Christian Living

Swimming Up a Waterfall

2 Comments / May 27, 2020

The other morning I was sitting out on my second-story porch for my quiet time. It is one of my favorite spots in the whole world. Below the porch is our little fish pond where both fish and frogs make their home. This provides much entertainment for our grandchildren.

That particular morning, as I sat on the porch alone, I took a moment to watch the fish, as they were doing something very curious. You can see from the photo below (which is a snapshot I took that morning), that the fish has its head into the waterfall. It looked like it was trying to go up the waterfall and then, discouraged, he would swim away. Only to come back again a few seconds later. This went on for quite some time.

I found out later from my knowledgeable husband that there is something about the oxygen at the bottom of the waterfall that the fish like and so they will congregate there. But, from my vantage point on the porch it really did look like the fish was trying to swim up the waterfall and failing every time.

It reminded me of my life as a Christian. We are all called to “swim up a waterfall” –or, in other words–do the impossible. We are to die to self and crucify the flesh and live only for Christ. This is as impossible–perhaps even more impossible–than swimming up a waterfall. And, yet, this is our calling as believers.

Mark 8:34 — And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.

Romans 6:6 — We know that our old self[a] was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin.

Ephesians 5:8 — or at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light

Galatians 5:16-17– But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.

I Peter 2:11 —  Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.

So, we know that we are to leave our flesh and swim up the waterfall to holiness. This goes against our innately selfish nature which demands to be pleased and coddled. Our hearts demand we listen to our feelings and our minds work in creative ways to make excuses and to develop logical reasons why we can do what our flesh is demanding to do and still be guilt-free and “godly”.

But the Bible is very clear that we cannot do both. We cannot please self and God. We cannot love God and love the world. We cannot be obsessed with fulfilling our personal dreams of glory and fame while furthering God’s Kingdom. These things are mutually exclusive. They cannot be done at the same time.

There are only two kingdoms.

There is the Kingdom of Light. God is the light (I John 1:5) Jesus Christ is the light of the world (John 8:12) We have been rescued from darkness to light! (Colossians 1:13) Being rescued, we are now children of light (I Thessalonians 5:5). We are to walk as children of the light (Ephesians 5:8).

AND…

There is the Kingdom of Darkness. Satan is the head of this kingdom and the whole world lies in his power (I John 5:19). Natural man loves this kingdom (I John 3:19-21). Natural man is blind to the the light (Acts 26:18). As children of the light, we are to turn away from the darkness (Ephesians 5:11) and to never partner or commune with darkness and its children (2 Corinthians 6:14). This kingdom of darkness is represented by both the flesh and the world, which Satan uses to war against our souls and to keep mankind in darkness.

Every choice we make, every action we take, every thought we think, and every word we say furthers one of these kingdoms.

Now, with this in mind, let’s go back to our adventure of swimming up the waterfall. As children of light, swimming up the waterfall becomes possible. It is possible to live a righteous and holy life that is pleasing to God. Notice I didn’t say easy. It’s not easy.

But here are a few things to keep in mind as we strive to swim up the waterfall to holiness–

1. We must first make our way to the bottom of the waterfall.

We can’t be righteous without salvation. We can’t even get to the bottom of the waterfall without it. If we are not saved, we are unaware that the waterfall even exists. It is only when our eyes our opened, that we recognize which direction we are to go. And this direction is in complete opposition to the direction of the rest of the world. We will be mocked, viewed as odd, and may lose our reputation by going this direction. Remember, we can’t have the world and Jesus, too.

The old hymn puts it like this: Take the world but give me Jesus.

Too often, modern-day Christians would prefer to sing: Give the world and give me Jesus.

But it is simply not possible according to James 4:4. Swimming to the bottom of the waterfall means turning our backs on the world.

2. Not making efforts to swim up the waterfall indicates a serious problem.

Many are those who’ve said a prayer for salvation as fire insurance and they aren’t even making their way to the bottom of the waterfall. They are still swimming in the opposite direction with their worldly friends. They haven’t given up the things of this world and they are still focused on furthering their own kingdom. They are people who are living solely for themselves but think they are saved because they said a prayer. This person may very well be–and probably is– a false convert! (Matthew 7:21-23) I hate even saying this, because I know that describes so many that we all know and love. But we can’t mince words because their eternity is literally at stake. If you know someone who thinks they are a Christian but who is still swimming out in the pond, pray for them. Really pray for them.

3. We can’t do it alone.

As I watched the fish turn away again and again, I assumed he was just discouraged and tired. I found out later that he wasn’t, of course, but it was a great analogy for our own efforts to get up that waterfall. We try and try, using our methods and our self-discipline but we just don’t make it. That’s because we are trying to attempt it without the Holy Spirit. It is impossible to live a godly life without the Holy Spirit. We are to be filled with the Spirit (Ephesians 5:18). This is the only way to make possible a holy life that is pleasing to God.

4. We must discard distractions and secret sins.

So often, we get so frustrated that we aren’t making progress up that waterfall. But if we really examine our lives, we may understand just why that is…

We have either crowded our lives so full that we have no time at all to give any effort or intention to this calling of living a pure and holy life.

Or we are holding on to secret sins that we just aren’t willing to turn away from. It may be an unwillingness to give up a grudge against someone or a love for the world’s entertainment or style that causes us to compromise our purity. It may be laziness or gossip. But, oftentimes, if we are really struggling to make progress in our Christian life, there is some sin that we are nurturing and feeding and unwilling to give up.

Or, perhaps, we haven’t yielded to God’s sovereignty in the happenings of our lives. We try to live a godly life, but, inside, we are angry and discontent and upset about how things are going. This makes it almost impossible to get up that waterfall because we don’t trust God. Instead, we are wary and disbelieving. This lack of faith stymies our Christian growth severely.

5. We will never reach perfection on this side of Heaven.

One of the things that makes this such a hard thing is that we will never reach perfection. We, like that fish, are always trying, always trying, but we will never arrive at the top. This can be discouraging and sometimes we may think: Why even try? So let’s unpack that a bit. Why is it important to keep trying to get up that waterfall?

First, we keep trying because we are told to do this (I Peter 1:15). To live a life of obedience to our wonderful Savior, we strive to live holy and pure lives.

Second, we keep trying because we do grow and change and bear much fruit, through the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives (Psalm 92:12-14). If we have been a Christian for more than a year, we can look back and see how we have grown and changed. This is very encouraging as we face new challenges and sins that discourage us. God is growing us to be more like Christ, be it ever so slowly.

Third, we keep trying because God uses our efforts to build His Heavenly Kingdom (Colossians 1:24-29). Our efforts to live a holy and pure life shine as a bright light in this dark world. We should look different in every way when compared with those around us. Remember, there are only two kingdoms: Light and Darkness. Children of light should never resemble children of darkness. This includes being loving and kind, but it also includes what we watch, how we dress, what we talk about, and every other little and big choice we make in our lives.

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So, my dear readers, keep swimming up that waterfall. Don’t get discouraged. Don’t try to do it alone because we are not alone! We have the Holy Spirit to strengthen, comfort, and guide us. May we cast off the things that distract and tempt us. May we intentionally live as children of the light, because that’s exactly what we are if we have been saved by the blood of Jesus Christ alone!

 

Attacking Messengers, Crucifying Dissenters, and Belittling Questioners

7 Comments / May 13, 2020

Over the past twenty years or so, I have experienced the vitriol of those blindly following a person or a cause. Social media is the mecca for such interactions and to post a dissenting comment has made anyone come to expect sarcasm, anger, and even hatred. I have talked with others who have experienced this, as well.

This dynamic takes place anywhere people are gathered online. It seems a lot worse right now, but perhaps that is because so many of us are relegated to online interaction. Somehow when people get online, they remove all inhibitions. They would never, ever talk to someone face-to-face the way they talk to someone online. At least, I hope they wouldn’t!

But there are a lot of debates and disagreements and controversies going on online right now and I wanted to make you aware of a few things to look for as you watch this all take place.

By the way, while this does take place in the secular world quite a bit, we understand that they are unbelievers and have rejected God’s ways. While it is interesting to observe, it is certainly not surprising. However, it borders on tragic that this is the same approach of many in the evangelical circles. People that you trust. I encourage you to look for these as you encounter quarrels and controversies in these current days.

It is a three-pronged approach, where one, two, or all of these prongs may be used to put down the “enemy”. I wanted to make you aware of them because it is critically important that we recognize them and then move them aside in order to look at the real issue at hand. They are a decoy. They are a smoke screen to draw your eyes away from the real issue. Don’t be deceived.

Here are the three prongs–

1. Attack the Messenger. Instead of answering the accusations, they will attack the messenger. They will call them all kinds of names, put them down, make them out to be unloving, unkind, divisive, and unintelligent. They will dredge up old sins. They will cast doubt on their integrity. This trick is as old as the books, but don’t let them fool you. And, hey, in some cases, maybe the person sharing the message is some of those things. This still doesn’t release us from investigating to see if what they are saying is true. Beware character assassination. It is a bright red flag and should lead you to mistrust, rather than to trust, the person conducting it.

2. Crucifying Dissenters. How dare you disagree? You are NOT allowed to disagree and so we will crucify you with our words. I am not sure when the world changed but I see leaders encouraging their followers to act like this. Secular and Christian alike, their followers are using words to spread venom and hatred and, rather than discouraging this type of thing, the leader seems to encourage it. This is because it is an important part of the three-pronged approach. They are counting on their followers to silence anyone who disagrees. Blind loyalty yields a passion that will stop at nothing to defend its subject.

3. Belittling Questioners. If someone simply asks a question, they are belittled and mocked. If an accusation is raised and an honest questioner simply wants to find out more, they find out very quickly that, this, too, is NOT allowed. No questions may be asked of someone who has been faithful to the Lord for fifty years. No questions can be asked of the governor. No questions can be asked of the singer or the author or the pastor. No questions can be asked of the government or the politician. No questions allowed. Period. If you dare to ask them, people will call you selfish and question your character. They will call you names and ridicule you. All this, for simply asking a question.

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As I write this, my heart is heavy. It is especially heavy because I see this being used in the Christian world as much, or even more, than in the secular world. It is a treacherous world we live in these days. Please be on the look-out for these things. They are signs that all may not be right. Not a guarantee, of course, but definitely worth some research.

Before I close, I want to add one more {very important} thing–

As believers, we are called to respond differently! People are watching us. They see what we post and they are reading it.

Everything we post, whether it be a tweet, a Facebook post, a comment on a post, a comment on a news article or blog post, and anything else should be carefully worded with LOVE. There should never be biting sarcasm, anger, or vitriol spewing forth from our keyboards. This is a dishonor to our heavenly Father.

Make no mistake about it: We are in a spiritual war.

As we fight it, let’s be an asset to our King through truthful, loving, and kind interaction with others. Satan wants nothing more than to create havoc and chaos within the church. We can’t fall for his bait.

I don’t know where all this is headed. Or rather, I think I do. The world and the church has gone off in a direction over these past twenty years or so that I find most disheartening. But, thankfully, we know God is still on the throne. As His servants, may we carefully discern and examine all things. As His witnesses, may we do all we can to be a bright and shining light in this increasingly darkening world.

 

An Unmistakable Mirror

6 Comments / March 24, 2020

I think I’ve been over-using the word “unprecedented”. I’ve said it more times in the past two weeks than I’ve said it in my entire life. We are facing unprecedented times.

I find it extremely hard to function in my “normal” way currently. I find it hard to think about “normal” things. I find it hard to do “normal” activities.

That’s pretty much because it’s so not normal right now.

I generally try to write posts that are not closely connected to current events so that, no matter when they are read, they are applicable to one’s life.

However, it seems like a good time to break my own rule (I broke it last week, too) since we are all facing this virus and the government’s subsequent restrictions and mandates that have completely swept away our freedoms. Literally.

So there are all kinds of theories and opinions out there as to just what is going on, but no matter what is happening, there is one thing we do know: It IS happening and very few of us are unaffected by it all.

Whether we have had our lives grind to a halt or we have been overwhelmed with work duties because we work in an “essential life-sustaining” field, this has affected most all of us.

As I was reading John this morning, I was thinking about Peter and his promise to the Lord that he would never leave his side–

Peter said to Him, “Lord, why can I not follow You now? I will lay down my life for Your sake.” (John 13:27)

In the very next verse, Jesus predicts that Peter would very surely deny that he even knew the Lord!

Jesus answered him, “Will you lay down your life for My sake? Most assuredly, I say to you, the rooster shall not crow till you have denied Me three times. (John 13:28)

If we read on, we find out that, yes, Peter most certainly did deny he knew the Lord, even though he loved him dearly.

This account always has a way of both disturbing and comforting me. If Peter, who was one of the great apostles, could be so cowardly, what can I expect from myself?? But, it’s also comforting. If Peter could do that awful thing and yet still go on to live and die for Christ as a martyr in the early church, then perhaps there is hope for all of us to be of use in God’s Kingdom.

What’s going on in these days is not really a situation like Peter’s, so you may be wondering where I am headed.

And I guess it’s here: We have a choice, just like Peter. We can make the intentional choice to do the right thing or we can very easily slide into the wrong thing. The wrong choice is always the easier choice in the moment. (It’s NEVER the easier choice regarding long-term consequences.) It was easier for Peter to deny Christ than to take the heat for knowing Him. It is easier for us to sin than to not sin.

A pandemic like this (or any other trial, for that matter) shows us our true selves in ways we’d probably rather not see. What has come rearing up in the past few weeks in my own heart has not been good. Anxiety and fear; discontentment; self-centeredness; self-pity; laziness; even gluttony are real challenges for many of us in this situation. With close quarters, tempers flare, selfishness abounds, and we may be easily irritated as we are unable to leave our homes. With the incredible stress and long hours so many of you are facing at work, things come to the surface about yourself that you’d probably rather not know. With our favorite activities and the abundance in our stores taken away, we are faced with who we really are.

 

When our normal ordinary life is stripped away, we see ourselves as we really are.

 

A trial like this is a giant mirror into the state of our soul.

So what do we do about it?

As believers, it is important that we examine our hearts using the Word and then let this be an opportunity to grow.

So easy to write.

So hard to do.

As we look into the mirror and examine our hearts in the midst of an unprecedented time of uncertainty and craziness throughout the entire world, may we trust God to do a real work in our lives and grow us up spiritually in a way we couldn’t have otherwise.

May we come out of this strange, unprecedented time stronger, purer, and holier than when it started!

 

 

On Knowing God’s Will

6 Comments / March 3, 2020

There are so many books, blog posts, and sermons about finding God’s will. Every Christian seems to be searching for God’s will for their lives. How can we know what His will is? Why doesn’t He just tell us?

This thing of God’s will remains a bit of a mystery to those of us who long to follow biblical principles. I’ve been giving this a lot of thought recently. It all started with a bit of commentary I read by Henry Morris–

“This could be read: ‘If any man sincerely wants to do His will, he shall know…’ Thus the first prerequisite to ascertaining God’s leading in some matter, or the truth about some doctrinal question, is a genuine willingness to believe the truth and to follow God’s will before they are made known, even if the answer goes against one’s preference.”

I am not sure why but this really struck me.

When we think of God’s will, we always think about the big decisions in life: Who do I marry? Which job should I take? Should I buy this house?

But isn’t knowing God’s will so much more than just these occasional big decisions?

A little later on that day, I was just sitting down to eat lunch when my husband came in, making a request of me. My flesh wanted to quip a smart remark and tell him to wait. But, suddenly, the thought came to me: What is God’s will in this situation? 

I knew what His will was. It was that I treat my husband kindly and do what he asked.

Throughout the rest of the week, time and time again, I was faced with these seemingly unimportant situations and this same thought would come to me: What is God’s will for my life right now?

And I suddenly realized something: I was faced with knowing exactly what God’s will was time and time again and made a choice not to do His will because I didn’t prefer it. My flesh didn’t like it or it was just too hard and so I made a choice to not follow God’s will.

Here are some ways we choose not to follow God’s will each and every day, even though we know exactly what His will is–

We respond unkindly, even though we know that God’s will for our lives is to be kind to others. (Ephesians 4:32)

We don’t take the time to listen to someone because we are busy doing something that could easily wait, even though we know God wants us to put others ahead of self. (Philippians 2:3-4)

We choose to waste time staring at our devices or the TV instead of doing something productive, even though we know God doesn’t want us to waste time. (Ephesians 5:16-17)

We choose to ignore prayer and Bible reading rather than make it a priority, even though God makes it clear that we need to know His Word and spend time with Him. (Matthew 6:33; John 15:5)

See what I mean? I could give so many more examples. I am sure you probably could, too.

We don’t speak up about Christ because we are afraid of what others will think. We don’t discipline our kids because we want them to like us. We don’t love others because they are mean and unkind to us. We don’t test and compare the things a teacher or author are saying against scripture because what they say makes us feel good. These things are clearly shown in scripture to be God’s will and yet we choose not to do them.

And I can’t help but think that we if we don’t prefer to actively pursue God’s will in these things, then why would we choose to obey the Lord in the big ones?

We are given a thousand opportunities to follow God’s revealed will every single day of our lives. And yet we so often choose not to do so. As I reflected on this, I realized that we often relegate these little choices to “personality” (Oh, I get angry, that’s just who I am or I don’t really like to read so I don’t need to read the Bible) OR we believe them to be insignificant–as if somehow they don’t really matter with so much other more important stuff going on in life.

But then I am reminded of this verse from Luke 16:10:

He who is faithful in what is least is faithful also in much; and he who is unjust in what is least is unjust also in much.

I believe the principle of this verse applies to multiple situations, including today’s topic.

How important it is that we are faithful in following God’s will in the little things, so that we have a heart and mind prepared for following His will in the big things.

Sometimes we do not want to follow God’s will. This is when we must train ourselves to do so, anyway. We must raise ourselves above our unreliable, treacherous feelings and make the right choice.

So, you see, as life generally goes, we already know what God’s will is. We just don’t really want to follow it. Oh, we do in theory but when it comes to actually putting our desires into action, we so often fail.

Perhaps this is the beginning of knowing God’s will: Actively doing what we already know to be His will. Doing so will make us much more likely to follow His will when those big decisions come along. We will have trained ourselves to be ready and willing to obey, no matter which way God directs and no matter what we prefer.

 

 

The Priority of Prayer (with a printable)

6 Comments / February 18, 2020

Last fall, I began a Bible Study on Prayer. It has been an excellent study and has reminded me of the importance of prayer. However, no matter how important we say we think prayer is, there is still the little matter of just sitting down and doing it.

I am not sure anything is more of a challenge for me in my Christian life than taking time to pray. I think this is for a number of reasons, but, thankfully, God has not given up on me yet.

A few Sundays ago, we even had a guest speaker who reminded me once again the priority of prayer, which served as a reminder that I cannot give up on strengthening my prayer life, no matter how discouraged I get.

He gave us some tips to help us make prayer a priority in our lives–

1. Make prayer a priority. Okay, that sounds redundant, I know. Of course, you need to make prayer a priority if it is going to be a priority. But think with me about the truth of this statement for just a moment.

He went on to say that we always make time for what is important to us. It’s true, isn’t it? How many of us are not able to find a half hour to pray and yet we somehow we manage to spend an hour or two watching TV or playing a game or reading a novel? We find time to shop for non-essentials or to work on our hobbies. We find time for the things we want to do.

This is rather an indictment to most of us and our desire to pray. Perhaps we don’t really want to pray as much as we say we do. Actions speak so much louder than words.

2. Remove something from your schedule if it’s too full. If we are truly too busy to pray, then we are most certainly too busy. At this point, it is time to evaluate our schedules carefully and remove something. This can be difficult because sometimes it requires us removing something good. I’ve already had to back out of a church ministry because I was too overwhelmed and did not have time to focus on my private prayer and Bible time. Sometimes this is necessary.

If we literally don’t have time to pray (and study our Bibles), then we need to take the steps to change this as soon as possible.

3. Remove noise and distractions. We probably all pray throughout the day–in our cars, while washing dishes, or in bed at night. But, in order to have a dedicated time of prayer, we need to find a quiet place that has no distractions. This means putting the phone and tablet in another room.

I became very convicted of this yet again recently. I am sincerely trying to break myself of the habit of having my phone nearby during my morning quiet time. It is so easy to get distracted. It is one of the main reasons I like using an actual Bible and an old-fashioned prayer journal that I write in with a pen (rather than apps).

Committing to remove these things from our presence during this time can be difficult but, oh, how it yields such a rich quiet time when it’s just me and the Lord, without the distraction of texts or notifications or even simply the temptation to look something up or add something to my calendar.

4. Pray together with others. The Bible talks about the importance of praying together in Matthew 18:19-20–

Again, I say to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.

This is a great way to get in the habit of praying regularly.

5. Let your feelings in the corner and go to the other corner to pray. The speaker shared how someone he once really respected talked to him about prayer. This mentor had said {and this is my paraphrase}: In order to really become a prayer warrior, he had had to let the “I don’t feel like praying” feeling in one corner while he obediently went to the other corner of the room and prayed.

In other words, we can’t be dominated by our feelings. If we wait to pray until we feel like praying, we will rarely pray. Sometimes our feelings will straggle over to join us from the other corner while we are praying and sometimes they won’t. It doesn’t matter. We just need to do what is right.

I found this a profound and convicting illustration.

I hope these five things have given you food for thought as you seek to make prayer a priority in your life. Will you join me in taking the steps to become a vibrant and strong pray-er? Satan knows that this is a key weapon in the battle against him, not only for us personally but for our families, for the lost, and for…well, everything. May he never be victorious in distracting us into prayerless lives.

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If you are still a little uncertain about how to really pray seriously, I wanted to share something that I prepared for my Bible Study ladies. It is a little hand-out that gives instructions on how to pray for a half hour. You will find that, if you follow it, it will be hard to keep it to just thirty minutes. It’s easier to pray for that period of time than you may think.

I hope this is a blessing to you as you seek to strengthen your prayer life.

Click here to find a printable that will help you pray for a half hour.

(p.s. The printable is set up in a landscape orientation and in bookmark form, with three copies per page.)

 

 

Did You Know Jesus Was Intolerant?

8 Comments / February 6, 2020

I heard an interview the other day with a guy who claims to be a Christian. This guy grew up in a solid Christian home that taught the Gospel so he should know better. But what I heard him say made me cringe.

“We just need to love people into the Kingdom. Jesus wouldn’t have done anything but love them. He would never judge.”

Or some such nonsense. That’s my paraphrase of what he said.

As I am currently reading John 1-7 for our 2020 Growing4Life Bible Challenge, the ridiculousness of his words especially struck me. One has to wonder if he has even read the Bible?

Did you know that Jesus was not tolerant of everything and everyone, as so many proclaim today?

Let’s go to the Word and take a look.

First, Jesus was not tolerant of false teachers. Note how He spoke to the Pharisees, the false teachers of His day:

“Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which indeed appear beautiful outwardly, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness. Matthew 23:27 (Matthew 23 lists several more “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees…”!)

And also note how He spoke about them to others:

How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread?—but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Matthew 16:11

Instead of tolerating them, He spoke truth to false teachers and He also gave warnings about them to others.

In this current “Christian” culture, anyone who speaks truth or gives warnings is verbally crucified. You just have to take a look at social media to see this in its full glory. It can be the most obvious, unbiblical thing in the world, but if you dare to say something negative–even if it’s in the most loving way– you are automatically labeled “the unloving very bad Christian”.

This label often comes from other Christians who will toss the name of Jesus around as their back-up: “Jesus would never…”

But we can see from scripture that, yes, Jesus would. And He did.

He would call people out. He did warn others. Saying that Jesus is only love and no judgment is a clear indication of biblical illiteracy.

It is neither prideful or arrogant to confront false teachers or to warn about them. Of course, we need to be loving while we do these things. There is never a place for arrogance nor harshness when we do what we are to do. But I have no doubt we are to follow Jesus’s example in this (which, by the way, is also confirmed clearly throughout the New Testament).

Second, Jesus was not tolerant of those who would defile the Temple. In John 2, we find a passage that doesn’t fit with our cultural definition of Jesus at all. Here He makes a whip of chords and drives the money changers out of the temple. They had taken what is sacred and holy and had made it into an opportunity for personal gain.

Can you think of anyone who is doing that today? (Thinking of just one is the hard part, right? There are thousands.)

And, yet, we are told that to even speak negative words is sinful (much less doing what Jesus did in John 2!). We are encouraged to just “go along to get along”. Unity is far more important than truth. Again, anyone who is teaching this and holding up Jesus as their example clearly does not know scripture.

Jesus was not tolerant of false teachers and He was not tolerant of those who dishonored His name and His house.

And, once again, we come back to the bottom line:

There is no possible way to stay true to the faith without reading, studying, and anchoring ourselves in God’s inerrant, inspired, and completed Word.

It is truly our only hope.

We can only know the real Jesus by knowing the Bible and what it says about Him.

In a culture that is positively reeling with relativity, deceit, distortions, fabrications, visions, and outright lies, the solid truth of God’s Word is our only rock. Literally.

There are no words to fully express my gratitude in God giving us His Word for such a time as this. It answers any question we may have. It shines light on the darkness. It makes clear the murky. And it exposes that which would pretend to be light.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Read the Bible. Study it. Memorize it. It is our only defense in a church culture that is made up of appealing, and sometimes ludicrous, ideas that appeal to man’s flesh but have no basis in scripture whatsoever.

 

 

 

There Are Only Two Roads

4 Comments / January 14, 2020

Let’s say you live in Arkansas and you are headed to California for a nice long beach vacation. You load your suitcase in the car trunk, you grab a travel mug full of hot coffee and get behind the wheel. You turn on your car and take a moment to plug your destination’s address in your vehicle or phone GPS. Soon you are on your way.

You are ten or twelve hours into your trip when you get a phone call. Your mom is deathly ill in Florida and needs you right away. There is a rest stop a few more miles up the road and you pull in to reset your GPS. Instead of going west, you are now going to go east. You have a total change of direction.

Unfortunately, all of the major highways going east are closed. You turn on to a dirt back road that is hard to travel. But you have to go home. That is your destination and you have to get there. Nothing will deter you.

Now think about this in light of our spiritual journey.

There are so many people who say with their mouths that they are headed home to heaven. And yet they appear, by all accounts, to be on the major highway that is headed in the opposite direction.

So here’s the thing: We can’t be on both roads.

It’s comforting and easier to think we can be on both roads. After all, there are many who have died that made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ as a child and yet lived very unholy impure lives. If they can travel on both roads at the same time it will mean they are safely in heaven–a very comforting thought to a grieving spouse, parent, or friend. And, too, if we can be on both roads at the same time, then how we live matters not at all. We can live to please self, doing whatever want, and still end up in heaven. How easy is that? Heaven becomes like a fire insurance policy that we have tucked away in a safe somewhere.

Of course, we know, both from experience and from scripture, that this can’t be. Just as we can’t set our gps for California and expect to end up in Florida, so we can’t travel on the broad road and expect to end up in heaven. Just as we can tell someone we are headed west when we are headed east, so we can say with our mouths that we are headed to heaven when our gps is actually set for hell.

When we are genuinely saved, the Holy Spirit stamps a new address on the gps of our heart. We immediately turn off that broad road and onto a rocky, difficult road that is going the other way.

There really are no exceptions for this.

We know this because of what God has said in His Word–

Matthew 7:13-14 Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and [d]difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.

There are two different roads. And if we are a true Christian we are on the narrow one.

I say “true Christian” because, quite honestly, I tremble to think how many have been fooled into thinking that they have guaranteed a place in heaven because of a prayer they said in fifth grade (or at camp or at VBS). Genuine conversion is always evidenced by a changed life. The saved person always changes their direction (read I John and James to get a better understanding of this).

So if we realize there are two roads and we can only be on one of them, let’s think for a moment about what these roads look like, practically-speaking:

The broad road is quite full of people. It’s an easy path and it’s very comfortable. Many church members are on this path, as it encompasses not only the blatant sinners but the moral, self-righteous ones, as well. Anyone who has not repented of their sins and trusted Christ alone for their salvation is on this road, whether they be atheists or the very religious. There are generally few, if any, battles with self or with the enemy because both are very happy with the direction that is being taken. Oh, there is the occasional battle due to a sense of duty or perhaps the external rules of man, but no major battles with self or the enemy occur on this road.

The narrow road, on the other hand, is rugged and difficult. On this road we can expect the antagonism and jeers from those on the broad road. There are many skirmishes with our flesh and battles with the enemy because they are trying, often desperately, to turn us back to that broad road. We get so exhausted but God is so faithful and gives us strength for another day. It is on this road that we find such sweet fellowship and support. Because it is not a road well-traveled, we truly treasure the others we find traveling on this same road and often quickly count them as true friends. Not that there aren’t issues because the travelers are, after all, sinners. But love is the rule of this road. Even though the road can be extremely hard to travel, we travel with confidence. We have an incomparable Guide and we know our destination.

 

So which road are you on? Which road are those you love on?

Of course we can’t know about anyone else and it is important that we don’t make any judgments about this. We can’t know, for sure, if someone is on the broad road or the narrow road. But thinking through this honestly and according to scripture will lead us to pray differently and also change how we converse and discuss when given the opportunity.

This is scary stuff. Most of us have grown up in a world of easy-believism (where a prayer guarantees salvation and needs not be evidenced by a changed life). The ramifications of this insidious lie of Satan’s are horrible and so far-reaching.

For, after all, truth is truth, no matter what someone “believes”. As Christians, we must make sure that our beliefs line up with the truth of God’s Word! We must always ask: What does the Bible teach?

Even if it makes us uncomfortable and we don’t like it, we have to face the truth. And one truth that is not popular today but is still true nonetheless is this:

There are only two roads. And they are going opposite directions. 

 

 

Making the Most of Time Spent in God’s Word

1 Comment / January 7, 2020

Have you ever talked to someone and found them to be unreasonable? They won’t listen to your side of the argument but are ready with their opinion before you even finish speaking? (Maybe we are that unreasonable person. It’s such a temptation for most of us). This can be so very frustrating, but never so frustrating as when we are discussing biblical matters.

I remember several conversations with Christians throughout the course of my life where there were such strong opinions that even when biblical evidence to counter it was presented, they ignored or dismissed it. They were people who claimed to be in the Word on a daily basis so I was befuddled, to say the least. The topics were clear from scripture and not gray areas.

But they wanted to believe what they wanted to believe.

As Christians, perhaps we all may do this at times. We come to the Bible with everything that makes up who we are: The spiritual environment of our homes growing up; the opinions of the teachers, professors, and preachers of our lives; the doctrine and rules of all of our past churches and denominations; the voices of the authors we’ve read; the beliefs of our spouses, parents, siblings, friends, and other people we may love dearly. We also come to the Bible with our personalities–optimistic, pessimistic, realistic, etc.

This means that, without careful and deliberate intention, our Bible study will be tainted by our experiences and with worldly wisdom.

The Bible is the only certain truth we have in this world. It is our only anchor. Since the inception of Christianity and throughout the following centuries, this has been central to the faith. The Bible is God’s Inspired, Inerrant, and Authoritative Word. Any branch of Christianity that dismissed and negated the authority, inerrancy, and veracity of scripture was considered a false religion.

Oh, how things have changed.

God’s Word has been relegated to the backseat in favor of experience. Many people no longer even take a Bible with them to church. The worldly church hungers for entertainment and excitement, always craving bigger and better.

How did the church get here? How did we end up in a world where what is called “Christianity” is nothing like biblical Christianity?

I believe Biblical illiteracy has much to do with this. People stopped reading their Bibles and so they were easily distracted and deceived.

Hopefully, you are here because you want to make sure that doesn’t happen to you. The main purpose of this blog is to point you towards God’s Word and to encourage you to know it and to study it.

But, even as I noted above, there are many who claim to read God’s Word who don’t seem to be transformed by it. How is that? They claim to read the Scriptures, and yet they cling to unscriptural principles and doctrines.

How can we make sure this does not happen to us? What can we do to make sure that we are not tainted by our past and our personalities when we come to God’s Word? How do we ready our hearts and minds, in order to be transformed?

There are five things that will maximize the work of God’s Word in our lives. Without them, the Bible will be just another book to read.

As we study God’s Word, let’s make sure that we are bringing these five things to our study–

1. FAITH. Faith, according to dictionary.com, is confidence or trust in a person or thing. Faith, in the biblical sense, is complete and utter trust in God. We trust in Him to save us from our sins and we also trust His Word. We have complete confidence that what He says is true.

There are many, many people who read the Bible. They read it for educational purposes. For its history. Out of a sense of duty. But this does not mean they are saved. Without true faith the Bible is just a book full of myths. Without the Holy Spirit to illuminate the scriptures, the Bible is just another religious book.

2. SUBMISSION. There can be no transformation without a willingness to yield to God’s Sovereignty. This can be hard and lies at the heart of every complaint and every heart-rending question of “why”. It lies at the heart of many physical illnesses and most cases of depression and anxiety. When we aren’t willing to submit to God’s Will for our lives, we rob ourselves of peace and joy. And, like a tiny ant shaking its fist, we demand our own way.

When we aren’t willing to submit, our will becomes the primary focus. Our desires and our dreams become the centerpiece of our religion and the heart of our Bible study is utterly self-centered.

This will completely render our study ineffective and useless. The Bible is not about us. It is about God. He is the Creator and we are the creature (Genesis 1-3). He is the potter and we are the clay (Isaiah 29:16). Oh, how important to understand this as we approach God’s Word.

3. HUMILITY. So often we have an agenda when we come to God’s Word. We want to believe certain things about God or mankind and so we focus in on the verses we like and skip over the ones we don’t like. But true humility takes God’s Word at face value. Instead of trying to pridefully turn and twist it to say what we want it to say, we humble ourselves before God and accept the Word literally and in its entirety.

Humility also recognizes that there are many things that can’t be understood. For example, we cannot understand how God draws and man chooses at the same time. These are parallel truths that our human minds can’t comprehend.

Deuteronomy 29:29 reminds us that we don’t know everything and that’s okay–

 “The secret things belong to the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.”

We must release our pride, our selfish agendas, and our need to understand everything in order to make the most out of our time in God’s Word.

4. WILLINGNESS to OBEY. If we aren’t willing to obey what we read, then we will never be transformed. I will take it a step further–if we aren’t willing to obey what we read, we probably aren’t saved. I John 2:3-4 makes this abundantly clear–

3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. 4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.

Obedience isn’t just something God would like us to do. Obedience is the sure evidence that we are Christ’s!

5. TIME and FOCUS. These two things are scarce, aren’t they? In a culture that demands busyness, we can quickly become over-committed.  In a world that is full of distractions, it is hard to focus. We must intentionally change this or we will greatly impair our Bible Study time. It must become a priority. When we recognize the importance of God’s Word in our Christian walk, we must then deliberately take steps to be in the Word and to protect that time.

How do we do this?

It won’t be easy. But there are some steps we can take. I am working on these in my own life, so I am right there with you on this!

First, we must set a specific time, that is rarely altered. If we work, it may be setting our alarm clock earlier (which usually means turning the TV off and going to bed earlier); if we have infants or toddlers, it may mean taking that first half hour of naptime and dedicating it to God’s Word. Carve out a time that becomes regular. Don’t let a few days derail you from your plan. Illness happens. Teething babies happen. Other things sometimes get in the way. But let’s make a commitment to get back to our regular time when it is possible.

Second, we must eliminate the distractions. Oh, this is hard! But we can make a few little changes that will be immensely helpful. First, get a real Bible. A Bible app on your iPad or phone can be helpful, but it’s best not to use it for your quiet time in God’s Word unless you put it in airplane mode. Second, put all tech temptations in a different room as you read and study God’s Word. Intentionally give your undivided attention to the Bible for an hour. A half hour. Whatever time you have designated. Any time is better than none!

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As we dedicate ourselves to the reading and study of God’s Word may we bring to it a right heart attitude. May we pray about these things. Let’s ask God to fill us with faith and humility. Ask Him to help us to yield to His will and to be obedient to His commands. And let’s pray that He would open up a way for us to spend undistracted time in prayer and in His Word. We know this is His will so we can pray with confidence!

 

 

Twelve Things I’d Change if I Could Live my Life Over

4 Comments / December 31, 2019

Oftentimes, we evaluate our lives as we approach the end of the year. We examine our life in regards to health, career, education. We consider our bank accounts and we reflect on our relationships. We ask: What could we do better next year?

The most important questions we can ever ask ourselves as we evaluate our past year are: Do I look more like Christ? and Did I learn any spiritual lessons? After all, these are the only things of lasting and eternal value.

Education, good jobs, making money, and beautiful homes are nice, but they aren’t the heart of a Christian’s life. Popularity, fame, and 100,000 Instagram or Facebook followers may be very gratifying but it’s not what really matters in life.

So now is a good time to ask: What are my top priorities for the new year?

As you consider this, I compiled a list of a few things that I’d love to go back and change if I could live my life over. Some are major and some are not-so-major. Other than the first two (which I consider, by far, the most important), they are not in any particular order. As I evaluate my life, these are the things I’d love to do differently. This list is not exhaustive and I know that there are some that are just not coming to mind right now.

If we have a priority to walk with God and to teach our families to walk with God in the upcoming year, then I hope this list encourages you and gives you some practical ideas of how to get started–

1. Be more faithful in reading and studying Bible; memorize passages. God’s Word is transforming. We need the Bible in order to know and love God. It is our guidebook, showing us how to live. It is our mirror, convicting us of sin. And yet, I hindered my walk for years by being satisfied with shallow devotionals instead of actually reading the Bible. And yes! Memorize! I just started this last year and I can’t even begin to tell you the difference this has made in my walk with the Lord. Oh, why didn’t I do this earlier….??

2. Be much more diligent to have my kids learn and study and memorize God’s Word. God’s Word was always the authority in our home, but, oh, how I wish I would have been so much more faithful in having my kids in the Word and memorizing it in a much more systematic way. This is the only thing that will carry them through the trials that come to us all and the only way they can stand under the persecution they can expect to receive as Christians.

3. Put my distractions aside and play more with my kids. The laundry, the dishes, the household work, the phone call, the tv show–they could have waited. Not that I never played with them. But, looking back now, I realize now just how fast the time goes and I wish I would have spent even more time with them.

I am so very glad I didn’t have the temptation of looking at my phone when I had kids. I feel rather bad for those of you who have smartphones and tablets at your fingertips, tempting you to check on them and then pulling you in at all moments of the day. I encourage you to put them in a room far away and focus on your kids! Trust me, you will regret it if you don’t.

4. Be more diligent to keep an eternal perspective in all things but especially when it pertained to raising my kids When we are in the midst of parenting, we are often concerned about two things–will my kid still like me if I do or don’t allow this? And will their friends still like them if we don’t allow this? But neither of those matter. It’s so much more important that our children love and serve the Lord than that they fit in with the in-crowd–this one fact changes so many decisions we make as parents! Sure, they may be mad at us or even scream at us, but standing firm pays off in the long run. For the most part we stood firm on God’s Word in our family and we were often ostracized because of it, but as I reflect on our parenting years, I do regret some of the decisions we made based on peer pressure. (Let me add here, that there is also the opposite–where we make far too many {unnecessary} rules that have nothing to do with scripture. Please don’t do that. It breeds rebellion. If you have a rule, make sure it has a scriptural principle behind it and that your kids know what that principle is.)

5. Be much more careful in what I set before my eyes and listen to with my ears; I was always fairly careful, but even things I would have considered “innocent” I can see now were promoting infidelity or bad language or lying. They were full of human wisdom or showing an ungodly model of a family (just how many sitcoms can make Dad look like a complete idiot?!?). I would work harder earlier in my life to eliminate all forms of entertainment that do not glorify God. I know some of you may think I am “over the top” but entertainment changes us. We are fooled into thinking it doesn’t matter but it most certainly does. I still have so far to go in this area, but I do feel like a different person since I have eliminated quite a bit of what is worldly entertainment from my life. But that’s a topic for another day…

6. Be kinder to my husband; I think I am especially cognizant of this because of losing my sister-in-law this past year. I’m sure my brother would only love to have her there, irritating him in whatever way she may have done so. It is always hardest to be kind and loving with the ones that we live with. I really want to be more intentional in nurturing my marriage this coming year.

7. Have far more grace for others; I didn’t have a lot of grace for others as a young person. I am so very thankful that God has brought situations and people into my life that have wrought a great change in this area. But I sure do wish I would have recognized way earlier in life that “but for the grace of God, go I”.

8. Let the minor offenses go; This is another change God has made in my life due to people and situations. I had to intentionally forgive and choose not to hold a grudge–many times without the other person even knowing that they hurt me. Eventually it became natural (at least much of the time), but it took me too long. Life is so much more enjoyable if we stop being so easily offended.

9. Speak the truth of God’s Word with lots of love and kindness. I never had too much trouble speaking the truth, but the love and kindness part would sometimes take a backseat. I hope that I have made progress in this, although I am sure I sometimes still fail. Those of us who passionately love and defend the truth can often struggle with the love side of things. Would I have done more for God’s Kingdom if I would have changed my tone or said things differently as a younger person? Only God knows. In this, I am so very thankful for God’s forgiveness and mercy.

10. Think of others more often. I was SO selfish as a young person. Looking back, I am dismayed and distraught seeing it. I still can tend to be that way and I have to literally fight against my flesh and do what is right. Sometimes I win that battle and sometimes I don’t. But I truly want to be a blessing by thoughtful words and kind deeds–rather than a burden through sarcasm, human opinions about things that are not scriptural, and selfish acts. This is certainly an area in progress and I sure do wish I was much further along in this one!

Along with this, I wish I would have shared the Gospel so much more freely, without worrying what people think! I am so self-centered that I am {still} often more concerned with what people think about me than I am with someone’s eternal destiny!

11. Recognize that my parents are people who have feelings and need support. I am so dismayed when I consider how selfish I was as a teen and twenty-something. When I was getting married, my grandma was in the hospital. And then she passed away two weeks before I had my first child. I was so wrapped up in my life that I was not there for my mom. Oh, how I regret this! If you are blessed to have parents, realize now that they are people, too. That their life is not solely comprised of you and your world. Oh, how I wish I would have understood this sooner.

12. Waste far less time worrying about what “could happen”. Worry and anxiety are a prison. They destroy the present and do nothing to change the future. And yet, how many of us find ourselves in that prison, held tightly by their chains? This is a battle in many of our lives but we must fight it instead of cave into it. We are, in essence, saying we do not trust in God. And therein lies the issue. Oh, how I wish I would have wasted far less time in this useless and faith-sapping activity.

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So there’s the list. Not that I have arrived. Some of these continue to be quite the challenge for me. One of them I thought I conquered and then, years later, it came back with a vengeance (#12, if you want to know!)

Most, if not all, of these things are changed by intentional choices with the guidance and help of the Holy Spirit. I’ve been giving a great deal of thought to this over the course of the past few months.

Some of the things above have changed over the course of my lifetime, simply from growing in Christ. It has sometimes been two steps forward and one step back, but, gradually, over time, they got so much better. Not perfect but better. But even these things came from changing a small habit or behavior. Making a conscientious choice to sit down with God’s Word in the morning or to mentally turn away from the negative thoughts when someone says something hurtful or to choose to offer grace when someone does something I just can’t understand. Although sometimes still a challenge, it is far more natural now to respond correctly. But it wasn’t always the case. I had to intentionally make a choice.

It is hard to improve anything without intentionally choosing to do so. Before you think I am all caught up in man’s wisdom and the “I can do anything I set my mind to”, I want to stop right here.

I am not saying that lasting change can be had without the Holy Spirit. What I am saying is that becoming more Christ-like isn’t just going to happen one day without any work from us at all.

Galatians 5:24-25 says this:

And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

We have to crucify our flesh. It’s an action on our part. In this verse and earlier in that chapter we can also see that we are to walk in the Spirit (v. 16) Again, it’s intentional action on our part.

Life is like a quickly fading flower. Those of you who are young will blink and find yourselves where I am. You, too, will look back over your life and wonder how in the world you ever got here so incredibly fast. Live intentionally now so that your “things I’d change” list is shorter than mine!

(For those of you who have lived as long or longer than I have–what would you change? Your comments on this may help a younger reader. We are all different and have different struggles, so I’d love for you to share your thoughts on this.)

 

 

How Important is Your Stuff?

Leave a Comment / December 6, 2019

I had lunch with a dear friend this week and, as always, the conversation easily flowed as we talked about the Lord, life, family, and whatever else that came up.

During our time together, we started talking about her childhood as an MK (missionary kid). It all started with a string of gold beads. You know–the kind you get for your tree at Christmas. She glanced at them and said that when she was living on the mission field, she remembered her family having a string of brightly colored beads that went missing one day. The next day they started seeing the ladies wearing them in the form of earrings. They had been stolen and turned into earrings!

Now you may think–what’s the big deal? Who cares about a string of cheap beads?

True.

But as we talked further, I started to get just a little feel for the culture in which she lived. She went on to say that in that native culture, stealing wasn’t considered wrong unless someone “caught you”. With this being the case, everything they owned was at risk. Especially if it was outside. Even clothing hanging on a wash-line was apt to be stolen. Any servant brought into the house to help with the hard task of daily living would bring the risk of losing more of your personal stuff.

Since they were hours and hours away from the closest city, there would be no opportunity to get more stuff anytime soon. There was no running to the local Walmart or Target to replace something when you live in the jungle.

As she told me this story, she shared how her father had told her that he had learned not to care so much about his possessions on the mission field. What wasn’t stolen was often ruined by the awful heat and humidity.

As I listened to her talk, I was challenged. How much we all value “stuff”. Right?

Oh, some of us don’t have a struggle with any of this. But a good many of us do. And it goes way beyond just wanting the latest and greatest…

Some people just buy a lot. They are “stuff-aholics”. Others value stuff so highly that they get angry or depressed if some of their “stuff” is ruined or goes missing. And, of course, there are those who just like feeling like they are better than others because of their accumulation or brand of “stuff”.

But, after all is said and done, it’s just that: Stuff. We can take none of it with us to heaven. Whether we like it or not, it will all end up in the junk heap. And our value is certainly not determined by how much or what kind of stuff we own.

So why do so many of us wind up loving our stuff so much? How in the world do we get so off-kilter when it comes to this matter of buying, keeping, and valuing our stuff?

I am sure our materialistic culture is to blame, to some extent. Everywhere we turn we hear “BUY MORE STUFF!” It is the main marketing message that hits our ears [what feels like] a million times a day.

But that’s really no excuse for a Christian, right?

As I think on this, Colossians 3:1-2 comes to mind. It is here that I think we can find a principle related to how we view our stuff–

If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.

The more fixed our eyes are on heaven, the less important our earthly stuff becomes.

You see, there isn’t anything innately wrong with owning stuff. There are many examples in scripture of wealthy men and women who followed God whole-heartedly.

The trouble comes in when we don’t view it with the right heart and a godly attitude. And I’ve noticed that this attitude is not dependent on how much money one has. There are greedy, miserly people who are living paycheck to paycheck. And there are godly, generous people who make millions of dollars each year. The greedy, uncharitable, or discontent heart appears to be completely unrelated to income.

In my friend’s case, her father’s hands were pried loose from his stuff because, in a foreign land, it became a most uncertain commodity. At any moment it could be gone and he was forced to recognize his stuff wasn’t his own but God’s. And, in turn, he was forced to rely on God when his possessions would disappear.

Here in the western world we live in, we rarely get to such a point. Instead, we need to be much more intentional on learning the godly approach to stuff.

This can only be done by diving into the Word and learning there what kind of attitude we should have. God has blessed us immensely here in the west in regards to material things. But, with that, comes its own special challenges, as well as a grave responsibility.

So may we strive to hold our “stuff” with a content heart and an open hand. After all, it really isn’t ours, anyway. We need to be godly, generous stewards of what God has allowed us to have for this time.

 

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