DEVOTIONALS

Being Thankful for the Lessons Granny Left Me Lesson #1 – What She Wouldn’t Do Despite it all, she was always thankful.  Indeed, that is the lesson behind most lessons.  And because she was thankful, she would never evaluate her life based on the rubrics that men apply to lives such as hers.  She would not appeal to the tenants of justice as they assumed that mankind possessed the right to avoid all that is wrong in a world that had long forgotten that a great wrong sets the

“But Jesus often withdrew to the wilderness for prayer.” -Luke 5:16 (NLT) The word retreat means “to move back.” The irony? That’s how you make forward progress. It’s as counterintuitive as the law of diminishing returns—less is more. If you want to make or break a habit, it’s a lot like learning a new dance. My repertoire is pretty limited, but I can  floss  and  churn the butter , and I do a pretty mean  running man . How did I learn those dance moves? I had to break it dow

Are you going  THROUGH  something right now? Are you in the midst of something uncomfortable… uneasy… undesirable… and perhaps downright unimaginable…. That has hit you emotionally, mentally, physically, financially, or relationally? And though you are in the throes of “it” right now, you have the resilient faith in knowing that “this place” is not where you are staying and camping out, but you are passing  THROUGH . Well, if you answered yes, then allow the following to enco

We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. Hebrews 6:19 There was a man who was abruptly awakened by a bright light in his room. The heavenly encounter was accompanied with a clear impression on his mind. When he woke up the next morning, he knew what his calling was. He had to speak out against the slaughter of unborn children. The task was formidable. Many states had laws that needed to overturned, but that seemed unlikely since the Supreme Court had lega

I wondered if you too have ever said… But Lord, I CAN’T… Something I have learned through the years is the  “I CAN’T…”  mentality always has an inward focus, looking solely at your own personal abilities, inadequacies, inexperience, that try to disqualify you before you even step out and discover you CAN... Instead of having an outward focus, looking to the Lord to strengthen, qualify and equip, help lead and guide you, so that you CAN do all things through Him… And as I am t

"The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have  and  enjoy life, and have it in abundance " John 10:10 AMP "What if" or "If only" are phrases used in counterfactual thinking. In other words, "the thief" is Satan and He comes to destroy your present by filling you with regret over your past or fear of your future. Counterfactual thinking is the behavior that asks those two questions to steal your joy and peace. CFT can be both positive

One day, a squirrel dropped from a branch onto a leaf-cushioned woodland floor and hurried to gather as many acorns as possible before the settling-in of winter. Scampering over, he paused, quickly looked up, and ducked just in the nick of time as a swooping hawk's piercing talons scraped over his back, narrowly missing its prey. Rattled, he dashed back to protection. Now, with less certainty, he ventured back to the treasure. Hopeful, he sighed. However, no sooner had he app

Two critical aspects of the Christian life are  remembering  on the one hand and  forgetting  on the other. What do I mean? When I was in high school football, we had this thing called two-a-days. The best way to describe this is early, uncomfortable, and exhausting. My alarm would go off each morning, and, in the darkness, I would, in misery and dismay, arise from my slumber. Upon arrival, we would be hurriedly ushered to a dew-covered field, expected to embrace the drills w

18  So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever. 2 Corinthians 4:18 NLT I saw the following statement on the front of a T-shirt (a notable and always reliable source of profound information).  A goldfish is the happiest animal on earth because it has a 10-second memory. The statement is false (scientific studies debunk the ide

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was a formless and desolate emptiness, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters. Then God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light.” Genesis 1:1-3 In the opening chapter of the Bible, God brings order out of chaos. Later, God makes mankind in His image, and tells them to rule the creation, be fruitful, multiply, and fill the ear

In Luke 19:11-27, we find a parable Jesus taught to a crowd as they went up to Jerusalem for the Passover. It's a familiar one, where a departing nobleman entrusted money to his servants, and upon his return, they had to give an account on what they gained from the money. One servant gained 1,000 percent on the investment, and another gained 500 percent. Each one who earned money received this commendation: "Well done, good servant." In this parable, Jesus is the nobleman. It

Christians have been accused of being so heavenly minded that they're no earthly good. But I've found people who are so earthly minded that they're no heavenly good. So how do we strike the balance between being citizens of Earth, where we get our bills and mail, and citizens of heaven, our eternal home? Well, we must avoid emphasizing one address over the other. Some believers become so involved in this world that they neglect the heavenly part. Others get so theologically p

As you see what's happening in the world today, you see what's happening in the Middle East, for example. You see what's happening among people who are longing for their next meal or glad to be alive one more day. You know, they have a lot to be thankful for, but you and I never know what a new day will bring. We never know whether tragedy will strike, sickness will hit, an accident will take place in our lives or the life of a loved one. So we've gotta be just as thankful ev

"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God" ( Matt. 5:8 ). There are basically only two kinds of religion in the world: those based on human achievement and those based on divine accomplishment. Religion comes in many forms. Almost every conceivable belief or behavior has been incorporated into some religious system at some point in time. But really there are only two kinds of religion: one says you can earn your way to heaven; the other says you must trust in Jes

Introduction An umbrella provides physical covering during a rainstorm. It does not stop the rain, but it does stop the rain from reaching us. Like an umbrella in a rainstorm, we need God's protection to cover us during the storms of life that bring physical and spiritual threats in our walk with Him. These threats attempt to harm us by drenching all areas of our lives with various forms of destruction. God offers to protect us when we submit ourselves to functioning under Hi

How many times have we struggled with being “stuck” in a particular holding pattern of thinking, reacting, and living? And maybe as we say here in the great state of Texas, “you’ve been snake bit” meaning the decisions of yesteryear has immobilized you, causing you to become fearful of moving forward into something NEW. Or maybe you are at a crossroads, not sure if you should venture into the NEW, even though you have been feeling for some time the gentle prodding of the Holy

Fear has its  cause . It also has its  consequences . If we left fear there, we’d be with little hope. Praise God, we don’t have to! The Christian has hope amidst fear. The Christian has faith that defies pragmatism. The Christian has love that resists emotionalism. The Christian, above all people, may enter each new day settled and secure in life’s circumstances because of the anchor of his soul (Heb 6:19). Possible Solutions to Fear We must explore several intriguing yet

“We seem to lurch from tragedy to tragedy, shooting to shooting, bombing to bombing. The kids didn’t deserve such a death. Their parents don’t deserve such grief. And we received an all too common reminder: life isn’t fair. When did you learn those words?  It’s not fair.  What deed exposed you to the imbalanced scales of life? Did a car wreck leave you fatherless? Did friends forget you, a teacher ignore you, an adult abuse you? Have you ever prayed the psalmist’s prayer? “O

" Sticks and stones may break your bones, but words will never hurt you." Have you ever heard something so ridiculous? Anyone who has ever been crushed under the weight of a snarky comment or snide remark knows the utter falsehood in that statement. Sticks and stones may very well break your bones—but words? Words can crush your heart. They hold enormous power. Proverbs 18:21 tells us, “death and life are in the power of the tongue” (ESV). James 3:5 reminds us, “The tongu