rebelling against low expectations
Can I be completely honest with you? I don’t have this thing called being a Christian all figured out. I struggle. I sin. I rebel. Yet somehow I’m still loved. I’ve felt captivated by the very presence of God, so close as if I could touch Him, and I’ve also cried as I asked, “God, where are You?” I’ve run—both toward Him and from Him, and ask myself again, “why do I do the things I hate to do?”...
I sat on the stump of an old apple tree. The sweet smell of blackberry cane mingled with the salty scent of the sea. The foggy curtain unfurled to reveal the bay; so calm and smooth I could see every detail of every tree and ray of light reflected on the water’s crystal surface. The birds welcomed the dawn’s golden light. All was peaceful. I feel so blessed to call this my home. I breathed in...
I dragged myself out of bed and groggily got ready for the day. I serve in a kid’s ministry called JumpStart that does church services in lower-income neighborhoods every Saturday. This was our first day of the fall semester, and I was leading games. I admit – I was not in a high-energy, bubbly mood. I was still half asleep, and not particularly happy. But it was hard to stay grumpy when I...
“It’s so hard to pray because I always forget or don’t make the time.” “I just don’t know how to grow closer to God. He feels far away.” “I feel like I’m totally failing in following Jesus. Am I even a real Christian?” Have you ever said or felt any of these things? We tend to make following Jesus a sort of production. We have to say the right things, read the Bible at a specific time, pray a...
Is doubting sinful? Have you ever asked this question? If so, you’re not alone. It’s an important question because doubt is inevitable in the human experience. Therefore, Christians should ponder the question and seek to find out if God condones his people to have doubts. If so, to what extent? What are the boundaries if doubt in itself is not sinful? What should God’s people do with their doubts...
In our world today, it can be easy for us to become discouraged as we focus on the circumstances around us and on what we can control and see. Sometimes even more for us as Christians. As society and culture gets further and further away from the Lord, it’s tempting to lose heart—but imperative that we don’t. Walking boldly in an anti-Christian culture isn’t easy. It requires that we put our...
There are many arguments for the existence of God. This article covers the top three in simple terms and gives brief summaries of each. To go more in-depth on each subject, additional resources are recommended at the end. The Moral Argument This is my favorite and most compelling argument. The moral argument says that because there are objective moral values (some things are truly right and...
New Year’s Eve 2019. I remember it like it was yesterday. We didn’t have any plans, so my family and I stayed home to ring in the New Year. We binge watched a TV show while I ate too much chocolate and an embarrassing number of cream puffs until a shiny, brand new 2020 rolled onto the calendar. Another year over. Another just begun. A few days before, I’d written in my journal, “What will this...
I ran up the path as fast as I could, struggling, out of breath, yet ecstatic. Mary Magdalene caught up to me, as she had stayed at the tomb longer. We rushed up to the door of the room where the disciples were and knocked on the door. It didn’t open. “James! He’s alive!” I yelled through the wood. I heard footsteps. As the door opened, the beautiful Sunday morning light...
“You know how something in my relationship with God has been off lately?” I asked my friend over the phone. As soon as I asked the question, I heard a quiet sigh as she replied, “Yes.” I went on to tell her what I theorized the problem to be. That happened many times over the past several months, when I finally came to realize the root of it all: my passion for Jesus was gone. However, what I...
rebelling against low expectations
