No matter how busy you are, don’t forget to read the Bible. And, most of all, don’t forget to dwell in the Lord. Your own well-being is dependent on this interaction between you and your Creator. He loves you. He is waiting for you to embrace him and his lovingkindness. Just this morning I randomly opened my Bible and here’s the verse that jumped out to me: “Praise and give thanks to the Lord, for His mercy and lovingkindness endure forever.” (2…
Have you given in after trying hard to please God and others? Are you so exhausted that you don’t care anymore? God just must lower his standards and have mercy on you, because you’ve done everything in your power. Do you know what? You’ve got it all wrong. You are not even supposed to do it all on your own or in your power. Actually, no one can do it. No one but Christ in us can live the Christian life….
Are you so busy that you don’t have time to fit God in your life? We tend to get so crazy-busy sometimes that it feels that we barely have time to breathe. It might feel an added burden to find time and room for God. But guess what? There’s no way you can ever fit God in your life. God is way too big for that. God can never fit into your life. If we want to experience…
There is one verse in the Bible that erases worries powerfully. It is not probably what you think. But it is powerful nonetheless. It reminds us who is in control and whose we are. And if we do remember that, there’s no reason to worry, right? Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. (Psalm 139:16, NIV, emphasis added) The whole psalm139 is a…
Do you like to laugh? Or have you forgotten how? Holiness does not mean cheerlessness. Actually, we are called to be cheerful no matter what. We are called to sing ourselves into God’s presence. We are called to be joyful. Laughter and good cheer are God’s good gifts to us. On your feet now—applaud God! Bring a gift of laughter, sing yourselves into his presence. (Psalm 100:1-2, MSG,*) Laughter is indeed a gift from God. Life without laughter would be dull,…
Are you a perfectionist? Have you made ideal your idol? Sometimes we try so hard to make everything perfect that ideal really becomes our idol. But perfectness does not save us. Perfectness is an illusion that deludes us. The best way to deal with perfectionism is to learn to live in grace. Because grace is a game changer, eye opener, freedom-releaser. We can quit trying to be perfect and embrace trusting. The fulfillment of God’s promise depends entirely on trusting God…
Are you God-expectant? God-ready? These two words stopped me in my tracks this morning. Am I truly God-expectant? Am I God-ready? Or am I just going with the cultural flow? God sticks his head out of heaven. He looks around. He’s looking for someone not stupid— one man, even, God-expectant, just one God-ready woman. (Psalm 14:2, MSG,*) I know I want to be God-expectant and God-ready. I think you do too. But are we? Do you live your days with…
Are you marked by joy? Is it evident in your life that Christ lives in you? If he lives in you, your life should be brimming with joy. Because God is joy. God is indeed the source of joy. All joy comes from him. When we stick close to God, joy is present in our lives no matter how dark the world around is. When we dare to embrace the cross of Christ, we are filled with overflowing joy. And…
Are you in touch with your Heavenly Father through out the day? Do you let God know how you’re doing and how things are going for you? I hope you do. That’s the way of life for all the children of God. But have you ever thought God is eagerly waiting to hear from you? I had never really thought of God’s side of this picture before this week. Our daughter caught a tummy bug and was home from school….
Life is beautiful but it can be, at times, really hard. There are a lot of obstacles we face: sickness, poverty, emptiness, stress, all kinds of pain. Pretty much everyone is fighting tough battles. We need to live in a way that we are not adding on each other’s pain. We need to stop passing on judgment. It’s not our place and it does not help anyone. Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your…
