Our lives are not our own but belong to the One who loved us and gave Himself for us. There is no maturity without obedience, even unto death, if need be. We cannot waffle between two masters. We must consecrate ourselves entirely to the Lord not just in word, but in deed and truth.
Read MoreIt’s easy to dehumanize God, to view Him as a rock wall. At best, we see Him as able to connect with our pain and empathize with us. But what if it is His pain we connect with when we suffer? When affliction won’t relent and life has wrung us out, we’re stepping into an area of God’s heart only suffering can take us to.
Read MoreHere’s a quick breakdown of what the Lord is doing in places where public expressions of Christianity result in persecution, excommunication, and death: Jesus is saving people. Many of those people are part of a disciple making group. Each person in a group is leading another group. Each of those people are being discipled and are obediently reproducing other groups of disciples that do likewise. And most of those people are women.
Read MoreWe’re here to bear one another’s burdens. To help shoulder the messy, weighty responsibility of restoring the person who sinned and coming alongside any other persons affected or involved. If the exposure of another person’s sin makes us feel superior because it’s not something we struggle with, we’re in deception, and we’re being of no use to the brother or sister in sin. We’re just playing into the slanderous symphony composed by the Accuser of the Brethren.
Read MoreThe intensity of the dynamics present on the earth leading up to the return of Jesus can often result in people feeling exhausted and overwhelmed. The magnitude of the disruption coming to planet earth is only going to increase in the years to come. We want to respond to Jesus with wholeheartedness to what He is saying and doing, but what do we do when we feel weak and disqualify ourselves from wholehearted pursuit?
Read MoreIt wasn’t God’s design for the people to have earthly kings. His desire for them was to have judges as the leadership in place, men and women who knew Him and were familiar with His ways, listening to Him for their guidance, rather than lusting after power and control—the undying, infamous motivation of earthly princes. We all long for a good and trustworthy king, but there is only one.
Read MoreDo you know that God numbers your tears? He is touched by what touches us. May we be touched by what touches His heart. Let us implore Him to come to us. Let us cry day and night. May our tears be as incense rising to the throne. Cry out your tears in this fallen world, and let them have great intercessory meaning. When you are past words, intercede with your tears.
Read MoreOver years and decades, I began to discover that praying for Israel isn’t necessarily about coming into agreement with a secular nation-state or endorsing the humanistic agenda of a governmental leader— especially when those plans and values may be contrary to the Kingdom of God. It’s not even about adopting those certain traditions from a foreign culture. Simply put, praying for Israel is about loving what God loves because we love Him. And because we love Him, what’s important to Him should be important to us.
Read MoreI love the life of David. There is nothing like it. I have enjoyed decades of musings over the man after God’s own heart in books, music, and movies to ignite my holy imagination. Apart from Jesus, no one is featured more prominently in the Scriptures than David. Like so many, one of the reasons I value the life of David so much is because we discover how to be a person after God’s heart when we fall flat on our face in sin and failure.
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