In the time of our innocence, we trusted in good because we had not yet known evil. On this side of Eden and our own experience of the Fall
— whatever our own Arrows have been and however the adversary has woven them together into our...
In the time of our innocence, we trusted in good because we had not yet known evil. On this side of Eden and our own experience of the Fall
— whatever our own Arrows have been and however the adversary has woven them together into our...
Our Enemy is a thief, and of all the precious things he has stolen from our hearts, his worst act of treachery has been to steal our future from us. He has stolen all the magic and promise and wonder of the happily ever after. Very few of us live...
READ MOREThe more you give the parts of your life over to Jesus, the more his life is able to invade yours. The relief alone is worth the price.
Last night Stasi and I were at a dinner party with friends we love and enjoy. It was one of those...
READ MOREWe're certainly warned about forgetfulness in Scripture, both in word and by example. In the Old Testament, the pattern is so predictable, we come to expect it. God delivers his people from the cruel whips of Egypt by a stunning display of his...
READ MORETeaching is exalted. Church feels like a seminar — could be intellectual, could be motivational. Good content is what matters. Doctrine is fiercely defended. Members can explain to you theories of the atonement, or seven steps to success, but can...
READ MOREIf joy is a fruit of the Spirit (and it is), then we are meant to experience and enjoy it, regardless of our circumstances. Whatever may be swirling around us, the eye of the storm is joy. But how do we get there? The simple answer is we need to...
READ MOREJesus needs to disciple these fishermen, tax collectors, and political revolutionaries who dropped their careers to follow him. I’m not sure we’ve understood the ramifications of his decision. We just think, Oh, yeah, the disciples, and forget...
READ MOREName one thing in the entire created world more precious than a human heart.
It can’t be done.
You might say “love,” but that would be silly because we cannot love without a heart. You might point to some immortal work of art, or...
READ MOREWhen Isaiah promised that the Messiah will come to heal the brokenhearted, he was not speaking poetically. The Bible does use metaphor, as when Jesus says, "I am the gate" (John 10:9). Of course, he is not an actual gate like the kind...
READ MOREMore of God comes to us as we love God. The more that we love God, the more we are able to experience him. Part of this has to do with the nature of God, and part of it has to do with our own human nature.
You understand from your...
Resting in Jesus is not applying a spiritual formula to ourselves as a kind of fix-it. It is the essence of repentance. It is letting our heart tell us where we are in our own story so that Jesus can minister to us out of the Story of his love...
READ MORE“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him. (Mark 10:51)
Recovering your true heart’s desire may involve facing some deep disappointment. Undoubtedly, it will require painful self-examination. But you do not need...
From the place of our woundedness we construct a false self. We find a few gifts that work for us, and we try to live off them. Stuart found he was good at math and science. He shut down his heart and spent all his energies perfecting his "Spock...
READ MOREThe spirit of our day is a soft acceptance of everything — except deep conviction in anything. This is where Jesus will suddenly confront the world as a great rock confronts the river flowing ever downhill. He is immovable. The cry used to be for...
READ MORECan it really happen? Can things in our lives be green again? No matter what our creeds may tell us, our hearts have settled into another belief. We have accepted the winter of this world as the final word and tried to get on without the hope of...
READ MOREFor today's Daily Reading, we encourage you to listen to a podcast on praying with passion, confidence, and authority. Click here to listen.
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READ MOREOne of the deepest ways a woman bears the image of God is in her mystery. By mystery we don't mean "forever beyond your knowing," but "something to be explored." "It is the glory of God to conceal a matter," says the book of Proverbs, "to search...
READ MOREUntil we come to terms with war as the context of our days, we will not understand life. We will misinterpret 90 percent of what is happening around us and to us. It will be very hard to believe that God’s intentions toward us are life...
READ MORESomething has crept into our assumptions about Jesus that makes it almost impossible to relate to him, not to mention love him. I say "crept" because it has not been a conscious decision; few of the things that shape our actual convictions are. I...
READ MOREJesus says that as our Good Shepherd, he is leading us. What an encouraging thought. Jesus is leading you, and he is leading me. He is shepherding us. I can feel something in my heart loosening even now as I consider this. Okay. I don’t have to...
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