David imploded. He slept with the wife of one of his generals then in shame and fear, had the general killed in battle. Psalm 51 is a public declaration of the egregious sin and repentance. Could it have been stopped? Something to think about. Saul, on the other hand, live a life of implosion. Time after time, he would throw spears in a fit of rage, accuse friends and family of conspiracy, even threaten …
Read MoreSaul was unable to lead his family, his army, and his nation because he did not have a trusting relationship with them. As a result of his poor relationships with others, Saul attempted to maintain his authority by control. When this was unsuccessful, he became angry or should I say “more angry!” He lost his direction as a leader and died with his sons shamefully in a losing battle. Anger can get the best of many men and that happens when they don’t take their disappointments to the Lord in prayer. Sadly that anger can have lasting effects on those they love most.
All of us as husbands have been given authority in our families. How do we use this authority? Do we attempt to lead through our depth of relationship…
Read MoreLie: You need to do more.
Truth: You may need to do less in your schedule; you may need to rest more.
Not creating margin in your schedule can lead to a lot of stress and lack of peace. Margin leaves time to breath. Some of you are simply over-scheduled.
Lie: You don’t have time to rest.
Truth: God designed a sabbath - a day of rest and worship to remind you that it is HE who has done a great work for you. God told Abraham “I will make you a blessing …” God told Peter “I will make you a fisher of men…” Take time every single Sunday at the beginning of the week reminds us that it is GOD who is at work in our lives, GOD who made us in ...
Read MoreOn June 25, 1962 We started with taking prayer out of school because they said it disrespected other religions.
On June 27, 1963 They disallowed the Bible from public readings because they said it disrespected other religions.
On July 1, 2017 they made gay marriage legal because they said it was a human right.
On June 14, 2021 They seemingly reclassified pedophiles as MAPs when they hung up the 'Progress Pride Flag' which includes 'Minor Attracted Persons' in it from…
Read MoreGod has truly made us. He made us. We are His art, the product of His craftsmanship. This simple truth should dispel all lies of shame and disparaging victim mentality. When Genesis 1:27 really starts to settle in, that God breathed the God-breath into us and made us in His likeness in order to replicate HIS LIKENESS on the earth, we find ourselves in a posture of incredible gratitude. The sense of wonder overtakes as we discover our divine purpose to extend Eden and cultivate the ways of God in the world around us!
If Eugene Peterson is right…{read more}
Read MoreConstantine, who was a Roman soldier, won victory in battle and became the Roman Emperor and contributed his success to the Christian God and immediately institutionalized Christianity. It became the religion on the Roman Empire.
Which you’d think that’d be good right? Institutionalize Christianity. Mandate faith.
No. It forced people to elevate man and the Arch Bishops and the Priests and “The Church” became a place where you went to get married, a place where you dedicate your child, a place and not a movement, an institution comprised of buildings and hierarchy instead of a family of God, children of God caring for one another. All across America today, we still have buildings where you…
Read MoreWhat God was saying to me was “Why don’t you let Me into that space of your heart that still craves fulfillment in that area?” I pulled the car over to respond. No really I did. I pulled over and said “Ok God why does this matter to me? Is my desire for…
Read MoreWorship Leaders, you have a powerful role to play.
You are not just “the band”
You are not “just the preliminaries”
You are the levites who go first.
Read MoreI recall giving a prophetic word to a young man about his prayer to impact men in his house in a men’s group. He was afraid he wasn’t good enough (but his wife “was good enough”) and simply hadn’t said yes. The Lord gave me a word of knowledge about it and I shared it with him. I told him “You ARE good enough because Jesus is good enough. You will lead men and you will…
Read MoreI used to go to church but just don’t want to go back. I was hurt when the pastor asked me to …
Read MoreIf you know me, you know that I LOVE unity and can't stand it when Christian leaders call out by name those they think are heretics when the issue they're arguing is very gray and a matter of preference or interpretation.
THIS IS NOT THE CASE. Andy Stanely of North Point in Georgia is hosting…
Patterns of thought can be incredibly helpful or detrimental. A myriad of research has come out in recent years on neural pathways. What science is showing is that the Bible was right. We can be renewed in our mind and in our way of thinking. We all have a “way” of thinking, in fact, many ways. Some of those patterns formed when we observed our parents, and without knowing it, we emulated them. Some of those patterns developed through trauma. When we…
Read More“What sorrow for those who say that evil is good and good is evil, that dark is light and light is dark, that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter. What sorrow for those who are wise …
Read MoreSometimes you do everything you can to do the right thing. But there will still be people who misunderstand you, judge you and slander your name. What then? What do we do when we’re doing everything we can to serve people well, choose righteousness, lead our family or anyone it is that we’re leading, and still people …
Read More“Better play it safe” is something your friend or your mom says to you while you’re considering doing something you’ve never done before. Maybe it’s white water rafting
…
Read MoreI imagine you’re like me and you want to be as effective as possible. We all want God to say to us “Well done good and faithful servant...” We want Him pleased with us. So often though, we get caught up in the whirlwind of daily and weekly tasks, that we don’t do something essential. The Bible gives us an interesting piece of advice when it comes to life and to the idea of effectivness and/or leadership.
Read MoreWhat if we are missing out on some of the most beautiful blessings that God intends us to experience? What if the joy that we long for in life only comes in the act of giving, of sacrifice, of surrender?
Read MoreJesus was poised. He took between her and judgment. He wasn’t shaken by the crowd of Pharisees who were circled around him, stones in the air. He could’ve been afraid that He too would be stoned to death. But He knew He could trust the Father to protect Him; He was doing the Father’s will.
Read MoreThere she was, the slave of a wealthy man named Abraham. He and Sarah had owned her for quite some time and she’d actually grown to love them. Her master and his wife were given a promise by God that in their old age, God would give them a miracle - and not just any miracle of one child but the miracle of a thousand miracles - they’d have more grandchildren than there are sand on the shore. Off in the distance ringing out the clothes is a woman named Hagar.
Read MoreWell, ok maybe it wasn't really a "party trick" but doesn't it seem odd that Jesus would simply make a party better for his debut appearance? I mean why not make a leg grow or open blind eyes? I think it's because …
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