rebelling against low expectations
Thanksgiving is one of my favorite times of the year. Not only has the cold weather begun to settle in, but this holiday is filled with loving family and friends, delicious food, and the remembrance of how blessed we are. But Thanksgiving also makes me sad. Not only are some people spending the holiday alone, but the very next day, Americans forget their blessings and go shopping during Black...
We live in America. We’re surrounded by technology. We have nice homes, and nice furniture, and nice cars, and more Bibles than we can shake a stick at. We have family. We have pets and decorations and books. We’re healthy. And we complain. If we look at it that way, it sounds absolutely crazy! But it’s absolutely true. We complain about not living someplace better. We complain...
Actions speak louder than words. Sound familiar? I’m guessing it does. The thing is though, our actions don’t speak–they scream. Our actions are the thing that sets us apart from everyone and everything around us, including the low expectations we are all trying to rebel against. People nowadays don’t have a high opinion of teenagers. They don’t consider us respectful or responsible, and their...
As I copied the words “humble and gentle” from Ephesians 4:2 into my journal, the list of problems I constantly faced ran through my mind. I was too quiet, too unsure. I needed confidence and boldness to speak up. Why should I focus on being humble? That seemed like the opposite. I was puzzled. Humility was something I’d figured out a while ago. I didn’t brag. I didn’t think I was the best...
The tradition of Christian apologetics has a long history, from the apostles in the book of Acts, to writers in the early church like Justin Martyr, to modern recent authors like C.S. Lewis, Lee Strobel, and John Lennox. The term itself comes from the Greek word apologia—meaning defense—and refers to laying out a logical case for why the faith is true. At some point, every Christian will be in a...
Life doesn’t have to be going poorly in order for you to be afraid. Sometimes the good things in life are just as frightening as the bad; like starting high-school or university, starting that new dream job, or finally dating that person you’ve had your eye on. Even though all of those things are good, it can be easy to still fall back into fear. What if I mess up? What if I’m...
What is the most daunting thing that Christians are called to do? Love their enemies and pray for those who persecute them? Turn the other cheek? Speak for those who can’t speak for themselves? I would say that, for me and many fellow Christians, the scariest thing we are called to do is evangelize. We are called to share our faith. It’s frightening to stick your neck out there and share the...
What do you want to accomplish in your lifetime? Pause for a moment and think it through. Maybe you thought, “Not that much,” or “I want to do a lot, but I don’t think I’ll actually be able to.” Very few will confidently think, “I’m going to do great things.” While we need to cultivate humility, and while we should seek to be openhanded with...
What is your identity? Are you a soccer player, a student, a sibling? Maybe you’re a writer, a daughter, or a friend? Somewhere in the process of defining our identity, most of us would answer that we are a child of God. This is the most important part of our identity, yet we often don’t grasp the full power of that label. All our other labels will fade away—one day, we will no longer play sports...
Let’s face it: school can be overwhelming. There are assignments to complete, to-do lists to conquer, modules to work through, and deadlines to overcome. But whether you’re an organized perfectionist, or a distracted procrastinator, as a child of God, you are called to excellence. What Is Excellence? The definition of excellence is as follows: the quality of being outstanding or extremely good...
rebelling against low expectations
