-
It’s OK To Ask!
I learned another beach lesson today, a perfect follow-up to last week’s post. (If you missed it, check out Intentionally Seeking Intently.) Honestly, I felt a little silly—even guilty—about constantly asking God to send dolphins my way this year. I wanted to watch them swim and jump! As I wrote last week, He answered one request immediately, but most of the other times, the water seemed empty. Then I compared that small, trivial request to a much bigger one: asking God to help me dig deeper into His Word, intentionally and intently. Of course I’d ask for that. It’s a completely honorable prayer. It’s a prayer for truth, for wisdom,…
-
Intentionally Seeking Intently
On a recent beach trip, dolphin sightings were rare. I only glimpsed a fin twice, and a third time I wasn’t even sure it was real. Normally, we see dolphin often. At one point, I heard a dad tell his son, “Look, there’s a fin.” I saw nothing—until I kept my eyes fixed on where he pointed. Then, at last, the fin appeared. Most times at the beach, I’m reading a book, doing a crossword, or working Sudoku. Rarely do I just sit and watch the waves without distraction. And that’s often how we approach Scripture. We may open God’s Word, but instead of focusing fully, our thoughts wander to…
-
I CAN’T!
I CAN’T! How many times have you woken up in the morning and just wanted to tell God, “I just can’t”? Some days, and seasons, truly feel impossible to manage from a human standpoint. But as believers in Christ, we have access to a supernatural power that enables us to face anything the Lord allows into our lives. This truth is beautifully captured by Bill Bright, founder of Campus Crusade for Christ (now Cru), who said: This resonates deeply with 1 Corinthians 15:57, which declares, “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!” It’s not our own strength, but Jesus’ power that allows…
-
Our Response to Truth
Perhaps you’ve read Psalm 119 and noticed, in this longest chapter in the longest book of the Bible, that it focuses on God’s truth, precepts, commands, word, instruction, statutes, decrees, judgments, and ordinances. We get the point at least 179 times! We must know His Word! But, what do we do with that truth? This time in reading Psalm 119, I focused on what the psalmist says his, and our, response should be to God’s Word. Here’s what I found: Why does the writer do this? I believe we see the reason in Psalm 119:160. The entirety of your word is truth, each of your righteous judgments endures forever. Psalm 119:160 Do…
-
Repair Our Broken World
We often wonder what our purpose is in today’s world—and why Jesus doesn’t just return now to make all things new. As I finished Kristi McLelland’s Luke in the Land Bible study, she guided us into the book of Acts on the final day. Luke, who authored both the Gospel of Luke and Acts, originally wrote them as one continuous narrative. In Acts, we don’t simply see Jesus as resurrected and ascended—we see Him as having left instructions for His followers as they waited for His return. His resurrection wasn’t the conclusion of the story but the beginning—the launching point of the apostles’ mission, and the beginning of our mission,…
-
Thieves of Peace
Have you ever had something of yours stolen? When I was in 3rd grade, my family came home from out of town to find our house had been robbed. It was a house with an attic that could be accessed in the garage or the house and you could go from one end to the other once inside. I made my dad get up there to look to make sure the thief wasn’t hiding there! After that, I was never again comfortable in that house. I was glad when we moved away within a year! Not only were my silver dollars and $2 bills taken, so was my sense of…
You May Also Like
What Spiritual Maturity Looks Like
Beyond Better: A New Creation
Vessels of Christ
-
You Must Be Looking to Find
Since I love all things “beach”, that means I love the water, sand, sunrises and sunsets, birds and fish! Dolphins are a favorite. But, if I am not intently looking for them I can easily miss their trek across the gulf in front of me. Some days I just glance once in a while, looking up from what I’m reading, and spot a fin. As I keep my eyes on the water I see more as they surface for air. On days I really spend time staring at the water, I tend to see quite a few more. One morning on the last beach trip, I began thinking how few…
-
Joining In
Have you ever been sitting on the beach and enjoying the peace of the surf and sun? Next thing you know someone has speakers blaring out music that is not your style? And it’s ruined the peace you were enjoying. I often wonder if they think we all want to listen to their genre of music! But what can you do? Go ask them to turn it down? Give them dirty looks? Just put up with it until you leave the beach? Or, like I found myself doing, do you notice your foot is tapping to the beat? All of a sudden I realize what I’m doing and that I’ve…
You May Also Like
The Cost of Leadership Part 4
The Changing Landscape
The Cost of Leadership Part 7
-
From Garden to Garden
In finishing up my current D-group with a special celebration, we discussed the end of the Bible as we read through Revelation. I’m not surprised anymore by new things God reveals through reading His Word over and over. Sometimes it’s something completely new to me, or understood at a deeper level. Other times, it’s a timely reminder of something I already knew. That’s what happened as I read Revelation 21-22 this time. My thoughts turned to the idea of “garden to garden.” What was revealed through John’s revelation was an indescribable new heaven and earth. Similar to the newness the original garden was to Adam and Eve, the new garden…
-
If There Is Any Other Way
Sunday morning we celebrated Easter, so in this follow up post, I want to share something I was reminded of a few days before Easter Sunday. As I ponder Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, the agony He experienced, I am reminded through the study Navigating Gospel Truth (check last week’s post for more details) of His pain. Author Rebecca McLaughlin took us back to Jeremiah 25:15-29 to show us His agony wasn’t primarily the pain and shame of the cross. That was difficult enough of course! But it was the fact that He would carry the wrath of God for sin so that we don’t have to. This was…
