Tag Archives: christian living

November 14, 2023 · 5:37 AM

Turning North

One of my favorite visual lessons to use in a group is to have everyone close their eyes and to then point north. What usually happens is you will have a room full of people pointing just about every direction including up. I then have them open their eyes to see where everyone is pointing. Immediately some start laughing, but others start trying to convince others they’re right. I then pull a compass out of my pocket and show them which way is north. I’ll ask them to again close their eyes and point to north. Most will point in the direction the compass did, but there will still be some who point in other directions. I tell them that if they don’t know which way north is, and you’re lost, it’s hard to get where you’re going.

All throughout the book of Jeremiah, Israel was lost. Each person was doing what was right in their own eyes and doing what they wanted. Even though they had the compass of The Law, they chose to go in different directions. In Jeremiah 18, God had Jeremiah watch a potter work with some clay. After making a piece of pottery, the potter didn’t like it, then crushed it and started over. Then, in verse 11, God said, “Return, every one from his evil way, and amend your ways and your deeds” (ESV). He was telling them to repent, which means to change directions. He wanted them to turn north towards Him.

Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to guide me and a light for my path” (GNT). God has given us the compass to this life through His Word. It will guide us in the direction of our life and in the choices we make. However, just like in the room full of people knowing which way north is, we still have to make the choice each day to point north or in a different direction. God always gives us a choice. If we head any direction but north, we risk facing the consequences of our actions. His way is the only right way to get north. His word lights the path so we can see where we’re going and also guides us in the paths of righteousness. It’s up to me and you to continually turn north when everything else is trying to get us to turn in different directions.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

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November 13, 2023 · 5:54 AM

Life Transformation

One of our favorite types of shows to watch on TV are home renovations. There’s something beautiful and hopeful when you see these amazing professionals take a drab house no one wants and turn it into someone’s dream home. There are also shows where the home owner tries their own renovation. It’s usually a disaster. They had watched these shows where the professionals renovated and then tried to do it themselves. The house is in shambles, they’re over budget, over extended and ready to give up. Shows like that remind me that I can make small changes to the house, but I’m not qualified to take on an e tire renovation myself. It’s best to leave that to the ones who understand how houses are built and do it all the time.

Paul wrote about half of the New Testament, but before he became Paul, he was Saul. Saul was a person who hated Christians. In fact, he hunted them down and killed them in public. He was on a mission to destroy Christianity anywhere it spread. After he chased Christians out of Jerusalem, he was headed to Damascus to kill them. While on his way in Acts 9, he was met and blinded by Jesus. His life was completely transformed. The believers and Jews alike were perplexed by such a radical transformation in him. They couldn’t believe it was the same person. He went on to preach and share his story across the world of what God can do with a life that submits to its creator.

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (ESV). When we give ourselves fully to Christ, He takes our old life and renovates it into something new. The old person we once were no longer exists. Our spirit is reborn and a transformation takes place. It’s not something we can do ourselves though. Only Christ who lives in us can transform us. We are no longer bound to our old life, it’s desires or it’s fate. I’ve seen several people whom God delivered and transformed instantly. I’ve also seen people who spend the rest of their life struggling to not go back to who they once were. I don’t know the difference, but I do know that the Creator knows what He’s doing, loves them both and has given them new life. Every renovation is different, yet each one starts with us submitting to the transformation.

Photo by Anuj Yadav on Unsplash

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November 9, 2023 · 5:30 AM

Productive Planting

Every spring there are big displays in home improvement stores selling seeds. I like to look through them to see if there’s anything we would like to try to grow. One one side of the packet you have a picture of what the seeds inside will produce. On the other side you have a color coded map that tells you where these seeds grow the best and then some instructions that tell you how deep to plant them, how far apart, when the best time of year to plant them is and how long it will take them to produce. The more closely you follow those directions, the more likely that your garden will produce something from the packet.

Most of the seeds we plant in life can’t be seen and aren’t physically put in the ground. There’s no packet that you can read to tell you where they will grow best, how long until they produce or when the best time to plant them is. When I was a kid, a popular saying in the church world was, “You’ll reap what you sow.” To me, it always seemed to have a negative connotation. They only brought it up when you weren’t doing the right thing. While it’s true that it works for those behaviors, it also works for the behaviors God wants to reinforce in our lives. The law of sowing and reaping was instituted in during creation when the Bible tells us that God planted a garden in the east. He didn’t speak the Garden of Eden into existence like most everything else.

As Christians, we need to pay attention to the things we are planting in our lives, the lives of others and into the world. We don’t have to worry about timing, location or season. 1 Corinthians 15:58 says, “We know that we prosper and excel in every season by serving the Lord, because we are assured that our union with the Lord makes our labor productive with fruit that endures” (TPT). The seeds you’re sowing today are not in vain. They will produce whether you think it’s the right season to plant them or not. The law of sowing and reaping can only come into affect when you plan seeds. God is the one who makes them grow, not you. Don’t hold back in planting where God tells you to or when. Your planting will be productive through Him.

Photo by Ricardo IV Tamayo on Unsplash

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

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November 8, 2023 · 5:45 AM

Giving God Your Ashes

A friend of mine, who has a green thumb, reached out to me recently. She said she had reached out to several people asking what kind of fire place they had. When everyone had a gas fireplace, she remembered that I have a BBQ pit. She then said, “I have a strange request. Can I have your ashes?” I told her that I had just smoked some meat recently and that she was welcome to the ashes. Then I asked why she needed ashes since it was just dust. She then told me how the oak trees in her yard were sick and how she could take the ashes from the trees I burned to make a paste that would heal her trees. I had never heard of that, but it made sense.

In the book of Ruth, there had been a famine in Israel and Naomi, along with her husband and two sons, had to move to a foreign land. When her sons grew up, her husband died. Her sons then married foreign women. About ten years later, her sins died without having kids. She decided to return to Israel and told her daughters in law to go home. Ruth decided to go with her though. When they entered Bethlehem, the people greeted Naomi (which means pleasant), but she told them to call her Mara (bitter) because she had lost everything except Ruth. That’s when Ruth realized they needed food and gleaned in Boaz’ field. Boaz married Ruth later and they had a son. The people rejoiced for Naomi and sang of her restoration and healing through Ruth and her grandson. God brought her out of the ashes and gave her new life.

Isaiah 61:3 says, “To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for his own glory” (NLT). If you’re looking at the ashes of what used to be your life, know that God can make beauty from them. He can restore your life to better than it once was. He will use the ashes to heal you and others. I’ve seen Him do it in my own life. I was left holding the ashes of everything in my life that I held dear, ready to give up, when God took the ashes and exchanged my despair for joy. The ashes of what once was are the soil God uses to create something new. Give Him your ashes and let Him create something beautiful.

Photo by David von Diemar on Unsplash

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November 7, 2023 · 5:43 AM

Opportunities To Grow

Every winter I prune back my crepe myrtle trees so they will grow tall and bloom in the spring. While I’m cutting back the branches, I wonder if they think I’m not a good caretaker because of the pain they’re going through. I wonder if they think that I don’t care what happens to them because they’re going through so much loss. Then I start to wonder why we do that to God. When things aren’t going right, when things cause us pain and when we suffer loss we wonder if God is good. We wonder if He even cares about us or sees the pain we’re experiencing. I’ve laid on the floor weeping in my most painful moments asking God to intervene when in fact He was. I couldn’t see it at the time, but He was pruning my life so I could grow and bloom like never before.

There are two stories in Mark that always get my attention. In Mark 4, Jesus and the disciples get in a boat to cross the Sea of Galilee. A crazy storm erupts and the boat starts to sink. They realize Jesus is sleeping in the hull and wake Him. They said, “Don’t you care that we are about to die?” (GNT) Jesus, knowing they weren’t in real danger called the storm. Then a couple chapters Jesus told the disciples to cross the sea and He’d meet them. Another storm arose and threatened to sink the boat. Jesus then walked on the water. Mark 6:48 said it looked like He was going to pass them by. They were afraid and called out to Him. When He entered the boat, the storm stopped. In both of these instances, in both instances He tested their faith and used the opportunities to grow their trust in Him.

Psalm 23:4 says, “Even if I go through the deepest darkness, I will not be afraid, Lord, for you are with me. Your shepherd’s rod and staff protect me.” Just be a you’re a Christian m it doesn’t mean you aren’t going to walk through dark valleys. It doesn’t mean you aren’t going to experience loss or pain. What it does mean is that you will get to experience the grace of God when you need it most. He will be there with you in the darkness with His rod and staff even when you can’t see Him or feel Him. He works everything (every situation) out for your good. He is for you and will use every situation and opportunity to grow you. What the enemy intends for evil and destruction in your life, God uses as a place of growth. When the enemy tries to close the book on you, God starts a new chapter of hope. Don’t give up in the darkest of valleys. Let your faith arise because God is there and is doing something for your good giving you opportunities to grow.

Photo by Chris Buckwald on Unsplash

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November 2, 2023 · 5:30 AM

The Donkey In The Well

When I was a senior in high school, I went on my first mission trip. We drove deep into the heart of Mexico. At one point, we turned off the road into a dry creek bed. We drove down that creek bed for about twenty minutes and then we arrived in a small village to build a church. The people seemed to come out of nowhere to greet us. One day they took us to a deep well and told us about how a donkey had fallen in there and died. It took them several days to get it out, but by then the water had been polluted. They had to empty the well so they could get fresh, clean water again. I don’t think I’ll ever forget that story.

Proverbs 20:5 tells us that wisdom and counsel are deep within us like a well and that people of understanding will be able to draw them out. Then in Luke 6:45, Jesus said that we speak out of the abundance of our heart, meaning the things that are deep inside us come out of our mouth. Then in James 3:12, the author writes, “Is it possible that fresh and bitter water can flow out of the same spring? So neither can a bitter spring produce fresh water” (TPT). He’s talking about our words and how we speak. How can we speak words of healing if we are full of bitterness inside? How can we speak life if there our inner well is polluted?

Each one of us have donkeys that fall into our well and die causing our heart to be polluted. The words we speak to others reveal whether we’ve taken it out and refreshed our well or not. I’ve learned that we empty our polluted well by confessing our sins, faults and inner struggles to God and to others (James 5:16). We confess them to God for forgiveness and to people for healing. When’s the last time you looked deep into the well that you’re drawing out of? What kind of water are you giving other people? Take some time today to get alone with God, do some self examination and get healed so that you can produce fresh, clean water that others can drink from.

Photo by Gary Meulemans on Unsplash

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

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October 31, 2023 · 5:46 AM

An Abundant Mindset

If you’ve ever been around someone from the depression era, you’ve seen what a scarcity mindset looks like. Very little is thrown away. They utilize everything to its limit and they’re very frugal. They probably still have their lunch money from the third grade. They never feel like they have enough and it can affect their generosity. By contrast, if you’ve been around anyone born in the last forty years,you’ve seen someone with an abundance mindset. They seem to place little value on what they own because they can just get another one. They’re very free with their money and live in the moment. To them there will always be more than enough. It’s amazing how these mindsets affect every area of life, including generosity, contentment and gratitude.

The disciples had a scarcity mindset. They blocked the little children from coming to Jesus because there wasn’t enough of Him to go around. When they told Jesus to send the people away to eat and He told them to feed them, they looked at how much money it would take and it wasn’t enough. When they had five loaves and two fish, it wasn’t enough. However, Jesus had an abundance mindset and He wanted to teach them a lesson. He took what little they had to show them if they were generous and if they trusted Him, they would have more than enough. After feeding the five thousand, He sent them out with baskets to gather the leftovers. Each disciple had a basket full. It was enough for them to keep giving. He was trying to change their mindset to one of trust and abundance.

In Luke 6:38 Jesus said, “Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back” (NLT). Again He was teaching us that we have to get past our scarcity mindset to receive the blessings He has for us. The measure we give is the same measure He uses to bless us with. If we have a scarcity mindset in giving, we will miss out on the abundance of God. If we never feel like we have enough and hold tight to everything entrusted to us, we’re like the guy who buried His talent in the sand. That’s what a scarcity mindset looks like. God will supply all YOUR needs according to HIS riches. It’s not about how much you have. It’s about how much do you trust Him with what you have. When you take what little you have and put it in His hands, it becomes more than enough. Pray about what that looks like for you and ask Him for an abundant mindset so you can experience the overflow.

Photo by Paz Arando on Unsplash

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October 30, 2023 · 5:48 AM

Filling Gaps

If I asked you what your worst subject in school was, what would you say? Now if I asked you why it was your worst, you’d probably think of some reasons. It could be you didn’t like the teacher. That could be the class that had the most homework in it. Maybe you never did quite understand it and once you got behind, you could never catch up again. When we have a learning gap in a subject, it can create tension, especially if you struggle to fill that gap. Some parents get their kids a tutor to fill the learning gap. Some spend some extra time trying to help their kids. Then there are those who say, “I didn’t like it either. You’re just going to have to live with it.” That person lives with that gap and has a mental block that they may never get past.

Let’s take that same concept and apply it to our faith. There are people in the Bible who had some gaps. In Mark 9 we read the story of a man who had a son that was possessed by a demon. The disciples had a gap in their faith and couldn’t cast it out. When they approached Jesus, the boy went into convulsions and Jesus asked how long had he suffered like that. He told him it had been happening since childhood and asked if Jesus could do anything to help. Jesus said, “What do you mean ‘if’?” He then flipped it on him and said, “If you are able to believe, all things are possible to the believer” (TPT). The man recognized his gap and said, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” (NLT)

I Thessalonians 3:10 says, “Night and day we pray earnestly for you, asking God to let us see you again to fill the gaps in your faith.” Where are your gaps in your faith that you need filled? What are the areas you struggle to understand or grow in? We all have them, but not all of us are doing something to fill them. We become like the student who just lives with the gap and struggles with it their whole life. Once you’ve identified your gap, join a life group that covers that subject, ask your pastor to recommend a book on the subject and seek God for understanding and help like the man in Mark 9. There are lots of ways to grow in the different areas of our faith. You don’t have to live with the gaps. We should be constantly growing and learning in our faith to fill the gaps so we can be have strong roots that grow down deep into Jesus.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

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October 26, 2023 · 5:30 AM

The Best Path

When I was younger and I wanted to take a trip, I would break out my Rand McNally map and plot a course. I would take the map with me so I could follow along or use it if I got lost. Today, most of us use an app with GPS to get us where we’re going. We plug in an address and off we go blindly following wherever it leads. There have been times when I questioned where it was taking me and I thought I knew better. I was wrong. Even now, I question it, but I’ve learned to give it the benefit of the doubt because it sees what’s coming ahead and knows what path to take.

After David was anointed king, I’m sure he thought he knew the path God was going to take to get him to the palace. It wasn’t that long until the king called and invited him to the palace without knowing David would be the next king. Then the path took an unexpected turn. David was on the run and had to leave the country God said he would rule over. He found himself living in caves instead of in the luxury of palaces. He didn’t question God’s path to get him there even though it was a different path than he would have chosen.

From the cave, he penned this in Psalms 142:3, “When my spirit was overwhelmed and weak within me [wrapped in darkness], You knew my path” (AMP). No matter how dark that cave was, he trusted that God knew his path. That’s something we can all learn from. Sometimes God’s path will lead you through some dark times, but even though you walk through the valley of the shadow, God will be with you. He uses those times to develop us, to prove His faithfulness and to have us bring light into the darkness. Don’t turn from the path God is leading you down. He knows what’s ahead and is taking you on the best path for your future.

Photo by Johannes Plenio on Unsplash

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

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October 25, 2023 · 5:41 AM

Living Free

There was a worker at the LA Zoo who tells the story of some red tailed hawks they received from the police. They had been brought in cages and told to take care of them until the trial. As time went by, he would see those hawks in cages and it would break his heart. He didn’t know when or if the trial would ever take place. He felt the bigger crime was keeping these birds locked up in cages. Finally he decided to unlock the cages and let the birds out even if it cost him his job. Once the birds were out, they just stood there on the table. He shewed them and tried to scare them into flying, but nothing worked. They had gotten used to the prison of cages and refused to fly away even though he had set them free. He finally gave up and let them back in their cages.

In the book of Exodus we read how the Israelites had been slaves in Egypt for hundreds of years. Even though they were numerous, they had adjusted to life in the prison of Egypt. God sent Moses to liberate them and to take them to the Promised Land. On the way there, they kept complaining how things were easier in Egypt. They began to resent their freedom and question God. They started fantasizing about life in Egypt because it was what they knew. They preferred predictability over purpose. They were hoping that freedom brought convenience, but found that it took work. Their complaints reached God who had set them free. He provided food and water for them, but still they complained. With this attitude they could never fight the battles needed to dispel the nations living in the place God was leading them. Instead of taking them back to Egypt, He kept them in the desert until a generation came that was willing to fight for the freedom and promises of God.

Galatians 5:1 says, “It was for this freedom that Christ set us free [completely liberating us]; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery [which you once removed]” (AMP). It’s easy to look at the hawks and the children of Israel and think they should have just spread their wings and enjoyed their freedom. It’s another thing to look in the mirror and see if you are still standing by your cage wanting back in. If God has set you free, it’s time to fly. It’s not going to be easy. It’s going to cost you discipline, time and effort. God has broken open the doors that held you in and has a place of promise for you. Are you reminiscing about the predictability of the past? Have you been fantasizing about how easy it was before? Those are the lies of the enemy trying to draw you back in and to make you ineffective in a desert land. It’s time to stand firm, armor up and take the land of freedom that God has set before you.

Photo by Taylor Deas-Melesh on Unsplash

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