rebelling against low expectations
A few months ago, I deleted my Facebook account. This was a big change for me because Facebook was my primary social media account, and I checked it constantly throughout the day. I looked at it first thing in the morning and right before I went to bed. But I realized my dependence on Facebook was damaging my life. Initially, I had taken a weeklong break from Facebook starting on election day...
Do you always find it easy to read the Bible? Do you constantly burn with a deep passion for God’s Word? If you honestly couldn’t answer yes to those questions, maybe these will resonate more. Do you struggle to meditate on God’s Word? Do you get distracted when you sit down to read? Do you long to delight in God? Yes? I know, me too. Too often our pursuit of God is so weak. We struggle with half...
The waves rose higher, beating against the boat. Wind whipped around them, stirring up the surface of the sea and tossing them back and forth. They strained against the waves, but it wasn’t any use. Suddenly, on the horizon, a figure emerged. Fear gripped their hearts . . . Does this story sound familiar? Most of you have probably read it first in the book of Matthew. “But the boat by this time...
The world tells people to live their best lives, to seek happiness and fulfillment, to focus on the here and now. But death? The only mentions that death ever gets in society today are disclaimers on medication commercials. As much as death is ignored or pushed out of people’s thoughts, it doesn’t change the fact that it is an impending, inescapable reality. It is estimated that 150,000 people...
To say 2020 was a curveball would be an understatement. There were so many new rules and regulations to follow, so many new inconveniences to face, and so many new routines to get used to. While I am still grateful for 2020, I couldn’t wait for 2021. 2021 also excited me because there is so much happening in it. I have several major exams. There are a lot of important decisions to make. And I’m...
I have last year’s goals spread out before me. Some practical: Work out two days a week. Get to bed by 10:30 each night. Some ministry and work related: Write book two. Redesign website. Some spiritual: Study the Bible in a deeper way. Be consistent with my prayer time each day. If the beginning of a year is anything, it’s a time for casting vision. Dreaming. Planning. Making new goals and...
Go ahead, be honest. Are you a little relieved 2020 is almost over? The beginning of a new year always strikes me as a little strange. I mean, if you really think about it, it’s just another day run together with all the rest. 24 hours after the day previous and 24 hours before the next. From day to day, there’s nothing special about a new year. But we still crave a fresh slate, the start of...
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...
One day, Romans 8:28 popped into my mind, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” I had no idea why, but these words prepared me for something I least expected–an attack of depression and suicidal thoughts like I’d never experienced before. While I was normal and cheerful that day, the next day I...
True worth is in being, not seeming,— In doing, each day that goes by, Some little good—not in dreaming Of great things to do by and by. For whatever men say in their blindness, And spite of the fancies of youth, There’s nothing so kingly as kindness, And nothing so royal as truth. -Alice Cary “I just want to make a difference.” My friend and I were deep in conversation. As we talked about our...
rebelling against low expectations
