on track

The bible is clear that we have an enemy against our souls that is always trying to get us off track. The scripture says our struggle is not against flesh and blood but against these principalities and powers and dominions. It actually says that Satan has plans and schemes to get us off the track that God has intended for us to be on. The other part of it is even if Satan can’t get you off track by temptation and sin he tries to get us so driven in the good stuff like prayer and going to church and studying. He’ll try to get you to be so driven in your humanness that you get racing down the track of life so that whenever circumstances begin to change in your life you shoot off the track like a runaway train into disaster. God wants you to learn how to live well. That’s God’s dream.

habits

When God created the world He created it from chaos into order. There’s something about his heart that always wants to bring order to things. In His created order there are season, days and nights. And in our lives there should be predictable stable things in that context. It’s no different in our relationship with God...

the gift of pain

“Whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron.” 1 Timothy 4:2

I play guitar. I’m not very good and I will go for months without even picking one up. However, every once in a while I get this inspiration to pick one up again. Initially, my finger tips get sore and tender and warn me not to play the guitar any more. But I know that if I just hang in there for a while my finger tips will become calloused and the pain and discomfort will leave. The calloused finger no longer warns against guitars.

lots of faith

“Will the Father not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” -Jesus

In Matthew 6, Jesus was instructing his followers on how to trust God. He basically said this world is a safe place to be when God is your Father. He said we don’t have to worry and fret like people who have no connection with God (pagans) and that God is ready and eager to care for those who belong to him by supplying the simple, daily things – stuff to eat and drink, and clothes to wear.

But Jesus knew that trusting God like this would not be easy. In fact, he said it would take lots of faith to buy into the idea that God was present enough and caring enough to watch our back on the daily stuff of life. He said we evidence “little faith” when we don’t accept that.

on purpose

"Believe it or not, the Bible claims that each of us is ON PURPOSE—in other words, God knew we were coming and he planned for our arrival here. If this is true, it means we matter. It means God dreamed of our arrival before our parents knew we were coming (in that sense, we are a-dream-come-true for God). This idea hits directly against the feeling that so many struggle with—that we are just a number in a sea of humanity. The Bible claims that you and I are on purpose—that there was INTENTION for our existence..."