What if the people we influence learn how to behave, but never learn how to come to Jesus? What if they remember our advice, admire our values, and follow our example, yet never meet the Savior we claim to represent? That possibility breaks my heart. It also makes me examine my own. I recently heard [...]
It’s easy to talk about the love of Jesus until someone says something that makes you want to have the last word. Yesterday, that someone was me. I had a relational conflict, and instead of responding with patience and self-control, I let my emotions do the talking. I wanted my words to reflect Christ. In [...]
Have you been holding on to the hope of something for so long that you sometimes wish your dream would die so you could be relieved of longing? If you're like me, you've wrestled with a desire or two for years and there are times your heart has sometimes felt worn out from waiting. Which [...]
Psalm 84:10 says, “Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.” When I first read that verse, I understood it to mean that I would rather do something small for God, like [...]
A magnifying glass fascinated me as a child. It helped me see things I normally couldn’t see. Fasting can have a similar effect on our relationship with God. It helps us look closer. Fasting is more than skipping a meal. It is an intentional decision to humble ourselves and make room for God. We temporarily [...]
Yesterday I took a “selfie.” It wasn’t flattering. In fact, it was downright ugly, and I wish I could have deleted it. I’m not talking about a picture taken with my phone. The “selfie” I’m talking about was self pity. I’m usually an optimistic person, but something happened yesterday that completely threw me off. Before [...]
I wish I could say I’ve always lived out what Jesus said in Matthew 5:23. That call to go and be reconciled with someone who has something against you sounds simple when you read it. It feels very different when you have to do it. If I’m honest, my reasons for not going were never [...]
People often talk about purpose in terms of what they do. A career. A role. A skill they’ve built over time. Those things matter, but they are not the deepest reason you are here. There is a greater purpose. A first calling that comes before all the others. The apostle Paul made it clear. Above [...]
The morning is still and tender.The earth glistens beneath your feet as dew clings to each blade of grass, catching the first light of dawn. The sky is waking—soft gold spilling into pale blue—and something in your chest feels awake too… expectant. You lace your shoes slowly, almost reverently. Today feels different. You step forward, [...]
When I taught middle school in Texas, Lori was one of my special education students. She had a contagious personality and a beautiful spirit—and when she was thrilled about something, her brown, curly hair shook, jived, and jiggled like something out of a 1970s disco. One afternoon Lori rushed toward me with her hair dancing [...]
