truth

Be Gentle

“A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” – Proverbs 15:1 Today, I want to share how being aware of what people are going through and being sensitive to their pain enables us to love as Jesus did. I want to talk about how we can become a life-giving presence in relationships with others — be gentle. In our world, it seems that we have gotten more and more harsh with each other. Whether in politics or religion, people have become violent in their rhetoric and language. When we get in a fight with our spouse or get angry at the guy who cut us off in traffic, many of us tend to respond angrily and with a mean spirit. However, this is not helping us as a society. Even as we are forced to function in an angry world, there’s one important thing to remember:

October 29, 2022 3 Comments

Curb the Contracts

“Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.” – Matthew 18:19 There were no written contracts in Jesus’ time because ink and paper were exorbitantly expensive. In fact, it’s believed that each of Paul’s epistles cost thousands of dollars to produce, with estimates ranging from $2,000 to $40,000 for just one letter! In the ancient East, the high cost of writing things down necessitated the creation of a new process for creating legal agreements. In Jewish tradition, it was customary to establish a verbal agreement, shake hands, and swear by the Name of God that they would follow their promises to each other. When they invoked the Lord in a contract, they effectively made it a verbal pact. Though I can’t say for sure, I’m betting that the ease with which

November 4, 2021 No Comments

Walking in Truth’s Freedom

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” – 2 Corinthians 3:17 Have you ever been caught in the act of telling a lie? I believe that most of us have been caught in the trap of dishonesty at some point in our lives, if not as adults, then certainly as children. Perhaps we lied about something minor (what has been dubbed “the little white lie”), or perhaps it was something more serious and had a bad influence on someone we care about. Whatever the case may be, I don’t believe there’s anything worse than being caught in the web of deception. I just heard a story about a social media video that went viral. On a plane, a 28-year-old man got into an argument with other passengers and the flight crew. He began boasting that he owned six residences, made

November 2, 2021 1 Comment

Honesty is Everything

“The lips of the righteous know what finds favor, but the mouth of the wicked only what is perverse.” – Proverbs 10:32 Integrity is the most vital characteristic of a genuine leader. In fact, I don’t believe there is a trait more prized or cherished in today’s environment than being genuinely authentic. Being honest, both with ourselves and with others cultivate heart and mind serenity. Truthfulness is a long-term benefit that much overcomes the discomfort of having to speak truthfully in difficult or embarrassing situations. Have you ever worked for a boss who was not straightforward? I’m afraid I have, and it was one of the most stressful experiences of my life. Nobody wants to follow someone who is evasive and untrustworthy. When you’re not sure if the person who’s leading you is being honest about how you’re doing or where you’re headed, it might be frustrating. When you work

November 1, 2021 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

How Do You Respond to Feedback?

“As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” – Proverbs 27:17 As we seek to have Jesus’ heart in leading others, it’s important to assess how we’re doing. In fact, one of the best and easiest ways to gauge our progress in this area is to ask ourselves a series of questions. That said, for the next few days, I want to offer three self-probing inquiries we can make as we emulate our Savior in both attitude and action. First of all, how do we respond to feedback? If we’re leading from a place of drive and ambition rather than calling, chances are we’ll react defensively to any hint of scrutiny. On the other hand, if we’re secure in what God has asked us to do, we’ll welcome constructive criticism as a gift. Though doing so demands that we lay our pride down on the altar of sacrifice, we

May 4, 2021 No Comments

Live and Love Like Jesus

“Jesus entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves.” – Matthew 21:12 Though there’s a lot to learn from the stories of Paul and Joseph where it comes to being stubborn in faith, no one exemplifies adamant conviction more than Jesus. He threw convention aside on many occasions, because He was doggedly determined to bring His Father’s heart to the world. He passionately turned over the money changer’s tables at the temple, repeatedly touched those who were considered unclean, and faced the scorn and mockery of His accusers in total silence. Though it must have taken every ounce of restraint He could muster, He stonewalled in the face of injustice and refused to react emotionally to the charges brought against Him. Yet while our Lord was tough and gritty

April 16, 2021 No Comments

Silence vs. Negative Speech

“The angel said to him, ‘I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.’” – Luke 1:19,20 To wrap up our discussion about Zechariah, I want to conclude by saying that when God shuts our mouths, there’s always a good reason. Though we’re not likely to be visited by an angel and have our tongues physically tied, if we remain sensitive to the Holy Spirit, there may be times when the Lord tells us to stay silent. When this happens, it’s usually because He wants to work something out in us, and to speak too hastily might do more harm than good.

March 31, 2021 No Comments

Words Contain Faith

“Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John.” – Luke 1:11-13 One of my favorite Biblical examples of the power of words is found in the story of a New Testament character named Zechariah. Married to Elizabeth, he was a priest, and by the time we’re introduced to him in Luke chapter 1, he’s an old man. Though he and his wife were very much in love, they were unable to have kids, and this was a source of heartbreak for both of them. Resigned to being childless, Zechariah faithfully continued his priestly duties, and one

March 29, 2021 1 Comment

Prepare Your Mind

“‘Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.” – 1 Corinthians 2:16 Since we’ve already established in previous devotions the importance of moving from a posture of waiting to one of preparation, the next logical question is how do we do it? For the next few days, I want to talk about four specific things we can do to get ready to receive God’s best for our future. Taken from the ancient Hebrew ceremonial cleansing ritual called Mikvah, which the Jews would undertake whenever they entered the temple for worship, I hope these practical steps will empower us to focus on actively preparing for our next season. The first thing we must do to set the stage for what’s to come is to prepare our minds. Just as Jewish worshippers would wash their heads as a way of

March 4, 2021 No Comments

Be Gentle

Curb the Contracts

Walking in Truth’s Freedom

Honesty is Everything

The War is In Your Mind

How Do You Respond to Feedback?

Live and Love Like Jesus

Silence vs. Negative Speech

Words Contain Faith

Prepare Your Mind

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