Tag Archives: christian living

September 12, 2018 · 5:42 AM

Be Courageous

When I was a teenager, the scouting program I was a part of gave us a code to live by. Today, we would call them values statements or core values. One of the eight values was courageous: he is brave in spite of danger, criticism or threats. I didn’t realize then how important that particular one was as a teenager, and even more so as an adult. It taught me to be strong in the face of things when they weren’t going my way or even against me. Being courageous means you don’t run away in those moments. You do what’s right no matter what going on around you.

In the last several chapters of John, Jesus was talking to the disciples on the night before His crucifixion. He was telling them what was about to happen to Him, and also what would happen to them going forward. He wanted them to have peace in the chaos, and to let them know that He was going to send the Holy Spirit as a helper who would live inside of them to combat the outside pressures against them. Then, just before He prayed and went to the Garden of Gethsemane, He said, “For in this unbelieving world you will experience trouble and sorrows, but you must be courageous, for I have conquered the world!” (John 16:33 TPT)

He reminded them, and us, that we are going to experience times when the world is against us. We are going to have troubles and things not go our way, but we are to be courageous. He said these things because He wanted us to look past our current problems knowing that He has already won. We can be brave because whatever we’re facing is not the end and it won’t conquer us because He is in us. We have to keep reminding ourselves of this verse when things look bad or like there’s no tomorrow. We can be courageous in spite of what we’re facing you trusting His promises.

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September 7, 2018 · 6:04 AM

Trusting In God

I’ve often heard stories of how pilots have to trust their instruments even more than their sight. Many of the plane crashes you hear about are because they didn’t trust the instruments and tried to do what they thought. Their eyes often deceive them and they make decisions based on false information. Great pilots have learned to completely trust their instruments no matter what. They also rely on the person in the control tower for updates and instructions. If they’re going to have a safe flight, they must learn to trust.

To me, being a Christian is a lot like being a pilot. We can’t trust what we see (or can’t see) in this world. Too many of us crash at times because we fail to trust God fully and we try to live our lives based on what we think. We must stay in constant communication with God, and we need to trust that He can see the things we can’t. When we live life fully trusting in God, we make our decisions based on what He says, not what we think. Our eyes can deceive us, but God never will.

Here are some Bible verses on trusting in God.

1. Do not let your heart be troubled (afraid, cowardly). Believe [confidently] in God and trust in Him, [have faith, hold on to it, rely on it, keep going and] believe also in Me.

JOHN 14:1 AMP

2. The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It’s our handle on what we can’t see. The act of faith is what distinguished our ancestors, set them above the crowd.

Hebrews 11:1-2 MSG

3. Commit your works to the LORD [submit and trust them to Him], And your plans will succeed [if you respond to His will and guidance].

PROVERBS 16:3 AMP

4. You, Lord, give perfect peace to those who keep their purpose firm and put their trust in you.

Isaiah 26:3 GNT

5. Trust in the Lord completely, and do not rely on your own opinions. With all your heart rely on him to guide you, and he will lead you in every decision you make.

Proverbs 3:5 TPT

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September 6, 2018 · 5:30 AM

The Land Of Promise

Throwback Thursday is a new feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other writing ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

My three year old son surprised me the other day. We were sitting down talking and he wanted to get my attention so used both hands to grab my face to look at him. He said, “Joshua 1:9, Dada.” It took me a minute to figure out what he was talking about, but then I remembered it was his memory verse a few weeks back. I thought for a second how they had taught him, then I recited it to him, “Do not be afraid. God is with you.” He smiled and said, “Yeah. God is with you. Joshua 1:9.”

What a great promise to us to hold on to. The full verse says, “This is my command – be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For The Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” This was God speaking to Joshua before he entered a land of giants and walled cities that he was to conquer. It was 40 years earlier that he had been there as a spy and was outvoted 10-2 because the people were afraid of what they saw. I’m sure the ones who were scared told their kids what the Promised Land had in it. They might have been afraid of what their future held.

Like them, you may be looking at your future and are starting to feel scared. There are uncertainties, giants even huge walls up around the things you feel like God has called you to. When you look at those things, you may be wondering, “How can I accomplish that?” The path to it may be unclear. There may be huge obstacles in your way. But if God has called you to do it, there are no walls high enough that He can’t push down. There are no walls thick enough that He can’t break. There is no enemy strong enough to keep you away from all He has promised. He just needs you to step out in faith.

That’s the hard part. The scary part. When that fear arises, go back to Joshua 1:9. God commanded us to be strong and courageous. He didn’t merely suggest it. He told us not to be afraid or discouraged by the obstacles in our way because He is with us. He doesn’t expect us to do these things in our own strength or abilities. He will do the work as long as we are willing to cross the Jordan and enter the Land of Promise. Our step of faith pushes back fear and activates God’s strength. Don’t hold back because of fear. Go and conquer all that God has for you.

Photo by Benjamin Davies on Unsplash

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September 5, 2018 · 5:59 AM

The Rescue Plan

I read a news article about a 92 year old woman who was driving the wrong direction down the highway. A man noticed it and started trying to stop her. He drove past her on the right side of the highway to the next cross street. He then jumped out and tried to wave her down. He tried it again, but with no success. He then drove through the median grass until he was beside her and was able to stop her. She said she knew she was on the wrong side and was trying to get to the other side, but didn’t know how. The man who saved her said, “I knew something wasn’t right. If there was any way I could stop that, I was willing to do anything I could.”

As I saw that story, I couldn’t help but think of Jude 1:22 that says, “Go easy on those who hesitate in the faith. Go after those who take the wrong way” (MSG). This man reminded me of what God called us to do. We are to be on a Rescue Mission going after those going the wrong way towards Hell. The arrival mentioned how most people would have noticed the lady going the wrong way, but wouldn’t have done anything about it. This man stood out because he was willing to risk his life to save hers and others.

Saving others from going the wrong way isn’t just for pastors and missionaries. It’s all of our responsibility. We have to go through life understanding that we are God’s rescue plan for helping people who are going the wrong way. Are we willing to speak up? Are we willing to try to get their attention to let them know? Or are we content to let them drive down the wrong way? You don’t have to act crazy and flag people down, but you do have to love them. They may know they’re going the wrong way, but don’t know how to turn around or get to the other side. That’s where we come in, rescue them and point them to Jesus. Ask God to help you see those going the wrong way and to use you to rescue them.

Here’s a link to the article.

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September 4, 2018 · 5:21 AM

Building Others Up

When I was in the Fifth grade, lunch time consisted of a group of us who spent that time doing a put down contest. Every day we sat there with one person on one side of the table against a person from the other side. The two would trade put downs until one person ran out of them or someone cried. As kids, we had no idea how dangerous this exercise was. Words are more powerful than we realized. My fear is that some from that group have spent a life time putting others down constantly or worse, putting themselves down. So many people are constantly putting themselves down with their own words.

Jude 1:20 says, “But you, dear friends, must build each other up in your most holy faith” (NLT). That’s a command to do the exact opposite of what we’ve been taught to do. We have to train ourselves to quit looking in the mirror and telling ourselves what’s wrong with us. We have to learn to quit saying what our limitations are and why we can’t do things. Building up involves talking about what you can do and what your qualities are. When you consistently tell yourself the qualities God has given you, you shift the talk track in your mind from negative to positive. You begin to build up rather than tear down.

We need to learn to do this for other people as well. Imagine if you had someone constantly telling you what’s right with you. That would affect your day and how you see yourself. So why not start it off today? Find someone and build them up today by telling them a God-given quality they have and why it’s important. Building each other up is part of God’s design for community. We all need to be reminded daily of the positive qualities we have and how they affect the world around us. Let’s quit putting ourselves and others down and begin to act the way God intended by building others up.

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September 3, 2018 · 5:48 AM

Changing Our Behaviors

Have you ever noticed when you’re watching TV with your child, if they say a bad word, your child repeats it? They don’t repeat anything else except the one thing you don’t want them to. The other thing I’ve noticed that happens is they go to school and come home with some bad habits. You did everything you could to raise them right, but they see one kid act a certain way and they imitate their bad behavior. Those moments can be frustrating for a parent because you spend so much time trying to educate your child and train your child to be good, but they see one bad behavior and it’s all out the window.

I wonder if God feels the same way at times with us as His children. One of the main messages throughout the Bible is that His people are to be set apart and live differently. It’s full of verses on what Living His way means, but for some reason, we end up imitating things we see in the world. Romans 12:2 says, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world,” but we find ourselves, along with many other Christians doing just that (NLT). I wonder if God is constantly asking us, “Where did you learn that?”

When we accept Jesus to be Lord of our life, we are saying we will no longer live like we did before. We are agreeing to allow Him to show us how to live, then submitting to His authority in our life. His love should change us from the inside out, and because of His holiness in us, we should live differently than the world. 3 John 1:11 says, “My dear friend, do not imitate what is bad, but imitate what is good. Whoever does good belongs to God; whoever does what is bad has not seen God” (GNT). Start today by asking God what behaviors He wants you to change in your life. You’ll find that just like every other Christian, there are more things we can do to be more like Him and less like this world.

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August 30, 2018 · 5:58 AM

Loving People

Throwback Thursday is a new feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other writing ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

At a Toby Mac concert, his drummer shared a story of a man who had three kids with three different women. He wasn’t a present father in their lives and was a mess of a human. The Diverse City band loved him when he was broken and didn’t deserve it. They showed him the love of Christ through their actions and led him to the Lord. He then revealed he was that man. It reminded me of a quote from Mark Batterson’s book “If” that has hit home with me. He wrote, “Love people when they least expect it and least deserve it. That’s how you change someone’s life forever.”

When I think of that quote, I think of what God has done for each of us. At our worst, He still loved us. Romans 5:8 says, “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners” (NLT). God didn’t wait for you and I to clean ourselves up and to start living right before He demonstrated His love for us. He did it while we were covered in the filth of sin. He did it when we were living in rebellion to His way of life.

He expects us to demonstrate that kind of love to others. He expects us to love those who least deserve it. 1 John 4:7 says, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is (springs) from God; and he who loves [his fellowmen] is begotten (born) of God and is coming [progressively] to know and understand God [to perceive and recognize and get a better and clearer knowledge of Him]” (AMP). The more we love others when they least deserve it (the way God loves us), the more we get to know who He is.

After the Toby Mac concert, I went to find the drummer. He was taking photos with fans and signing autographs. He looked each person in the eye and said, “I love you and there’s nothing you can do about it!” I smiled when I heard him say it and thought, “That’s exactly what God says to each of us.” We’ve got to get to the point where we love others no matter who they are, how they live, or what they do. If we’re truly interested in changing lives and winning souls, it starts with loving people where they are.

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

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August 27, 2018 · 5:43 AM

Living A Full Life

If you Google, “How to have a better life,” you’ll find several articles with 10 things to do or 3 steps to a better life. There’s no shortage of ideas on how you can improve your life. There are also countless pages of Life Coaches out there who want to help you as well. All of that tells me that people aren’t happy with their lives and they’re looking for ways to get a more fulfilling life. You get one shot at this life, so why not make the most of it. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with wanting to improve your life or situation, but I think we must be careful where we look for it.

In John 10, jesus is explaining that He is our shepherd and that He leads us. He says we follow a His voice and not a stranger’s because we know Him. Then in verse 9 He says, “I am the Gateway. To enter through me is to experience life, freedom, and satisfaction” (TPT). Not only is He our shepherd, but He’s also the gateway to the life we’re looking for. Who knows more about life than the creator of life? The freedom and satisfaction so many of us are looking for is found only in Him.

In verse 10 He goes on to say, “I have come to give you everything in abundance, more than you expect —life in its fullness until you overflow!” Being a Christian doesn’t mean you’re to live a boring life. It means you’ll live life to its fullest. We’ve got to stop going to Google for how to get a better life and go to God who wants to give it to you. Nothing is more satisfying than living the life you were created to live. The only way you find that is through Jesus. We must submit to Him and His will as a sheep submits to a shepherd, and then ask Him to lead us to an abundant life that’s more than we could ever expect. That’s how we have a full, satisfying life.

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August 23, 2018 · 5:57 AM

Encourage And Build Up

Throwback Thursday is a new feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other writing ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

If your spirit has ever been broken, you know how hard it is to get through the day. It’s hard to even wake up, let alone face people. Worry consumes your mind. You question everyone’s intentions, and your energy gets depleted. It’s tough to be stuck in that phase. If you’ve ever been through it, then you can empathize with others who are going through it. They need your support and encouragement more than your advice in those times.

Proverbs 15:13 says, “A cheerful heart brings a smile to your face; a sad heart makes it hard to get through the day” (MSG). When you see someone whose spirit has been crushed and they’re struggling to make it through the day, offer words that will encourage them to continue going. Chances are that it was words that put them in that state and its our words that can bring them out of it. If only we had the courage to speak them.

If you’ve ever watched an action movie, there is usually a scene where one person is hanging off a cliff or the side of a building and another person grabs them with one arm. They then use all their strength to pull that person back to safety. That’s what our words have the power to do. They can pull back someone who has been pushed over the edge and is barely hanging on. We have the power and strength to save someone’s life simply by encouraging them.

I Thessalonians 5:11 says, “So encourage each other and build each other up” (NLT). Paul’s words are a reminder to us as Christians that we are to constantly be encouraging, strengthening, edifying, and building each other up. We are to find a way to a cheerful heart. Proverbs 17:22 says, “A happy heart is good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing” (AMP). You can help heal someone’s brokenness today if only you will open your mouth to offer encouragement instead of correction or direction. You have the power, use it.

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August 22, 2018 · 5:57 AM

Leading With Love

We’ve all heard the saying that actions speak louder than words. We can probably all think of someone who is all talk and no action too. We have very little confidence in people who rarely do what they say. You never know when to believe them. I’ve had friends, coworkers and acquaintances who are like this. It’s no fun to be associated with them because it creates a lack of trust in you as a person. I don’t ever want to be known as a person like that. I want to be known as a person who does what they say or can at least own up to it when I can’t deliver on what I promised.

As Christians, we need to be concerned about our reputation because we don’t just carry our name with us. We also bear the name of Jesus Christ. It’s not just our reputation we’re tarnishing, it’s His. Knowing that, our lives should reflect the work He’s done and is doing in our lives. The love He’s shown us should be something we give out each day. 1 John 3:18 says, “My dear children, let’s not just talk about love; let’s practice real love. This is the only way we’ll know we’re living truly, living in God’s reality“ (MSG).

A life lead by love is one that doesn’t just talk about loving others, it does it. It shows up in the smallest ways throughout our day. Too many times we try to think of doing great things to the point that it keeps us from doing anything. I love the quote by Mother Teresa that says, “We can’t all do great things, but we can all do small things with great love.” If you and I will focus on doing small things today, showing God’s great love, we will make a difference in the lives of others. Doing great things isn’t what makes the difference in life. It’s doing the small things consistently. Today, look for something small you can do with great love, and bless someone.

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