What you’re doing impacts how you’re doing. Or, put another way, what you’re doing influences how you’re feeling. A 2013 study in the Journal of Positive Psychology discovered that if you listen to upbeat music it can improve your mood. How many of you have felt lighter after listening to a stand-up comedian? How many … Continue reading What you’re doing impacts how you’re doing
The secret recipe to progress
When it comes to following Jesus we want to make progress. We want to pray more wholeheartedly, serve more freely, love more quickly, and believe more robustly. We want to see spiritual growth. So let me share a thought that has been helpful for me: Consistency is the secret recipe to progress. When we are … Continue reading The secret recipe to progress
To unbosom the soul
Near the end of The Saints’ Everlasting Rest, Richard Baxter says that we live in a “vain, vexatious world.”* Can I get an Amen! He talks about how hard it can be to live in this world, and also how soul-satisfying it can be to talk to a best friend. Some you have a best … Continue reading To unbosom the soul
Regardless of our circumstances
What if some of our prayers were somehow misdirected? What if, instead of seeking God’s will within us, our prayers were always focused on lesser things? After facing dangerous opposition, what did the disciples pray for in Acts 4:23-31? Did they pray for a day at the spa, or for their persecutors to take a … Continue reading Regardless of our circumstances
Who do you want me to love for you today?
In 1 John 3:14 we read: “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love each other.” In World War Two, Japan occupied Korea. There were religious shrines set up all over the place and people were expected to bow down to them. Esther Ahn Kim was a Christian who refused. … Continue reading Who do you want me to love for you today?
IHS: Integrity Holiness Simplicity
A man was walking through a cemetery and saw a tombstone engraved with I.H.S. He wasn’t sure what it meant so he thought for a minute and then took a guess. “Integrity. Holiness. Simplicity.” These were good biblical things, he thought. As a result, they became a kind of personal motto. Every time he saw … Continue reading IHS: Integrity Holiness Simplicity
Radical generosity
Much is made of the radical generosity of those first followers of Jesus. Acts 2:44-45 tells us that “All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need.” Not everyone did this (as other stories show), but many of them did. It was … Continue reading Radical generosity
Avoiding spiritual collapse
In 2019 a house collapsed in Salt Lake City. It seems that during some renovations, load-bearing walls were removed. Load-bearing walls carry a lot of weight and support the floors and roofs of entire houses. Some walls you can remove; some you can’t. Fortunately, no one was injured. Let’s imagine that you and I are … Continue reading Avoiding spiritual collapse
215 children
As a pastor, I spend some time in cemeteries. It’s moving to see visitors taking care of headstones, planting flowers, or simply spending quiet moments in reflection or prayer. The peace and tranquility of those scenes stands in stark contrast to a discovery in British Columbia, Canada, where the remains of 215 children were found … Continue reading 215 children
Make a plan
At first you establish your habits, and then your habits establish you. Let me explain what I mean by that and why it matters. If you do something consistently over a long period of time it becomes a habit. Some habits are good and others are bad. Smoking is a bad habit. Eating well is … Continue reading Make a plan
