Category: Life Issues

Overcoming Self-Consciousness

Self-consciousness is a destroyer of authentic Christian experience. We’ve all been singing in church when all of a sudden the thought races by: “Look at me here singing. I’m enjoying this.” And from that moment on your joy in singing is somehow less real than it...

Three Non-negotiables for Christians In the Upcoming Presidential Election

It is a blessing to live in a country where citizens are free to participate in the political process, deciding through a voting system who governs and, to some degree, how they govern. It is also a reality that even this comparatively good system is not...

Production or Virtue?

We are fanatics for productivity. Some of us are like miniature corporations ticking off our project objectives and meeting our target points. And for many, productivity is the canon for self-evaluation. I started to realize this about myself early in my marriage when I would get...

Reclaiming Your Eyes from Pornography

I used to watch my dad brand cattle. I still remember the awful smell. The bovines would wail at the momentary pain, and the smoke from singed hair and burnt cowhide would rise into the afternoon sun. One by one the cattle would file through to...

You May Not Be Meant to Be Great

Americans like to champion the “American Dream,” which, I would say, is being able to be whoever you want. For most people, being whoever you want means being great; being famous; being rich and well-known. But as I carry on through life and study more of...

You and Your Conscience

The decline of morals in our society is deplorable, but what is most alarming is that this decline is increasingly evident in the church. Professing Christians and genuine believers are falling into terrible sins. It is becoming increasingly the problem godly pastors and elders are forced...

YOLO

Figuring out the text-messaging code can be daunting for us older folks. As an example of the generational disconnect, the following text exchange is reported to have taken place between a mother and her teenage son: Mom’s question to her son: “What does IDK TTYL mean?”...

Worth a Lot of Sparrows

Are not five sparrows sold for two cents? And yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear; you are worth more than many sparrows. Luke 12:6-7 At two cents per five sparrows,...

Worn Out?

What should the following sentence mean to you, a tired, overworked person? “They shall mount up with wings as eagles.” First, realize that God specializes in people like you. The pages of the Bible are chock full of stories about people who were, in themselves, at...

When Anger Gets the Best of You

He came close to murder and I saw it myself! Looking out my window at the commotion, I watched two angry yard workers yelling at each other. One man got into such a rage that he threw his machete directly at his adversary. Thankfully, he missed....