All Scripture references are quoted from the Christian Standard Bible (unless otherwise noted).
“But desire the greater gifts. And I will show you an even better way.” – 1 Corinthians 12:31 In 1 Corinthians 12 Paul writes a pretty incredible list of gifts that God bestows on his people. This includes things like helping, teaching, leading, healing, and even working miracles! How many of...
September 6, 2023 “If only you would shut up and let that be your wisdom!” – Job 13:5 Each year when I read through my Bible I come to a passage that makes me laugh out loud almost every time. But before you can understand why it is so funny, you...
August 30, 2023 “Don’t store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves don’t break in and steal.” – Matthew 6:19-20 I don’t know...
August 23, 2023 “Pray constantly” – 1 Thessalonians 5:17 I am currently reading the book of Nehamiah in my one-year Bible. Nehemiah is famous for rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem, but he is also well known for his sweeping reforms throughout Israel. He called all the people back to obeying the...
August 16, 2023 “Each of the builders had his sword strapped around his waist while he was building, and the one who sounded the ram’s horn was beside me. Then I said to the nobles, the officials, and the rest of the people, ‘The work is enormous and spread out,...
August 9, 2023 “I call on you, my God, for you will answer me; turn your ear to me and hear my prayer. Show me the wonders of your great love, you who save by your right hand those who take refuge in you from their foes. Keep me as...
“to take off your former way of life, the old self that is corrupted by deceitful desires, to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, the one created according to God’s likeness in righteousness and purity of the truth.” – Ephesians 4:22-24 Recently...
“God has listened; he has paid attention to the sound of my prayer. Blessed be God! He has not turned away my prayer or turned his faithful love from me.” – Psalm 66:19-20 With five kids around the table, you can imagine how chaotic things can get at my house during...
July 19, 2023 “One who isolates himself pursues selfish desires; he rebels against all sound wisdom.” – Proverbs 18:1 Anyone who has known me for very long knows that I am an extrovert. When we run errands, my family often jokes, “this should only take about 30 minutes or so…unless dad...
July 12, 2023 “While they were stoning Stephen, he called out, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!’ He knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them!’ And after saying this, he fell asleep. Saul agreed with putting him to death.” – Acts 7:59...
“I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains in me and I in him produces much fruit, because you can do nothing without me.” – John 15:5 Yesterday we celebrated Independence Day; the day America declared our independence from Great Britain. But as I reflected throughout the...
June 28, 2023 “I don’t say this out of need, for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I find myself. I know how to make do with little, and I know how to make do with a lot. In any and all circumstances I have learned the...
June 21, 2023 “But if you bite and devour one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another.” – Galatians 5:15 Have you ever heard the term “collateral damage”? It refers to the destruction of private property or the death of innocent civilians during a time of war....
June 14, 2023 “Then the governor’s soldiers took Jesus into the governor’s residence and gathered the whole company around him. They stripped him and dressed him in a scarlet robe. They twisted together a crown of thorns, put it on his head, and placed a staff in his right hand....
May 31, 2023 “For you were called to be free, brothers and sisters; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love.” – Galatians 5:13 Yesterday my 11-year-old son wanted to go buy a used video game for an older system he has....
“According to the grace given to us, we have different gifts: If prophecy, use it according to the proportion of one’s faith; if service, use it in service; if teaching, in teaching; if exhorting, in exhortation; giving, with generosity; leading, with diligence; showing mercy, with cheerfulness.” – Romans 12:6-8 Our church...
“Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God—who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly—and it will be given to him.” – James 1:5 What do you usually pray for? If you were to go back through the last several weeks and make a list of your prayer requests,...
“You will call to me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.” – Jeremiah 29:12 Yesterday I had to drive to Denver for a doctor’s appointment. That sentence involves two of my very least favorite things: driving to Denver and going to the doctor. You combine...
“Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:11 Have you ever had someone say, “I like your shirt,” or “Nice shoes,” or “cool car”? Those are very simple things and, in the end, not all that important. But even...
“What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I myself am serving the law of God, but with my flesh, the law of sin.” – Romans 7:24-25 Is everything okay?...
April 19, 2023 “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.” – Romans 12:9-10 Yesterday I got the chance to hang out with my dad. It wasn’t really anything spectacular; we went to the...
“Come and listen, all who fear God, and I will tell what he has done for me.” – Psalm 66:16 Last night I had the privilege of speaking to a doctorate seminar on the subject of “spiritual formation through suffering.” I have been a guest speaker on this subject many times...
“For the love of Christ compels us, since we have reached this conclusion, that one died for all, and therefore all died. 15 And he died for all so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for the one who died for them and was raised.” –...
“A thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come so that they may have life and have it in abundance.” – John 10:10 This week in our country we experienced a horrible tragedy when children were blatantly murdered as they went about what they thought would be...
“All a person’s ways seem pure to them, but motives are weighed by the Lord.” – Proverbs 16:2 “Why did you do that?” This is a question I’m sure we’ve all heard before. Usually, it comes up when someone has done something stupid, or something cruel, or they have really messed...
“When he saw the crowds, he felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd.” – Matthew 9:36 My wife and I both have Tuesdays off. We usually spend the day running all over town doing errands. Not the most exciting “date-day,” but at...
“As for those of you who are left, I will make their hearts so fearful in the lands of their enemies that the sound of a windblown leaf will put them to flight. They will run as though fleeing from the sword, and they will fall, even though no one...
“For a command is a lamp, teaching is a light, and corrective discipline is the way to life.” – Proverbs 6:23 If you have ever been a parent, I’m sure you’ve had this experience: You lay down a rule and immediately your child begins asking questions to push the boundaries. They...
“Obey your leaders and submit to them, since they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account, so that they can do this with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.” – Hebrews 13:17 Yesterday I had lunch with a group...