Reach This week, I invited a friend to share her words with us. I’ve known Ebie […]
The Word Jesus Prayed First
◆ The mission of the church is contained in that word [Father];the failure of the church is highlighted by that word. —N.T. Wright ◆ How Jesus Teaches Us to Pray to God as Father I had lunch recently with a friend who’s gone through the motions of prayer for most of his life. But now […]
What The Fool Refuses To See
◆ In times like the present,[people] should utter nothing for which they would notwillingly be responsible through time and in eternity. —Abraham Lincoln ◆ When Being Right Isn’t the Same as Being Righteous I used to pride myself on being able to win most arguments. When I was in third grade, I got into a […]
Where Real Strength Begins
◆ God speaks in the silence of the heart and we listen.And then we speak to God from the fullness of our heart and God listens.And this listening and this speaking is what prayer is meant to be. —Mother Teresa ◆ Where Real Strength Begins Every single day, I feel the tug. Go do something, […]
Where True Authority Begins
◆ All is Thine,since from Thee all things do come. — Bernard of Clairvaux ◆ True Authority Begins in the Presence of God There’s a small line in Luke 1 that I used to read right past. The angel Gabriel appears on the scene to announce impossible news to the priest Zechariah—a promise of life […]
What Comes Before Freedom
◆ Christ died that I might die like him—die to any ruling power in me but the will of God. — George MacDonald ◆ What Comes Before Freedom Last month, I was on the phone with a young man who just cried and cried during our conversation. He’s separated from his wife, estranged from his […]
God Speaks After We…
◆ You stiff-necked people . . .you always resist the Holy Spirit. — Acts 7:51 ◆ God Speaks After We Turn Have you ever woken up with your neck so stiff you have to turn your whole body just to look at someone? For me, it happened a lot when I was young and trying […]
What the Wise Man Understood About Becoming
◆ “For the things we have to learn before we can do them,we learn by doing them.” — Aristotle ◆ Practice, Not Perfection: How God Forms Us Through the Process There’s a good chance you have a complicated relationship with the word “practice.” Maybe practice is good and fine in the sports world, but in […]
Three Words for When Life Feels Thin
◆ “A man may be occupied in the things of God andyet not be occupied with God Himself. ” — A.W. Tozer ◆ Consider Your Ways: The Difference Between Being Busy and Being Fruitful One of the strangest feelings in life is being busy yet feeling unproductive. We work hard, carry responsibility, build, produce, serve. […]