Tag Archives: christian living

June 16, 2025 · 5:30 AM

You Are Called

Almost everyone knows the story of 1 Kings 18. Elijah was the prophet of God in a nation who had turned from Him. He called all of them to Mount Carmel to challenge Baal, the god Israelites were serving. The challenge was to have the prophets of Baal create a sacrifice and to call down fire from Heaven to consume it. He would do the same thing but call out to God. The one true God would answer by fire, and no one would be able to dispute it. In verse 21 he asked a question every generation must answer. He asked, “How much longer will you waver, hobbling between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him!” (NLT) He then rebuilt the altar and proceeded to pray. It was then that God sent fire to consume the altar, and the people turned to God.

Like Elijah, we can’t avoid confrontation when it comes to our faith. He didn’t soften his message that people need to repent. He asked a question that demands an answer and pulls people from a life of compromise. Ephesians 4:15 says, “We will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ, who is the head of his body, the church.” The truth of God’s Word is what sets people free from a life of compromise. We must learn to speak truth in love to our generation so that the fires of revival will burn. It is the responsibility of each of us to stand up for truth and to call people to serve God. If each of us stays silent, how will they ever know that God loves them and sent His Son to die for them.


In Mark 16:15 Jesus gave the Great Commission to all of us. He said, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone.” You are God’s plan to reach this world. You are called to live as a leader in your faith. There is no more time for wavering. If God is God, then serve Him wholeheartedly. You are empowered by the Holy Spirit in you to be a witness wherever you go. You cannot tolerate what God has called you to tear down. We must not only pray for revival but begin to prepare for it in our own lives. We must choose holiness over hype, truth over trends and faith over fear. You are called and equipped to stand up in this generation so that they will know the truth. You are called to leave the idols of comfort behind and lift up a standard that will create spiritual transformation.

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June 11, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Wholehearted Obedience

There’s a story of a construction worker who spent his entire career working for one builder. When it came time for him to retire, the owner of the company asked him to build just one more home as a favor to him. Reluctantly he agreed to build. As he worked on the house, his heart wasn’t in it. He began to cut corners instead of the usual craftsmanship he put into the homes he built. He used cheap materials and even covered up some shoddy work that he did. When the house was finished, he went to the boss to let him know and to ask if he could retire. The boss thanked him for doing the favor and also told him how much he appreciated his excellent craftsmanship and dedication through the years. As a thank you to him, the boss gave him the keys to the house the man just built. Immediately he thought of all the halfhearted work he had put into this home that was now his.


In 2 Chronicles 25, we read the story of King Amaziah. You probably haven’t heard of him, but when he took over as king, he followed the Lord. While he was preparing for battle, the Lord sent a prophet to tell him to change his strategy despite what it had already cost him. King Amaziah did what was asked of him by God and won the victory in that battle, but pride crept in. Verse 2 tells us a haunting caveat to his obedience. It says “Amaziah did what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight, but not wholeheartedly.” His partial obedience led to a life of idolatry. His halfhearted commitment to God is a cautionary tale of someone who started out with good intentions, but ended up letting partial obedience and pride keep him from all the blessings God had for him.

Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.” God’s call to us today is to serve and trust Him with our whole heart knowing it will empower us to full obedience. We must seek Him in every situation, and He will direct us. When we trust Him with our whole heart, he can use us completely. We can’t just go through the motions of following Him on the outside. We must surrender our hearts to Him as well. When we do, we will receive all the blessings He has in store for us and live a life that points others to Him.

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June 10, 2025 · 5:30 AM

God Over Everyone

When the Israelites left Egypt, God was their supreme leader. He used leaders like Moses and Joshua to take them to the land He had prepared. He then used a combination of judges and prophets to lead His people to victory and to call them back to repentance. That lasted about 400 years. In 1 Samuel 8, the people said, “Give us a king to judge us like all the other nations have.” Samuel was upset and cried out to God. He was reminded that Israel wasn’t rejecting him. They were rejecting God as their leader. They were saying that they preferred to be culturally relevant instead of spiritually distinct. God had set them apart from all the other nations to be holy and devoted, but they decided they would rather blend in culturally than to stand out spiritually.

This isn’t just a story in the Bible. It’s a reflection of who we are as humans and how our desires tempt us to choose cultural conformity over spiritual conviction. The culture we live in is at odds with the teachings of the Bible. Jesus says He is the Truth, yet our world says that each person can have their own truth. When there is no absolute truth, there is no standard of what is right and wrong instead of God. We all face the temptation to look and act like everyone else, but God called us to be separate. 1 Peter 2:9 says, “But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.” How can you show others the goodness of God if you are no different than the culture around you? When there is no difference, we risk losing the very distinction that makes us God’s people.

Romans 12:2 says, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.” We are specifically told to not imitate the behavior and customs of the world. The idol of approval tempts us to conform to cultural norms by sacrificing our intimacy with God in order to look like everyone else. God wants us to live transformed lives starting with changing how we think about what we value. When we value what He wants, we live our lives following His lead. We become less concerned with what others think and more concerned with pleasing Him. We then put our relationship with God over all others.

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June 5, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Understanding Spiritual Principles

I read recently that you can understand almost every spiritual principle through understanding farming. I grew up hearing that you reap what you sow, but there’s so much more. There’s faith that when you plant it, things are growing where you can’t see. There’s understanding the right soil and the right season to plant in. The list goes on and on. The more I learn and understand the concepts of farming, the better steward I can be with the spiritual realities God has entrusted to me. These concepts were obvious to people until we became a modern society where we get our produce from a store.

Think back to Genesis 3. Adam and Eve took the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge. They had access to everything, but they squandered it. What was Adam’s punishment? Verse 17 says, “And he said to the man, ‘You listened to your wife and ate the fruit which I told you not to eat. Because of what you have done, the ground will be under a curse. You will have to work hard all your life to make it produce enough food for you’” (GNT). What if his punishment was really about teaching him and us how to better manage and appreciate spiritual principles? Instead of leaving him in the dark, God created a way to understand Him better through having us work the land.

What lesson has God been trying to teach you? What concept has He been trying to get you to understand. I’m pretty sure you can better understand it through farming. Most of Jesus’ parables were about some form of farming. God wants us to learn more about Him and to understand spiritual realities better so He can entrust more to us. Take some time today to ask God to open your eyes to see what He’s showing you. God wants you and I to grow closer to Him and He’s given us the blueprint. We need to seek better understanding from Him so He can help us to be better stewards of all He’s entrusting to us. Don’t shy away or try to take the easy route. Lean in and learn from Him and His Word.

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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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June 4, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Making Room

Before Jesus ascended into Heaven, He addressed the disciples. In Luke 24:49 He said, “And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as my Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven” (NLT). There were 120 of them who went to the Upper Room to wait on the gift of God. Ten days later, on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit entered the room with the sound of a mighty rushing wind, tongues of fire appeared over their heads, they began speaking in other languages and they received the power to be witnesses. On that day, the Church was born. Just as the disciples went to the Upper Room, we too must make room for Him in our life.

In 2 King 4, a Shunammite woman invited the prophet Elisha into her home to eat. From then on, any time he passed that way, he would stop by. She knew he was a man of God and wanted to make room for him in her home and life. In verse 10 she told her husband, “Let’s build a small room for him on the roof and furnish it with a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp. Then he will have a place to stay whenever he comes by.” She wanted a place where the presence of God could dwell with her. That room became the birthplace of miracles in her life. Elisha gave her the promise of a son, and years later he was raised from the dead in that very room. I believe God is asking us to make room for the Holy Spirit in our life so He has a permanent place of power in our lives.

I love that this woman provided a table and chair for Elisha. These represent a place of meeting and fellowship. The Holy Spirit doesn’t just want to dwell inside of you, He wants to meet with you and have fellowship. She also provided a lamp for him. Just as a lamp brings illuminates a room and chases out darkness, the Holy Spirit wants to reveal more of who God is to you. He will illuminate the Scriptures, bring His light into our life and cause us to burn brighter for Him. That leads us to the last thing she provided, which was a bed. The Holy Spirit wants to give you rest and renewal. Our lives are so busy that we lack these things He provides. Imagine what would happen if only we would make room in our prayer time, our heart, our mind and our life for Him. As we approach Pentecost Sunday, I challenge you to do just that in your life. Ask the Holy Spirit where you need to give Him more room. I believe that space in your life will be the birthplace of miracles.

Photo courtesy of Copilot

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June 3, 2025 · 6:00 AM

God Of Breakthroughs

In 2023 there was a young lady in Ohio who got accepted into the school of her choice. The problem was that she couldn’t afford to go there. She tried, but was unable to secure any scholarships to help pay for it. She prayed all summer about it. As the deadline was approaching, she was preparing herself to reject the offer. That’s when she got a letter stating that she got a full ride scholarship from a Christian organization she had never heard of. A month or two before she had mentioned it at youth camp. Someone heard and submitted her for the scholarship. God made a way just as she was about to give up.

In 2 Samuel 5, David had just become king when the Philistines came to challenge him. They spread out around the city he was in and surrounded it. David went into the stronghold and began to pray. He asked God if he went out to fight, would He give him victory. God told him yes, so he and his men went to fight the army that was surrounding them. They won a swift victory. Verse 20 says, “So David came to Baal-perazim, and he defeated them there, and said, ‘The Lord has broken through my enemies before me, like a breakthrough of water.’ So he named that place Baal-perazim (master of breakthroughs)” (AMP). Just like water breaking through a dam, God showed up and gave them victory at the right moment.

Isaiah 43:19 says, “Listen carefully, I am about to do a new thing, Now it will spring forth; Will you not be aware of it? I will even put a road in the wilderness, Rivers in the desert.” I’ve learned that God answers on His time and not mine. I’ve also learned that His breakthroughs come swiftly and decisively. You may be standing in a desert right now wondering where God is as the time runs out on your situation, but keep standing and believing. He will burst through and give you rivers in that desert. He is the God of breakthroughs and breakthroughs start with surrender to His will, His timing and His way.

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May 29, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Psychological Warfare

Psychological warfare has been used for thousands of years to help win wars. If you remember the first night of Desert Storm, we used shock and awe to overwhelm the Iraqi army. It was a show of strength to win the battle of the mind. I’ve seen army’s drop pamphlets behind enemy lines to disrupt their belief of what they think the truth is. If they can get the people to believe their own government is lying, they’ll fold. I’ve also seen where they used speakers to blast messages 24 hours a day trying to get into their minds. Psychological warfare is real, and it’s intended to influence emotions, thinking, attitudes and behaviors. If those are manipulated, victory is easier.

In Isaiah 36, Jerusalem was surrounded by Assyria. They were the toughest army of the day and they were undefeated. When they showed up in full force, their psychological ware fare was to make their enemies lose heart. Not only that, they would address the people instead of just the king. They understood psychological warfare. In verse 15, their emperor was talking with Jerusalem’s leaders where all could hear. He tried to undermine King Hezekiah and their faith. He said, “And don’t let him (Hezekiah) persuade you to rely on the Lord. Don’t think that the Lord will save you and that he will stop our Assyrian army from capturing your city” (GNT). He then encouraged them to surrender. Thankfully they continued to trust the Lord and God sent the Assyrian army home.

Our enemy comes against you and I the same way. He speaks lies into our minds to get us to doubt God. He’s done it since the Garden of Eden. James 4:7 says, “So then, submit yourselves to God. Resist the Devil, and he will run away from you.” The key to victory against his mind games and lies that try to get you to quit relying on the Lord begin with submitting to God. Trust that He will not fail you, abandon you or leave you to fight alone. Trust His plan and know that He will work everything out for your good. Then resist the devil’s lies. Combat them with God’s Word the way Jesus did in the desert. When we do that, he has to flee. He has to stop the attack on your life and your mind. Don’t surrender or succumb to the psychological warfare of the devil. God has given you the Helmet of Salvation and the Shield of Faith to resist.

Photo by Towfiqu barbhuiya: https://www.pexels.com/photo/back-view-of-a-boy-covering-his-ear-12449967/

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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May 26, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Polished To Perfection

Polishing the blade is one of the most satisfying parts of knife making. It reveals the grain, finish and craftsmanship that was put into it. The polishing process starts with holding the blade against a belt grinder using a coarse grit and progressively moving to a fine grit. Each grit removes the scratches from the previous one until there is a clean reflective surface that reveals the beauty of the steel. Before this polishing, the blade may be fully formed, but there are details and beauty hidden that only polishing can bring out. The polishing process can be slow and tedious. If the artist is too quick or too aggressive, it can damage the blade. The final polish is often done by hand in order to be slower and more intentional with the outcome.

Each of us goes through a process of sanctification when we are saved. I’ve seen some people delivered immediately from a habit, addiction or sin, while most undergo the process of becoming more like Christ as they get to know Him. The Holy Spirit starts with a coarse grit in our life removing the old man and everything that he stood for. While our soul is saved, our flesh and its desires need to decrease while Jesus increases in our lives. As our roots grow down deep into Him, He begins to switch to a finer grit to continue this sanctification process. We take on the mind and attitude of Christ mentioned in Philippians 2. We undergo a change from being led by our flesh to being led by the Holy Spirit. This process continues throughout our life to help us reflect Jesus.

In Philippians 3:12 Paul continues, “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me.” Don’t fall into the comparison trap as you undergo this process. There will always be others whom God is using a finer grit with and others whom He is using a coarser grit with. Allow Him to work in your life at the pace He wants to go. You are being forged into His image for His purpose. Each step along the way, God will reveal more of who God created you to be. Don’t try to jump ahead. He will be faithful to complete what He started in you. Like Paul, you will not achieve perfection in this life, but press on anyway! 

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May 22, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Wait Patiently

Have you ever prayed for patience? If you haven’t, don’t try it! I’m kidding. It turns out that when you pray for patience, God typically doesn’t just give it to you. Instead, you will earn patience through a series of events that will try your patience. I don’t really have patience when I see things that need to be done. I start doing the work to get it done whether it’s the right time or not. There are times when my wife has to make me stop and wait to do things. I’d rather do them right then and get the satisfaction of completing the task than to wait. I’m also competitive, and with that comes comparison. If someone else is doing more, working harder, completing tasks or succeeding where I think I should be, it drives me to push forward without rest. I easily lose sight of the bigger picture, and I forget that patience and steadiness bring success and blessings.

I don’t think Abraham and Sarah were very patient either. When God made the promise that he would be the father of many nations, Abram was 75 years old. When his wife didn’t immediately get pregnant, I’m sure He doubted God, or did what we do when we run out of patience, and took matters into his own hands. Because they didn’t wait for the promise, Abraham got another woman pregnant thinking that he was doing God a favor or enacting His plan for Him. It was 25 years after the promise that he had Isaac through his wife. If he thought he was too old to have kids at 75, imagine what he was thinking as he approached 100. Yet, because God told him to wait for the promise, he did.

Psalm 37:7 says, “Be patient and wait for the Lord to act; don’t be worried about those who prosper or those who succeed in their evil plans” (GNT). I love that this verse speaks to our focus. Quit looking at what other people are accomplishing, and thinking about how you wish you were farther along at this point in your life. Be patient and wait for God’s timing. There’s a greater blessing for us when we do. Put your focus back on being faithful where you are, doing the little things, and God will reward you in due season. I know how hard that is, but it is the right thing to do. Even though you may be able to act now, be patient. God is using this time to prepare you for the blessings that are coming so that when His time is right, you won’t squander what He gives you.

Photo by Serkan Göktay on Pexels.

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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May 21, 2025 · 5:37 AM

Provision And Protection

I love reading stories of George Muller. He was a German man who helped over 10,000 orphans. He lived completely by faith. One morning he knew the pantry was empty, but the kids needed to eat. He sat them all down at their tables for breakfast and prayed to thank God for their food. Not long after saying, “Amen,” there was a knock on the door. A baker said the Lord woke him up in the middle of the night to bake bread for the kids. He handed over enough bread for them to eat. Then there was another knock on the door. A milk delivery wagon got stuck and offered them all their milk. God provided for their need.

In 1 Samuel 21, Saul was trying to kill David out of jealousy. Jonathan warned him and he fled to the town of Nob, which was the spiritual center of Israel at the time. He was hungry and tired from his journey as he entered the tabernacle. The priest saw him and wanted to know why he was there. David told him he was on a mission, but needed food. The on,y thing available was the bread reserved for priests. Verse 6 says, “Since there was no other food available, the priest gave him the holy bread—the Bread of the Presence that was placed before the Lord in the Tabernacle. It had just been replaced that day with fresh bread” (NLT). This bread represented God provision and protection for Israel. Ahimelech, the priest, understood God’s compassion and provided the bread to David.

Isaiah 55:1 says, “Is anyone thirsty? Come and drink— even if you have no money! Come, take your choice of wine or milk— it’s all free!” God’s blessings and provision are freely given to us. They can’t be earned. He’s looking for those who are spiritually hungry and thirst to come to the place of His presence. He’s waiting for those who come to the place where they realize they can’t do everything on their own and must live by faith. When we come to that place, He offers provision and protection for us. When we realize we have nothing but what He offers is when we realize we have everything. What God offers can only be bought with desire, humility and surrender. It can be scary to stand there with nothing the way George Muller and David did, but they both trusted God to provide and He did.

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