Encouragement?

In my quiet time this morning it occurred to me that a word of realistic encouragement might be helpful to some or all of you. As I thought about it two scenarios came to mind… First the macro. These are indeed difficult times and many of us are yearning for the return of the good times of the recent past. In this we are like the children of Israel who longed to return to Egypt. Egypt in the Bible represents the world and its strength and prosperity. Our ancestors had a very consistent record of turning to idolatry after a season of the Lord’s blessing and also first looking to Egypt for help when He brought chastisement on them for their sin. They cycled through this process multiple times. Again, in the macro view I believe that this is a picture of our national...

What Do “Watchers” See?

We live, but even in today’s semi-isolated and individualistically focused culture, we never live alone. Except perhaps for the tiny portion of our population who are true hermits and recluses, we live among, and are always observed by others. Our values show through our ifestyle and the way we live speaks volumes to them about what we believe and what is most important to us. No matter what our status or position in society others are watching us and drawing conclusions about us based on what they see. No, it’s not a matter of are they watching, the question is what do they see? For those of us who claim to be Christ-followers, does that fact stand out in any significant way to the “watchers?” Is there and discernable difference between what they see in us and...

6 Tactics to Finishing Well – The Race that is Set Before US

We are all running…The clock is ticking… Each step takes us closer to the finish line… We run on toward the goal, the tape, the finish line… an end of our race that we can’t see but know is there. Man, it gets hard! We each carry some baggage, weights, and there are snares and entanglements in the terrain that we run through that cause us to trip and stumble. Man! This race is tough! For believers, Christ followers, we have each been assigned a race. One trip around the track of life on Earth.  Running into our eternal destiny. For some our race is a sprint, for others middle distance, and for some a marathon, but for each it is a race, even an obstacle course. Things get in our way as we run. We struggle to press on against the thought of giving up, to...

One Life – Step One, Finding A Godly Mentor

In choosing a mentor, or in examining ourselves to explore the possibility of our being a mentor to others, the first quality or place to look is in the area of intimacy with God. Everything of true value in life flows from God. You and I and all who serve Him are merely delivery vehicles or conduits. All His children have the potential to be both positive or negative conduits. We can either allow the Spirit of God or the spirit of the world to flow through us to others. At best we are a mix of both. The only perfect conduit was and is Jesus, the Perfect One, who only did what the Father was doing and said what He was saying. We see through a glass darkly. We strive to allow Him to conform us to His image but it’s a battle and the battle ebbs and flows. Our ability to mentor others...