Spiritual Strength-Training

A gym with a variety of machines and equipment.

“God never gives us more than we can handle.” HA! The point of trials is exactly to give us more than we can handle. By facing more than we can handle, we are forced to lean on His strength. We are forced to learn we are not sufficient in ourselves. We learn to “not trust in ourselves,…

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Unfair!

Unfair! Something bad happened. You were accused of wrongdoing. You were criticized. You were excluded from something important. What happened? Was it unfair? Or worse? Was it the Lord’s discipline? What should you do? Is it an opportunity to demonstrate the fruits of the Spirit? It is a battle you should engage? Bad Things are…

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More Than We Can Imagine

A grassy field with trees in the background.

Nothing is impossible with God. We can ask, but He can give more than we can imagine. “With God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26) He “is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think.” (Ephesians 3:20) At the same time, we must live in dependence on and surrender to God. He…

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The Christian’s Seventh Sense

Pelicans flying over a body of water at sunset.

There are five physical senses: smell, taste, sight, touch, and hearing. Neuropsychologists say thinking is the sixth sense. Seventh Sense Christians have been given a seventh sense: spiritual discernment. “But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because…

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If Only

A stack of books on a shelf.

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. I–finally—ordered “grown-up bookcases” to replace my college concrete block and board shelves. I carefully measured to maximize the shelf space and pictured how wonderful they’d look. But I didn’t, not for one second, consider getting the bookcases from the driveway into my study. The corner unit could not be maneuvered through the hall and…

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How to Get Out of the Mud

Oops. That was muddier than I expected. How to get out of the mud How to get out of the mud. 1) Stop digging. And Jesus said, “Go. From now on sin no more.” (John 8:11) 2) Don’t spend all your energy thinking about how you got here (but that’s useful to help prevent getting back…

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Move On, Buster!

A black dog is walking in the snow.

Driving from a crowded event, a policeman forced me to turn right when I needed to go straight. He didn’t want to hear about my problem. He just wanted me to move on. Humph. Move on God said something similar to Moses and to Paul. Moses really wanted to cross over the Jordan and see…

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Songs in the Night

A cloud over a pine tree at sunset.

When you are awake in the middle of the night, what are you doing? Worrying? Thinking about what you are going to do tomorrow? Reviewing your “To Do” list? Singing? Singing? God gives us songs in the night. (Job 35:10) Songs in the Night Songs in the night is God’s wonderful gift for the believer.…

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I’m Tired

A dog laying on a dog bed.

This has been quite a year! And its only summer. I completed the final edits on my book. My book was released! I’ve had four eye surgeries and a gazillion doctor visits. I’m tired. I’m low energy. I’m not getting much done. At the moment, I’m not even rejoicing that my book was released after…

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Presumption

Two fishing poles on the beach.

True or False: Process versus Outcome: We have responsibility over our thoughts, words, and deeds, but we do not control the outcome. We can be nice, loving, and giving, and yet the Bible guarantees some will hate us (Matthew 10:22; 24:9). We can work hard, and even get good results for our companies, but that does…

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