God’s heart

The Value of a Heart

“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth.” – James 3:13,14 In yesterday’s Positive Minute, we were encouraged to store up intangible treasures such as God’s favor, doors opened for us, and being a trustworthy person. Receiving these gifts begins with the value of a heart that’s like an empty cup. This heart is ready to learn and receive from others. It’s not a heart that is arrogant or prideful. It’s a heart that reflects the Lord’s prayer by asking for forgiveness. This reflection of God’s heart was less common in the Roman culture of Jesus’ day. Rome was known for promoting and boasting of its glory and accomplishments at any cost.

September 14, 2022 No Comments

The War is In Your Mind

“We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” – 2 Corinthians 10:5 Earlier this year, my dad contacted me and wondered if I had a copy of C.S. Lewis’ book The Screwtape Letters. He happened to be working on a sermon in which he wanted to quote it, so it pained me to tell him that I don’t have it in my possession anymore. Though I once had a really cool first-edition print that I got from my grandpa’s cabin, I think a friend of mine “borrowed” it in college and never gave it back. Though that’s irrelevant, I bring it up to let you you that reading this book early in my life helped to greatly increase my understanding of spiritual warfare. Though it’s not one of C.S. Lewis’ more

June 30, 2021 No Comments

Sitting Down With Sinners

“While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew’s house, many tax collectors and sinners came and ate with him and his disciples.” – Matthew 9:10 For the past few days, we’ve talked about three types of “untouchables” whom Jesus readily touched — lepers, Samaritans, and Pharisees — and what His actions teach us about extending love to the least deserving in our lives. Today, I want to examine the fourth and final group of outcasts our Savior welcomed, and that is tax collectors and sinners. Perhaps the most shocking of all, these were the gang members, derelicts, and drug addicts of the day — the kind we would be afraid to go near. They were also the robbers and crooks; the type who were known to have no regard for the people who tried to do right by God and their fellow man. In fact, tax collectors were considered the worst

May 24, 2021 No Comments

Forgiving Pharisees

“When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, he went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table.” – Luke 7:36 For the past couple of days, we’ve looked at two of the four groups of “untouchables” whom Jesus willingingly touched — lepers and Samaritans, and today, I want to look at the third — Pharisees. Interestingly, when we read the gospels, the religious leaders and teachers of the law often appear more villainous than the most violent criminals. Perhaps this is because they were constantly trying to trap the Lord. Yet despite their general hostility toward Him and His teaching, He wanted them to understand the truth, so He welcomed them to learn of His heart. He responded to their accusations with bold words, yet He went out of His way to let them know that He cared about them. For instance, He met

May 23, 2021 No Comments

Make Small Things Big

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” – Matthew 6:24 As I’ve grown older, I’ve realized that we inherit abundant life when big things become small and small things become big. What I mean is that although society teaches us that fulfillment comes when we attain wealth or find worldly success, the truth is that the seemingly ordinary and less glamorous things in life are actually the fabric of contentment, happiness, and productivity. Though I’ve traveled all over the world, I just love New York City. There’s something about that bustling metropolis that allures me, because it seems to represent the American spirit under a magnifying glass. And while many imagine New Yorkers being stern and mean, I haven’t found that to

March 13, 2021 1 Comment

Prepare Your Heart

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” – Proverbs 4:23 In addition to preparing our minds, the second thing we can do to intentionally move from a posture of waiting to one of preparation is to purify our hearts. Just as Jewish worshippers, when partaking in Mikvah, would wash their chest as a way of asking the Lord to make their inner being right before Him, as those who are proactively seeking His perfect will, we should focus on preparing our hearts. It’s important to note that in the context of Scripture, the heart is the center of a person’s being — the place from which everything else flows. Therefore, when we speak of cleansing and readying this sacred part of us, we’re referring to making right that which is deep inside. Naturally, this starts with having a relationship with Jesus Christ, the One

March 5, 2021 No Comments

Be An Oasis

“He turned the desert into pools of water and the parched ground into flowing springs.” – Psalm 107:35 As modern-day believers, we often lose sight of how fragile the ancient world was. Though we look at what’s going on today and see chaos, it’s nothing compared to the evil, war, and paganism that were prevalent in Biblical times. In those days, earthly rulers were constantly shedding the blood of innocent people to attain greater power, and even worse, idolatry was the norm. Now when I say idolatry, I don’t mean just bowing down to statues or shrines — I mean the abuse of women and children, and often their death. Slavery was common, and so was human sacrifice — it was a culture of brutality, aggression, and violence. Yet into that dark night, a small seed of hope was born. The God of Creation chose Abraham and his clan, an

February 26, 2021 1 Comment

Will You See Him?

“He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.” – Isaiah 53:2 I often wonder if I had been alive when Jesus roamed the earth if I would have given Him the time of day. While it’s easy to assume that our Lord had a magnetism that captivated everyone who crossed His path or that He was a celebrity who was widely accepted by society, this really wasn’t the case. He hung out with sinners and outcasts, and while many paid attention to Him, their reaction wasn’t always positive. You see, our Savior was actually quite “fringy,” especially to the devout Jews. In a culture that had its own routine and bustle, not to mention very distinct religious traditions, many walked by Him lost in the busyness of their day. Still others considered Him a lunatic because of the

February 2, 2021 No Comments

The Light of Divine Love

“‘Do not kill them,’ he answered. ‘Would you kill those you have captured with your own sword or bow? Set food and water before them so that they may eat and drink and then go back to their master.’” – 2 Kings 6:22 I love the Biblical hero Elisha. His life was not only that of a prophet but of a miracle worker, and he always used his divinely-granted power to point people to God’s heart. Of all the amazing accounts of his ministry recorded in Scripture, one of my favorites is found in 2 Kings 6, which takes place when the armies of Aram were at war with Israel. Since the prophet had supernatural knowledge, he kept alerting the Jewish king as to where the enemy troops were so he could move Israel’s armies away from them. The King of Aram, frustrated by his inability to hone in on

January 30, 2021 1 Comment

As Long as It Is Called Today

“But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called ‘Today,’ so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.” – Hebrews 3:13 Happy New Year! And congratulations, you made it to 2021. I think many of us are breathing a sigh of relief today, but the truth is that we are much stronger, wiser, and all-around better people than we were this time last year. Walking through the fire and enduring the difficulties of 2020 offered us a precious gift, and I pray that we won’t lose sight of it in the days ahead. As we look forward to resuming life as normal (whenever and whatever it is), let’s not forget how precious it was to be reminded of what’s most important. As we’ve brought our focus closer to home in the past ten months, God has used a trying time to align our hearts with

January 1, 2021 2 Comments

The Value of a Heart

The War is In Your Mind

Sitting Down With Sinners

Forgiving Pharisees

Make Small Things Big

Prepare Your Heart

Be An Oasis

Will You See Him?

The Light of Divine Love

As Long as It Is Called Today

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