Posts from 2023 (Page 4)

    How often have you passed someone on the road that needed help and later you felt guilty about not stopping? Maybe you heard of someone in the community that needed help and you did nothing. Have you ever seen someone being abused or mistreated and have done nothing? Has someone depended on you for help, or even just for you to be responsible and you let them down? Maybe there were times when you should have spoken up…

  Isn’t it interesting that we read books and watch movies and TV shows about fictional characters that we love and adore, but they all have huge character flaws?  Jack Bauer was the antihero that would toss aside all feeling for other people to accomplish a mission. Harry Potter had a bad temper. Katniss Everdeen was insecure. Winnie the Pooh was depressed (and probably had an eating disorder). The point is this: We also have faults! Each of us are…

  Life is confusing. (I could probably stop the devotional right here.)  You wake up one day, and you’re told not to eat eggs because it’ll raise your cholesterol. The next day you’re told that they are good because of their protein, and they’ll help you lose weight. Same thing happens with coffee. “Drink it! It has compounds in it that are healthy!”  The next day: “Don’t drink it! It’s killing you!” Even those of us who are older, we…

  Grow up! Be a child! Huh? Yep. That’s exactly what Jesus was saying. It’s included in a discussion He was having about humility. But why? Unlike adults, children have no illusions of being in control. All the adults around them are taller, bigger, and stronger. Adults tell them when to wake up, what to eat for dinner, and whether they can watch the movie they want to watch so badly. Sometimes it may seem like children are in control,…

  If you ever get a chance to, you should watch the movie Evan Almighty , if for no other reason than Steve Carell is in it (and he’s hilarious). The premise of the movie is that Evan Baxter (Carell) is a newly appointed Congressman who is approached by God, played by Morgan Freeman, and is asked to build an ark but isn’t given the reason as to why. Evan’s wife, Joan, shows much doubt about her husband’s “crazy” project,…

  “He’s still workin’ on me to make me what I ought to be. It took Him just a week to make the moon and stars, the sun and the earth and Jupiter and Mars. How loving and patient He must be. ‘Cause He’s still workin’ on me.There really ought to be a sign upon my heart: ‘Don’t judge me yet. There’s an unfinished part.’  But I’ll be better just according to His plan, fashioned by the Master’s loving hand.…

  MAIN IDEA:                Self-control is defined as having control or restraint of oneself or one’s actions and feelings.  Being self-controlled is the very foundation for living a life for God.  But, far too often, we lose control of ourselves and act/behave in ways that are far from Christ like.  Our desires tempt us every day.  The devil knows exactly how to tempt each of us to lose control. In other words, the devil knows how to push our…

  MAIN IDEA:                Kindness is doing something and not expecting anything in return.  In Colossians 3:12 we are told that as God’s chosen people we are to clothe ourselves with kindness among other virtues.  The Bible is full of stories of kindness.  I’m reminded of the four friends that brought their paralyzed friend to see Jesus so he could be healed as one of many great examples for us to follow.   God wants us to show kindness to…

  MAIN IDEA:                Patience is defined as the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset.  For so many of us, this is one fruit that is very elusive.  We live extremely busy lives and pack so many things into our day that one hiccup in our day starts a domino effect that pushes patience out of our lives extremely quickly.  Looking to God as our example, Exodus 34:6 describes the Lord…

  MAIN IDEA:                  In John 14:27 we read “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid”.  Peace is the result of resting in a relationship with God.   Peace is more than an absence of conflict. It is the tranquil state of a soul that does not fear and is content, trusting that everything is…

  MAIN IDEA:                 In Philippians 4:4 Paul writes “Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!”  Often time joy is mistaken for happiness, but there is a definite difference.  Joy is much deeper than happiness.  Joy is rooted in God and comes from Him.  Happiness is a fleeting thought or an emotion.  Joy is knowing that our strength comes from God and that He is in control regardless of…

  MAIN IDEA:                  All this week we will concentrate on two verses written to the Galatians by the Apostle Paul.   Many could recite the fruits of the Spirit mentioned by Paul in Galatians, but do we really know “how” to bear these fruits of the Spirit in our everyday lives?  This week, we will highlight one of the fruits each day and give practical advice as to how you can show these fruits to others.  Showing these fruits to…