set free

Do Your Best and Forget the Rest

“As Scripture says, ‘Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.’ ” – Romans 10:11 Today I want to talk about the importance of not allowing the feeling of shame into your spiritual life. Shame is not from the Lord, and it’s destructive to our psyche. No matter how many scriptures we read or how many hymns we sing about God taking away our shame, many of us still look in the mirror and blame ourselves incessantly when we’ve messed up. We beat ourselves up mentally by saying, “I’m not patient enough, I’m not strong enough, I’m not compassionate enough.” Yes, it’s important to become self-aware when we mess up, as in we own it, we repent, and we take responsibility for it, but wallowing in shame is not God’s plan and not God’s best for your life. He did not give up His only beloved Son

August 18, 2022 No Comments

No Sting in Death!

“For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.” – 2 Corinthians 5:1 There is a lot of good news that comes from being a believer! If you are baptized, besides partaking of Christ’s goodness here on earth, when you die, you won’t have to taste death. For Christians, death is more like waking up than it is falling asleep. This is one of the most profound gifts from God. Among the most potentially debilitating fears in this life is death. There is an underlying anxiety about what happens after we die that potentially drives a lot of bad decisions, brokenness and sin in our lives. However, when we are saved, we receive something precious from the Lord — a calm and confident assurance of Heaven. I once had a

June 6, 2022 1 Comment

Sent Into the Storm

“Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad when it grew calm, and he guided them to their desired haven. Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind.” – Psalm 107:28-31 Did you know that sometimes God intentionally sends us into a storm? He is our Heavenly Father, and now and then, He will do what any good father would do and lead us through a difficult situation to teach us how to face our fears. I remember having a fear of water as a child that lasted for many years. This is not ideal for a toddler living in Southern California, as we are close to the ocean and my family would frequently visit.

November 26, 2021 1 Comment

Thriving in Times of Trouble

“Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you. The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom. Though it cost all you have, get understanding.” – Proverbs 4:6-7 What does it mean to live in God’s Kingdom? Do you have an idea? The Kingdom of God is the place where God’s will is carried out; it is the place where He reigns supreme! More specifically, it is a place where individuals follow Jesus’ instructions and live as He directed. In essence, the Kingdom of God is made up of people who are morally wise and knowledgeable. More than everything else in the world, I believe in Jesus’ teachings. In fact, I am confident that if you live by the Sermon on the Mount, even if you are an atheist, your life will be better. This is because I believe that what Jesus

November 15, 2021 1 Comment

Leprosy of the Soul

“For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.” – Ephesians 5:5 If I were to ask you, “What’s the opposite of gratitude?” — what would you say? If you answered ingratitude, you wouldn’t be wrong, but I think there’s a more accurate way to describe it, and that’s entitlement. Unfortunately, we live in a society that’s filled with people who feel they deserve instant gratification, free stuff, endless entertainment, and a hassle-free life. However, I want to submit to you that the greed underlying this outlook is actually a kind of leprosy of the soul. Just as the disease eats away at the flesh of its victims until there’s little left, so a person who feels as if the world owes them is being destroyed from the inside out by

September 26, 2021 1 Comment

The Anointing of Power

“Take the anointing oil and anoint him by pouring it on his head.” – Exodus 29:7 In Christianity, we talk a lot about our anointing in Christ, but few of us actually understand where the term originates. Turns out that the practice of anointing actually began with sheep. Since they were prone to the infestation of bugs in their ears, someone figured out that slathering their heads with olive oil kept insects away. Then, later on, someone else wondered if it might work for humans also. Since there was no running water in ancient times, baths were not a common thing, and people tended to smell pretty bad. Even worse, because they traveled long distances and got really dirty, they also attracted bugs. Therefore, anointing their heads was a way to lessen body odor and shield themselves from creepy crawlers. Later, it became a religious ritual that was employed in

July 22, 2021 No Comments

God’s Got the Power

“So Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and did just as the Lord commanded. Aaron threw his staff down in front of Pharaoh and his officials, and it became a snake. Pharaoh then summoned wise men and sorcerers, and the Egyptian magicians also did the same things by their secret arts: Each one threw down his staff and it became a snake. But Aaron’s staff swallowed up their staffs.” – Exodus 7:10-12 There’s an interesting account in the book of Exodus that took place after Moses and his brother Aaron were commissioned by God to lead the Israelites out of slavery. Having been oppressed and abused for 400 years by Egyptian officials, the Lord heard the cries of His people and put a plan into action to deliver them. He called Moses to guide them, and He appointed Aaron to be a prophet to speak on His behalf. Promising to

July 10, 2021 No Comments

Don’t Fear the Devil

“I am sending you to them to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.” – Acts 26:17,18 Have you ever had one of those dreams where you were back in high school because you never graduated? I don’t know what it is about this proverbial nightmare, but it visits many of us at one time or another. Thankfully, as vivid as our mind might make it seem, when we wake up, we breathe a sigh of relief as we realize that we really did get our diploma. And as strange as the analogy sounds, I believe this scenario parallels a spiritual principle for those of us who’ve said yes to Jesus’ gift of salvation. While we have an enemy,

June 29, 2021 1 Comment

Free to Be Yourself

“I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.” – Psalm 139:14 Robert Louis Stevenson, who wrote Treasure Island among other literary works, once made the statement, “I have been to church today and I’m not depressed.” Unfortunately, this famous quote provides a rather sad insight into how the brilliant author viewed the majority of corporate worship services. In a similar vein, the great Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes said, “I might have entered the ministry if certain clergymen I knew had not looked and acted so much like undertakers.” Sadly, he was not alone in his assessment of Christians. Although we have every reason to live abundantly and vibrantly, too many of us spend too much of our lives trying to conform to someone else’s mold. Rather than embracing the quirky, salty, and unique individuals we are, we

June 16, 2021 1 Comment

Surrender the Fight

“God again set a certain day, calling it ‘Today.’ This he did when a long time later he spoke through David, as in the passage already quoted: ‘Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts.’” – Hebrews 4:7 I’ve heard stories about soldiers who’ve gone to war, and though they depart from home full of life, vitality, and hope, they return bitter and disillusioned. Fighting for so long — often on the front lines and in the face of death itself — leaves them wounded and unable to let their guard down again. And while most of us haven’t been in this kind of physical combat, the fatigue of fighting is something that we all can relate to. So today, I’m writing to the warriors who are battle-scarred and weary. Life has dealt you a hard blow, and it’s been one thing after another. Maybe it’s losing

April 21, 2021 2 Comments

Do Your Best and Forget the Rest

No Sting in Death!

Sent Into the Storm

Thriving in Times of Trouble

Leprosy of the Soul

The Anointing of Power

God’s Got the Power

Don’t Fear the Devil

Free to Be Yourself

Surrender the Fight

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