Trusting God for the Next Five Minutes In a world that seems to be spinning out of control, can God be trusted? And if you’re having trouble trusting Him for the next year, can you trust Him for the next five minutes? For years, I struggled with anxiety attacks...
Walking in the Light When It’s Dark Have you ever been in a situation where you were walking in a well-lit place and the lights went out? It might have been a power outage in your home. Or perhaps you were walking through a park and a dark thunderstorm suddenly...
Spiritual Heroes and Practical Obedience Have you heard the story about a man who escapes his boring life by fantasizing about being a hero? If you’re familiar with books and movies such as The Secret Life of Walter Mitty or Don Quixote, you know what I mean....
Spiritual Growth When God is Silent I don’t usually do well with long periods of silence . . . especially when God is the one who is silent. Many illustrations about spiritual growth come from the agricultural world. A seed is planted, and then it sprouts,...
Should We “Celebrate” Memorial Day? Celebrate. Sacrifice. Two words we don’t usually pair together. Still, two days on our calendar have been set aside to do just that. To celebrate sacrifice. Not with joy, but with solemnity, honor, and gratitude. Because...
God Knows Your Name Have you ever felt the urge to hide? Maybe you messed up so badly that you didn’t want anyone to know. Or you were so beaten down emotionally that you felt worthless. All you wanted was anonymity—to find a place where no one knew who you...
Greater Than Obstacles, Time, and Timing Nothing is impossible with God. Yes! All things are possible with God. Right on! Our awesome God does abundantly more than we could ever ask or imagine. Amen and say it again, Sister! But...
The Encouragement of an Encouraging Word Our Western civilization is becoming less and less civil by the day. Anger erupts over true slights as well as perceived ones. The art of civil discourse has all but died. And the lyrics to the familiar “Home on the...
Are You Feeling Pressured? Is anyone besides me a bit tired of hearing how pressure turns coal into diamonds? How we should welcome pressure because God uses it to refine us into “jewels”? Every time I hear this illustration, my first thought is that coal is...
In Jesus’ Name: More Than a Tagline! How often have you ended a prayer with “in Jesus’ name”? We say it so frequently, that it has almost become a tagline. But how did this practice begin? Several verses in the New Testament tell us to pray in Jesus’ name,...
Embrace What God Allows I almost titled this post, “Embrace the Unembraceable.” When I landed on embrace as my...
The Dreaded Christmas Letdown Christmas is my favorite holiday. Even as I continue to adjust to missing my...
A Christmas Carol Message: “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” We don’t often incorporate the word herald in our...