Chris, one of my friends, was in a seminary class when someone raised his hand and asked the professor: What is your best advice on how to be a good pastor?”
“Empathy,” the professor replied. “Have empathy.”
Then Chris raised his hand. “How do you get empathy?
With a trace of sad knowing in his eyes, Read more…
Have you ever felt that your love for Jesus has just grown cold? Maybe you feel that way right now. If so, keep reading…
Most of us come to Christ with a certain “inloveness”—a stirring of emotion mixed with an inexplicable knowing that we’ve discovered our reason for being. But some years into our spiritual journey, the wonder that swelled during the early years ebbs into routine religion laced with busyness. Read more…
Ever feel like you just don’t have what it takes? I often do, and it all started in the first grade.
When I was six years old, I skipped off to school with a new box of crayons, a Swiss–polka dotted dress, and fresh hope that I would be smart. But first grade only confirmed my greatest fear. Read more…
If you’re like me, you’ve tried to get control of your words, and then a knee-jerk reaction makes words pop out of your mouth to make you look like a big-jerk reactor. The following story gives an example of the power of verbal reflexes and how to tame them.
One day I was driving home from the beach in July Fourth holiday traffic. Read more…
Our culture tends to want to take the easy way to success, the easy way out, and the easy way period. But what if I told you that the easy way may not be what you think?
Here’s a question. Do you think obedience to God is easy or hard? Hmmm. It is difficult to cope with the messes we get into when we don’t obey. Read more…
When is the last time you experienced God’s presence in a real and tangible way? Let’s think about that together today. I’m reminded of a conversation I had with a friend of mine.
Bob told me about a visit to Vietnam where he met with a leader of an underground Christian church. This leader, who had spent a large part of his life in prison for his faith, Read more…
One phone call and my life crumbled into a pile of dust easily blown away by shock and unbelief. In a moment, my trust in God was tested as never before. Could I trust Him with this?
Trusting God would certainly be easier if we could see Him and His angel armies face to face. But even though we can’t see the physical realm, Read more…
Sometimes when I’m reading the Bible, one little sentence jumps out and grabs me by the heart. That’s what happened when I read 1 Kings 19:19-21. This was the day that Elijah the prophet called Elisha the farmer to take his place. Here’s the verse…
“He burned the plowing equipment…” 1 Kings 19:21
Okay, this might be the strangest Bible verse I’ve written about, Read more…
Do you ever feel that you just don’t have enough time to spend the quality time you want with God? If so, I think the following excerpt from A Sudden Glory will encourage you. Keep reading…
“I just never have enough time to spend with the Lord,” Amanda cried. “I work forty plus hours a week, Read more…
Have you ever felt that this thing called life is just too hard? I know I have.
I remember when my son was four-years-old and I was trying to teach him how to snow ski. The first day was just horrible…at least it was for me. I felt like a down-covered workhorse as I lugged two sets of skis in one arm while dragging along Steven with the other. Read more…