If you want to get to know someone, you need to know their story. Their life is a story. It, too, has a past and a future. It, too, unfolds in a series of scenes over the course of time. Why is Grandfather so silent? Why does he drink...
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If you want to get to know someone, you need to know their story. Their life is a story. It, too, has a past and a future. It, too, unfolds in a series of scenes over the course of time. Why is Grandfather so silent? Why does he drink...
READ MOREWe are now in the late stages of the long and vicious war against the human heart. I know — it sounds overly dramatic. I almost didn't use the term "war" at all, for fear of being dismissed at this point as one more in the group of "Chicken...
READ MOREIf the way to avoid the murderous rage and deceptive allures of desire is to kill it, if deadness is next to godliness, then Jesus had to be the deadest person ever. But he is called the living God. "It is a dreadful thing," the writer...
READ MOREWe’re going to want our souls strong and ready for the days ahead, filled with God, not fried and empty. So we must practice soul care.
I’m not suggesting you go on a witch hunt for every neglected place in your soul. There’s way too much...
READ MOREWe come into the world with a longing to be known and a deep-seated fear that we aren't what we should be. We are set up for a crisis of identity.
And then, says Frederick Buechner, the world goes to work: Starting with the rather...
What makes the Day of Judgment so unnerving is that all our posing and all our charades will be pulled back, all secrets will be made known, and our Lord will "expose the motives of men's hearts" (1 Cor. 4:5, emphasis added).
...
READ MOREIt’s human nature to want our problems to simply go away. Be honest now — how many of us have heard a troubling tick, tick, tick or thump, thump, thump coming from the general direction of our car’s engine or transmission and...
READ MOREBe strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. Be strong and very courageous ... Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be...
READ MOREJesus’ movement will disrupt the Jewish system very, very profoundly. He is going to turn things upside down and inside out. The world will never be the same. Literally. But there is a precision to his every move.
He will not be...
The longing for things to be good again is making us vulnerable to all sorts of compromises. I can help you with this.
First, let’s remove the shock and shame of those moments when hard-pressed you suddenly rages, binges, goes...
Sunlight on water.
Songbirds in a forest.
Desert sands under moonlight.
Vineyards just before harvest.
These all share something in common — they reflect the heart of a particular artist. They are his...
READ MOREIn order for us to live in freedom and become the women we are to become, we need to receive God’s love even in our lowest places.
Spiritual warfare is designed to separate you from the love of God. Its goal is to keep you from living in...
READ MOREWe have lived for so long with a "propositional" approach to Christianity, we have nearly lost its true meaning. As Mary Stewart Van Leeuwen says, "Much of it hinges on your view of scripture. Are you playing proof-text poker with Genesis plus...
READ MOREWhatever else it means to be human, we know beyond doubt that it means to be relational. Aren’t the greatest joys and memories of your life associated with family, friendship, or falling in love? Aren’t your deepest wounds somehow...
READ MOREDare we forget King David? Yes, his passions got him in a heap of trouble—and gave us our book of worship, the Psalms. Sure, Peter was a hotheaded disciple always quick with a reply. Remember in the Garden of Gethsemane—he's the one who...
READ MOREWorry is only one of a hundred things that burden our souls. Genuine concern is just as dangerous, maybe more so because it’s grounded in something noble — your concerns for your aging parents, a sick friend, a people group, a cause crying out...
READ MOREThe poet Yeats wrote,
If I make the lashes dark
And the eyes more bright
And the lips more scarlet,
Or ask if all be right
From mirror after mirror
No vanity's displayed:
I'm looking for the face I...
God drops things in our laps at just the right time. He puts barriers in our paths that look like roadblocks but are really gifts in disguise, beckoning us to take a closer look at what’s going on inside of us. We can either step over them or...
READ MOREOne of the most crippling convictions held by believers today is the idea that everything that happens is the will of God. It is a poisonous belief that will destroy your confidence in God; you will end up believing terrible things about him. The...
READ MORE"Don't be afraid of embracing the disappointment you feel, old or new. Don't be scared of the unreasonable joy either. They're the highway markers home."
We snort with disdain at such quaint sentiments, and our choice made,...