No two people are alike, and if by some miracle they are, they won’t automatically like each other for it. We are people with brokenness, sinful desires, and bad histories, so it is inevitable conflict will come. Christina and I have our fair share of misunderstandings, hurt feelings, and selfishness. Fortunately, we always get back to forgiveness, communication, and love. Rather than stay stuck in a crazy cycle of conflict, we have found there are attitudes which underpin a healthy relationship.
Read moreArchival Post: Avoid Irreverent Babble
Like chopping down a tree, "irreverent babble" chops away at the word of God until unholiness becomes a myth. Paul said, "it will lead people into more and more ungodliness." More and more. As in, increasing. The ungodliness gets bigger with the Youtube uploads. God is not feared, so the writer writes, the speaker speaks, and waywardness is on the rise!
Read moreArchival Post: Marriage Principles From Non-Marriage Bible Verses - Treasure Your Spouse
In a passage touching on the subject of money, Jesus introduced a fascinating concept. He said humans' hearts follow their money (“treasure”). This truth is interesting because it seems we’d like to think it’s the other way around, that we spend our time and treasure on whatever our heart is into, but this is not so. Wherever we spend our time and treasure, eventually our heart will follow. Christina and I have used this truth to help us continually grow in our marriage.
Read moreArchival Post: Develop A Prayer Reflex
Do you ever read the news and feel like there's nothing you can do, like it's completely out of your control? Who do I call? What can I do? Who can I complain to? How can I change things?
Read moreArchival Post: Our Salvation Song
Hezekiah was an excellent king of Judah. A descendant of David, he bore similar traits to his ancestor in that he worshipped God and delighted in God's law. At one point, Hezekiah became sick. Isaiah the prophet was summoned, and he told Hezekiah his time to die had come. Hezekiah pleaded with God but also pleaded with Isaiah to plead with God. Isaiah returned with the glad announcement that Hezekiah would live. For another fifteen years, Hezekiah sat on the throne.
Read moreArchival Post: Ways A Husband Can Love His Bride Like Christ Does His Church
Paul had a vision of the church, the new humanity of Christ, that solved the ills of the world. As he spanned the globe in his mind’s eye, Paul saw that women, children, and slaves throughout the Roman empire were hurting, just as they often hurt today. He knew the new civilization of the church could help every category. In Ephesians, Paul wrote to Christian husbands, fathers, and masters, urging them to walk out their faith for the betterment of those in their care.
Read moreArchival Post: The Call of the Father
Buck the dog, in Jack London’s classic The Call Of The Wild, had grown up in lazy and sunny Northern California. He had lived what many would call the good life, roaming Judge Miller's spacious property in the Santa Clara Valley. But since Buck was a beast of an animal, a strong and fine specimen, one day he was stolen, sold, and shipped to Alaska. There, he worked as a sled dog delivering mail and, eventually, searching for gold. The tale is one of discovery, for Buck thought he was happy on those sun-kissed days in the valley, but it turned out life in the Yukon was a fuller and more vibrant life.
Read moreArchival Post: Overcoming Your Jerichos
Joshua, the newly minted leader of Israel, was perplexed. Moses always knew what to do, but now he was gone. In recent days, God worked miraculously to bring nomadic Israel into the permanence of the Promised Land, parting the Jordan River's floodwaters so they could enter in. Forty years earlier God had split the Red Sea for their parents and grandparents, and now God showed this new generation his favor. He brought them into the land. But once in, what would they do? Where would they go?
Read moreArchival Post: True Greatness
In our world, true greatness is often clouded by grandiosity, beauty, and pomp. But I want to share with you a little passage concerning Paul's life. It has often recalibrated my mind, showing me what greatness looks like.
Read moreArchival Post: Liberties, Convictions & Love - Don't Stumble (Part 2)
If you’ve been around Christianity for any real length of time, you have likely heard someone talk about stumbling. “I don’t want to stumble them” or “I was really stumbled by that.” But where does this language come from? Is it accurate?
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