Holy Scripture

What is your view of Scripture?

Charles Spurgeon described it this way --

"This volume [the Bible] is the writing of the living God: each letter was penned with an almighty finger, each word in it dropped from the everlasting lips, each sentence was dictated by the Holy Spirit...everywhere I find God speaking; it is God's voice, not man's; the words are God's words, the worlds of the Eternal, the Invisible, the Almighty, the Jehovah of the Earth."

God breathed life into every word of the Bible. He inspired the writers of sacred Scripture, guiding their thoughts and hands. Oh, what confidence we can have because of this! We can know that these are His words -- living and active words. We can anticipate God using them to transform our lives -- our every thought, word, and action.

Pick up your Bible today, asking "Lord, what do you want to say to me today?" He is pleased to answer!

Tweet

Why Obey?

Do you obey the authority in your life – your parents, teachers, coaches, pastors? What percent of the time – 75%, 90%, 95%?

Okay, now for the hard question: Why do you obey? Pause and consider the thinking behind your obedience, your reason you comply, your motivation to do what is right.

Some individuals obey their parents to make sure they get their weekly allowance. Others are motivated to keep some of the “toys” they have – cell phone, video games, car. Some want to avoid discipline, such as being grounded, not being able to go out with friends, or limited television privileges. Others want to be praised and seek public recognition for their public obedience. Some truly want to honor their parents and please the Lord.

As you can see the motives of our hearts can vary greatly when it comes to obedience. In fact, our motives are at best mixed – both good and bad.

If your parents are involved in your life, they probably faithfully discipline you when you do wrong. As a result, avoidance of discipline can be a primary motivator for many of us. But, remember that some day you will move out of you house, be on your own, and no longer be under the direct oversight of your parents. What will motivate you do then?

We need to be motivated by a deep desire to please God. This is the mindset and attitude that will equip us for life. We will never move out of God’s domain. We will always be under his authority and rule.

We need a healthy dose of the fear of the Lord. Knowing his character and ways, we need to respect his holiness, power, and rule. Remembering he is always present and just, will shape our decisions. Knowing he calls us to be holy because he is holy will inspire us to obey his Word. Understanding his commands and the love behind each of his commands will encourage us to trust his way as we obey.

Why do you obey? At the least I hope you are thinking more about this subject. Talk it over with a godly friend or with your parents. What would they say motivates you?

Tweet

Quick to Listen - Slow to Speak - Slow to Anger - James 1:19

The book of James is filled with practical teachings. These truths challenge us, and they provide a standard to measure our lives.

James 1:19 is a good example: “My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry"

We each know someone who does not listen well. We know someone who talks too much. And we know someone who easily gets angry. These things are easy to spot in others, but completely miss seeing in ourselves.

James holds up the value of listening. A good listener genuinely cares about others and wants to hear what others say. A good listener asks questions and focuses on the answers. A good listener is more concerned about others than themselves. A good listener learns and gains wisdom. Let’s be quick to listen.

James holds up the value of being slow to speak. Speaking too quickly leads to comments we will regret later. Speaking too quickly shows a heart focused on our self, our opinions, and our wisdom. Speaking too quickly often is a sign of arrogance. Speaking too quickly means we are not listening. Let’s be slow to speak.

James holds up the value of being slow to anger. Being slow to anger means we show patience and self-control. Being quick to anger leads to harsh comments and mean actions. Being quick to anger harms those around us. Being quick to anger leads to sin and mistakes we wish we could go back and change. Let’s be slow to anger.

The book of James is practical and up in our face. These truths force us to consider ourselves and our lives. Today consider your listening, speaking, and tendencies toward anger. How are you doing? How can you change?

Thankfully, as Christians, we do not walk out our faith on our own. The Holy Spirit enables us to walk out the Christian life. When we see areas for change, the first step is repentance and the second is crying out to the Holy Spirit to enable us to change.

Tweet

Summer

What are your plans for the summer? What goals do you hope to accomplish?

Consider these four sections of Scripture:

1) I Corinthians 10:31, “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.”

If we can do simple things (like eating and drinking) to the glory of God, we can do everything to His glory (cell phone, social media, hanging out with friends and family, going to the beach, working a summer job…). This summer set a goal of living for God's glory in all you do.

2) Psalm 119:105, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.”

The Bible is a guide to light our path. We need to read it, know it, and apply it to our lives. This summer make a goal of reading the Bible every day.

3) Ephesians 6:1-3, “Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. ‘Honor your father and mother’—which is the first commandment with a promise— ‘that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy long life on the earth.’ ”

Honoring and obeying your parents will great bless them, and this passage also makes it clear that it will bless you too. This summer honor and obey your parents.

4) Ephesians 4:29, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”

Our words matter. This summer seek to use words that are helpful and build others up.

Tweet

Spiritual Growth

How does a Christian grow? How do we grow in faith? How do we grow in holiness?

Here are four ways:

       1.       Daily Reading the Bible – Each day I try to read one chapter from the Old Testament and one chapter from the New Testament. I read slowly, carefully considering the truths in each chapter. I ask God to reveal to me lessons for the day, and I seek to make practical application to my life. The change in my life may be small when measured on a daily basis, but over time the growth has been pronounced.

2.       Daily Prayer – Each day I try to spend time praying to my Heavenly Father. I seek to worship him, talk with him, and hear from him. I declare my need for his wisdom, guidance, and help. I lift up to him my family, my circumstances, and my future. I know I am communicating with the all-mighty, all-knowing, and all-powerful God of the universe. I know I am praying to my God who loves me and cares for me. Daily prayer feeds my faith.

3.       Learning from Mistakes – It is easy to beat myself up for my mistakes and endlessly rerun them endlessly in my mind. But, I try to learn from my mistakes and see them as opportunities for growth in faith, in character, and in resilience. I confess my sins and ask God to forgive me, and I acknowledge my weaknesses. I seek to be a humble learner, listening to the guidance and teaching of God. I find that in my mistakes, I am keenly aware of my need and I am often more attentive to the lessons God has for me. I do not like making mistakes, but I value the important lessons I have learned through them.

4.       Refinement through Trials – Trials are a reality of life for all of us. We are either in a trial, coming out of a trial, or heading into a trial. I get frustrated and impatient when I have to endure difficulties. Yet I also look back at my life and see how God clearly taught me through trials. Some of the clearest truths have come through lessons learned in hardship. I have walked through significant health issues personally and within my family. They have been extremely difficult, but God has met me powerfully. I have seen his closeness, and my weakness has helped me know he is near, he is strong, and he is ready to help. Although I do not like trials, I do like the spiritual growth they have produced in my life.

I pray that God continues to help us grow!

Tweet

Book Recommendation: Parenting Beyond Your Capacity

A few years ago my pastor introduced me to a book, and the title grabbed my attention immediately: Parenting Beyond Your Capacity by Reggie Joiner and Carey Nieuwhof. 

As parents, we feel overloaded and maxed out. How do we parent beyond our capacity?

The authors provide five principles:

1. Widen the Circle – Pursue strategic relationships for your kids.

2. Imagine the End – Focus your priorities on what matters most.

3. Fight for the Heart – Communicate in a style that gives the relationship value.

4. Create Rhythm – Increase the quantity of quality time you spend together.

5. Make it Personal – Put yourself first when it comes to personal growth.

I highly recommend this practical and biblically solid book. May the Holy Spirit work in us and through us as we seek to parent beyond our capacity!

Tweet

Failure

Recently I heard a mom of three children say, “I want my children to experience failure before they grow up and leave my house and are out on their own. I want to help them work through the failure, learn from the failure, and overcome the challenges of the failure.”

Her statement got my attention. There is a side of me that does not want to see my children fail or experience hardships. But, I do want them to learn to be resilient, to learn to depend on God for help, and to learn to persevere.

James 1:2-4 states, “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”

Trials, hardships, and failures are classrooms for learning patience, humility, and steadfastness. Through them God can increase our faith in Him and grow our dependence on Him. 

We all want the promise at the end of this passage: “perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” Okay, this may not happen until heaven, but none the less trials can get us closer to these targets.

I do not pray for failure for my children or myself, but I do pray for genuine faith, true humility, and godly grit and resilience. I do not know how God will accomplish this, and I realize the clearest lessons in life often come through moments of failure. Amazingly, God works mistakes, hardships, and trials for the good of Christians. He brings victory from failure.

Tweet