O Lord my God, my Savior, I pray for a heart overflowing with thanksgiving. Father, you are my constant reason for joy. You are faithful when I am unfaithful. You promise heaven when I am consumed by the next hour. Protect me from my own selfish desires. I confess that I want what cannot satisfy. I confess that I complain about what is not done rather than be grateful for what I can do. I confess that I am easily disappointed by those I love, even though you continue to love and bless me. I confess I cling to bitterness more than I rush to praise. I confess that I am not satisfied that the nearness of you is my […]
Yearly Archives: 2017
175 posts
Five words, sixteen letters: for the Lord is good. These five words are the bedrock that gives hope and purpose to your life and to your parenting. They form the lens that will allow you see life with a clear vision. Without them life is blurry, uncertain, even terrifying. These words come from the fifth verse of Psalm 100: For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation. These are words of hope when life hurts. They offer assurance when circumstances seem to line up against you. They speak of God’s faithfulness to your children. They are good words! This verse contains 3 foundational truths that provide hope. They provide you with […]
“And Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness for forty days, being tempted by the devil.” (Luke 4:1) The good news in the story of Jesus’ temptation is that Jesus obeyed God and defeated temptation at every point where Israel, and Adam, and you and I have failed! Jesus was tempted as our brother, captain, and king. Adam, our first representative, was tempted in paradise and failed. Jesus, the second Adam and our final representative, was tempted in the desert and conquered. He reversed every aspect of the fall. What Jesus won in this initial victory was soon to be completed in his decisive victory on the cross and […]
Proverbs 18:15 teaches that the ears of the wise search for knowledge. The message is that not everything that you need to know as a parent will be handed to you wrapped in a bright warning label that says “Danger, check this out.” Sometimes the warning signs are subtle. They can easily get lost in hectic pace of life. Teenagers just getting started with drug abuse often fit into this category. Drugs are readily available today, sometimes teenagers need only your own medicine cabinet to get started. If you find any indication of drug use, don’t hesitate, get whatever help is needed as quickly as possible! I have asked my good friend and fellow elder, Richie Batson, to provide some […]
The Psalms are built on one great foundational truth: God rules over the earth. Blessed or joyful is the man who turns away from the world and delights in the law of God. The Psalms also teach that the appropriate fear of God must always come first. The fear of the Lord brings wisdom and joy. Wisdom and joy are two good things that you want for your children! Psalms 111 & 112 state the blessings of the fear of the Lord as leading to wisdom, joy, and delight in obeying God. When God is recognized for who he is then life is at last understandable. Notice how Psalm 111 ends and Psalm 112 begins: The fear of the Lord is […]
A Texas church, a New York park, a Las Vegas concert… These should be safe places, but they were not. Why? The Holy Spirit authored Scripture knowing exactly what fears you would face in this life. The face of terror is ugly and unnerving. Cafes, concerts, sporting events and church are common gatherings that have provided places of safety and refuge. But as the terror of the dark human heart is revealed before our eyes, the reality is that there is no place apart from God where anyone is truly safe. What happened in Texas this past Sunday morning could just as easily have happened to anyone of us and our families. Terror may wear the face of an angry, […]
If you have issues with life, you have issues with God. Life is often hard. Relationships often hurt. Dreams vanish like the morning mist. The truth is that life easily disappoints us. Disappointment comes when we fail to have what we think is good or fair or just. It comes when we believe we have reached our limit. It comes when those whom we love appear incapable of understanding or caring. So much relational energy is consumed in seeing people and circumstances as obstacles to wholeness. After all of Job’s heartache and pain, after all of his demands to be heard and vindicated he comes face-to-face with the God who had been with him all along. When he finally realized […]
500 years ago today a man nailed his beliefs about God’s grace on a church door. There was no one there to record the scene of a lone churchman with his hammer and papers with their phone. There were no posts to Instagram, Facebook or Twitter. No one blogged about the event. The 24/7 news channels did not begin to speculate on what difference it would make if people actually believed the radical ideas that Luther posted and what the response of the church might be. Yet somehow, this single act altered the course of western civilization. Ideas are powerful. Ideas that proclaim the truth of God and the wonder of the Gospel are explosive! Because of the printing press, […]
If you love biblically, then your love for others will not be diminished by their failures. When love is all about you, bad things happen. Love must be defined by God, specifically by the work of his son, Jesus. The Holy Spirit tells us that we know what love is by how Jesus loved (1 John 3:16). By looking at Christ we see that love is other-centered, God-centered, not me-centered. This takes some radical rethinking. Love is not about what makes you feel good or happy. Love is dying to your wants, your desires, your dreams. Only by loving Jesus first can anyone experience this sort of love. When love is focused on what you want, disappointment is certain to […]
Authority has become a taboo word. In the 60’s the slogan, “Question Authority” morphed into a bumper sticker that has morphed into a deep distrust that cripples modern culture. This drift away from authority has a negative impact on families. Scripture says, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.” Our culture is suspicious of this truth. If man is only the result of a random series of bio-chemical events, then the idea of being responsible to a divine authority is absurd. This is the mindset that today’s parents have been raised with. Time for a reality check! Here are some questions about authority which will help you assess how your parenting reflects the culture’s view of […]