Maybe you’ve heard this before, but it’s worth repeating. The difference between happiness and joy is, happiness is based on happenings. Joy, on the other hand, is a resilient cheerfulness anchored in the goodness of God. Think about happiness. When a baby is born, when you finally close on your new house or get a promotion at work, these are ...
What is peace to you? Maybe you thought of a young mom when her babies are finally laid down for the night. Or the quiet after all the house guests have left. Or the sigh of relief when bills are paid and there’s still money in the account. Each of those are definitely aspects and benefits of peace. And like ...
Week One: I didn’t grow up celebrating Advent and if I’m honest, I only recently realized what it meant. I had heard the word before but assumed it was a denominational tradition. It’s actually a beautiful reminder of why we celebrate not only Christmas, but our Christian faith. For those that might be like me, let me start with an ...
The most powerful two-word combination ever is the phrase: In Christ. When the word Christ is mentioned, we should automatically think of Jesus. But when we hear or read the phrase In Christ, it’s always a reference to born-again believers– a reference to who we are as Christians. And interestingly, it is who we are whether we know it or ...
My dad is a retired Steel Fabrication Project Manager (similar to an architect). He used to build the “bones” of large buildings, or in some cases, the “exposed bones” of bridges, railings, and design features. He worked primarily with steel, which is one of the strongest building metals available. To build a bridge, one must analyze both sides of attachment ...
“I saw Satan fall from heaven like lightening.” –Jesus If you ever wondered if Jesus had a sense of humor, here it is. The Bible says Jesus “appointed seventy-two others, and sent them ahead of Him in pairs to every town and place where He Himself was about to go” (Luke 10:1). When they returned, they were excited and full ...
Mission trips are eye-opening for many reasons, but one bonus is there’s usually extra time to reflect. One reason being, if you don’t speak the language there is often more opportunity to just be quiet and observe. I’ve always had wonderful hosts that translate and interpret for me on the mission field, and we have many encouraging conversations in English ...
While on a shopping spree before Christmas, I went to Kohl’s department store to look for one item, but came out with ten or more gifts marked off my list. Besides being excited about that, I was also delighted when the cashier gave me a coupon good for $50 in free merchandise I could redeem later. I’ve received “Kohl’s cash” ...
I’m still thinking about this (see pt. 1) but from another point of view… As I said before, although I live in the United States, I live in a diverse area where multiple languages are spoken. And now that I think about it, this is probably true for a lot of areas across our nation. I’ve tried to learn Spanish ...
“I was not disobedient to the vision…” (Acts 26:19). After giving his testimony, this is the conclusion of Paul’s defense and explanation to King Agrippa. And I can’t help but see the importance of this statement. Two scenarios come to mind: One, what if Paul had not obeyed what Jesus told him to do? We wouldn’t have the Bible in the full ...
As Jesus hung on the Cross between two other men, His arms stretched out to both. The Bible calls it the “just for the unjust” (1 Peter 3:18). Three of the gospel writers share the story. Matthew and Mark both say “the criminals who were crucified with [Jesus] taunted Him” along with the crowds below (Matthew 27:44, Mark 15:32). But ...
“But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us” (2 Corinthians 4:7). At first glance, this verse is exciting— I remember when I first had revelation of what it meant to have “this treasure” within us. I was thrilled at the thought of “Christ in me, the ...
Do you know who the sons of Korah are? Their story is a very real example of grace and redemption to us today. To explain, we have to start with Korah before we get to the “sons of Korah.” The brief version is this: Korah was in the lineage of Levi. He and a few others rose up against Moses ...
Do you ever think about being in the will of God? I can’t be the only one. I assume most would answer yes to that question. It’s something I think about pretty often actually. And when I do, Romans 12:2 comes to mind: “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind ...
May our lives startle hell and bless humanity! This is what came to mind as I had some quiet time this morning. It’s partially a quote by E.W. Kenyon who said, “Righteousness made Jesus absolute master of every situation. If the believer knew that he was the Righteousness of God as Jesus knew He was, he would use the Name ...
After sharing my heart with my husband, he asked me, “Why do you keep wrestling with that? Why are you always back and forth?” Good question. I was sharing with him about my dreams– specifically about how I could see them like a distant shore. The problem was I was on this side of a great gulf and my dreams ...
Like most people, Christmas isn’t foreign to me. We’ve celebrated it in our home ever since I can remember. And that’s a funny thing to consider when I think about it– simply because I didn’t get saved until I was 21 years old. Yet, I celebrated Jesus every year in December before salvation. I had to look it up (that’s ...
Have you read Isaiah, chapter nine? It’s a little famous this time of year because of verse 6 which says, “For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder, and His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” But I want to ...