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honesty

RationaLies

December 17, 2020December 16, 2020 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

It’s easy to lie to ourselves, isn’t it? We take the easy path instead of the right path—and rationalize it.We can be lazy instead of diligent—and rationalize it.We sometimes avoid the reality of God’s word—and rationalize it. Psychologist Charles Lowery says this: “Rationalize means Rational Lies.”* Bam! When we say or do something that is … Continue reading RationaLies

Dirty windows

September 21, 2020September 20, 2020 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

Someone shared a newspaper clipping with me.* It told about a young couple who had moved into a new home.  Every so often the wife would look out the window and see her neighbour hanging her laundry out to dry. “That laundry is not very clean; she doesn’t know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she … Continue reading Dirty windows

Shrove Tuesday explained

February 25, 2020February 24, 2020 / MatthewRuttan / 3 Comments

Today is Shrove Tuesday. But what is it all about? Lent is the time of spiritual preparation leading up to the main event in the Christian faith: Easter. Shrove Tuesday is the day before Lent begins. The name comes from a practice in England to “shrive” on this day: seeking and receiving forgiveness from God … Continue reading Shrove Tuesday explained

Honest about how dependent you are

September 13, 2019September 12, 2019 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

When someone says you should “shine your light,” what comes to mind? -Helping someone in need? -Talking about Jesus? -Doing your best? What about being honest about how dependent you are on God? If he’s our Teacher, then it follows that we need teaching. If he’s our Healer, then it follows that we need healing. … Continue reading Honest about how dependent you are

Don’t pretend to be perfect

July 18, 2019July 17, 2019 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

Okay, let’s be honest. Some people who believe in Christ can fall into a trap: Pretending to be perfect. You’re right: It’s not always true! But it’s sometimes true, isn’t it? Speaking to the believers in Corinth, Paul said, “we are ambassadors for Christ.” (2 Corinthians 5:20). And who doesn’t want to be a good … Continue reading Don’t pretend to be perfect

Feeling gross and dense

May 22, 2019May 17, 2019 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

At some point or another, all of us struggle with guilt. We do something wrong, we act poorly toward another person, we disobey one (or many) of God’s commands, we make a bad decision that results in many negative consequences. And that weighs heavily on us. Have you ever fell into the water with all … Continue reading Feeling gross and dense

the good news about your weakness

January 10, 2019January 9, 2019 / MatthewRuttan / 1 Comment

One of the mistakes we often make is to pretend we have it all together when we don’t. It happens innocently enough. A lot of us are doing our prayerful best to grow and become more like Jesus. But we can exaggerate or embellish our progress! Take me for example. I often don’t have answers to … Continue reading the good news about your weakness

Ambiguity: the enemy of action

December 4, 2018December 3, 2018 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

Yesterday I talked about the unpopular and much-neglected process of repentance. In fact, since it flies in the face of our Do-Anything-That-Makes-You-Happy society I kind of wonder if some of you will actually unsubscribe to this devotional after you read this! 🙂 But since repentance is biblical, it matters. And what matters to God should … Continue reading Ambiguity: the enemy of action

When is being nice a bad thing?

November 27, 2018November 26, 2018 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

My wife and I are in a small group. We meet weekly with people from our church to talk about Sunday’s sermon, the Bible passage, and pray together. One of the real benefits is hearing other people’s insights and ideas. Recently we were talking about how easy it is to over-commit. For a lot of … Continue reading When is being nice a bad thing?

When you haven’t kept your word

November 21, 2018November 20, 2018 / MatthewRuttan / Leave a comment

For the past two days I’ve been talking about being a person of your word—a person who is honest and trustworthy. In Matthew 5:37 Jesus taught about the importance of speaking with sincerity: “All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” It’s a statement that … Continue reading When you haven’t kept your word

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