Category Archives: Christian Living

Posted on

There Is Room For Only One God

(And It’s Not You!)

SYNOPSIS: The battle for what we might call “godship” is more prevalent than we care to admit. You see, when we fret and worry over matters we can’t control, when we meddle and manipulate to get our plans fulfilled, when we come to God after the fact for help, when we pray as a last rather than a first resort, when we cut corners in our financial stewardship because we can’t afford to give to the Lord’s work, and when we put our hope in government (or anything else) at the expense of our trust in God, in effect, we have removed God from his rightful throne. There is only One who is God—and that is neither you nor me. In light of that, have you told the Lord lately that you have no God but him? Maybe you should do it now!

There Is Room For Only One God

Moments With God // Psalm 131:1

My heart is not proud, O LORD, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me.

There is only One who is God—and that’s not you! Basically, that is what King David is saying of himself in this brief song of ascent. The Message translates verse one this way:

God, I’m not trying to rule the roost,
I don’t want to be king of the mountain.
I haven’t meddled where I have no business
or fantasized grandiose plans.

Yet this business of godship is more prevalent than we care to admit. You see, when we fret and worry over matters we can’t control, when we meddle and manipulate to get our plans fulfilled, when we come to God after the fact for help, when we pray as a last rather than a first resort, when we cut corners in our financial stewardship because we can’t afford to give to the Lord’s work, and when we put our hope in government (or anything else) at the expense of our trust in God, in effect, we have removed God from his rightful throne.

There is room for only one God in your life, so let God be God. He has a great track record in that role, you know, and you don’t.

And by the way, when you allow God to be God, good things happen for you:

  • You become the recipient of greater grace. Recognizing God’s rightful role takes true humility (the opposite of pride and haughtiness), as David describes, “My heart is not proud, O LORD, my eyes are not haughty”—Psalm 131:1a. Of course, the Bible repeatedly tells us this is always the catalyst for greater grace. (Prov 3:34)
  • You become the recipient of greater security. You put things that are above your pay grade back into the hands of the only One wise enough to handle them—what David calls “great matters or things too wonderful for me” —Psalm 131:1b (See how Paul describes them in Rom 11:33-36)
  • You become the recipient of greater confidence. Someone else is running the universe, which means you don’t carry that great weight upon your shoulders. David says, “But I have stilled and quieted my soul” —Psalm 131:2a … which is possible only when you first walk with the Shepherd who leads you beside quiet waters and restores your soul.
  • You become the recipient of greater contentment. David describes it, “like a baby content in its mother’s arms, my soul is a baby content” —Psalm 131:2b (MSG) Paul says, “Godliness with contentment is great gain.” (1 Tim 6:6)
  • You become the recipient of greater hope. “O Israel, put your hope in the Lord both now and forevermore”—Psalm 131:3. It is by Biblical hope, as Paul teaches, “we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what he already has?” (Rom 8:24) “Hope” as Paul says in Romans 5:5, “does not disappoint us…”

Hmmm…grace, security, confidence, contentment, hope. I think I’ll let God be God!

Take A Moment: Have you told the Lord lately that you have no God but him? Maybe you should do it now!

Posted on

Don’t Set Your Heart On Temporal Things

What You CAN Take With You

SYNOPSIS: In our culture, we get caught up in the chase for the temporal—fame, fortune, pleasure, and possessions—far too easily. God’s Word constantly reminds us that those things will do us no good the second we step from time into eternity. And if we fail to recalibrate our instruments, at some point, maybe in this life, but for sure, in the next, we will come in for a very rough landing. No, you can’t take it with you, but you can take your experience of pursuing what God’s wisdom calls us to prioritize: your experience of knowing God and internalizing the wisdom that comes from him, then living what you know and what you’ve embraced in your moment-by-moment life on earth!

What You CAN Take It With You

Moments With God // Proverbs 3:15

Wisdom is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her.

“You can’t take it with you!” You have heard that saying, haven’t you? No matter what you amass in this life—wealth, possession, power, and fame—it will all stay outside the box on the day they lower that box containing your cold, clammy body six feet under. I have conducted dozens and dozens of funerals in my time as a minister, and I have yet to see a hearse pulling a U-Haul behind it. And it will always be that way. Why? Simply because of this one unalterable truth: You can’t take it with you!

I spoke with a friend a while back who experienced a pretty rough three-year stretch—and when I say rough, just imagine the worst. Yet he was doing well spiritually and emotionally. I asked him since God promises to bring good out of what causes us grief, what good had he seen in his Job-like experience. Without hesitation, he said his challenges had brought him closer to the Lord and had driven him to God’s Word, which he now loves passionately. He spoke of a new commitment to Christian community and closeness with brothers and sisters in Christ like never before. He shared about all that his journey through difficulties taught him, including the realization that the loss of his six-figure salary had no effect whatsoever on God’s track record of providing for his daily bread. In this most difficult journey, he had discovered “the wisdom that is from above,” as James 3:17 calls it—and nothing he had previously held dear could come close to that!

That man had found true wisdom, which God’s Word says is more precious than rubies, and nothing we desire can compare with her.

In our culture, we so easily get caught up in the chase for the temporal—fame, fortune, pleasure, and possessions. If that might be the case for you, I would challenge you to read Proverbs 3:13-20 and let the Word of God recalibrate your instruments, or at some point, you will come in for a really rough landing.

Let this proverb, and the two verses that precede it, remind you: “Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding, for she is more profitable than silver and yields better returns than gold Wisdom is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire can compare with her.” (Prov 3:13-14)

No, you can’t take fame and fortune, pleasure and possessions with you when you leave this life, but you can take your experience of knowing God and internalizing the wisdom that comes from him, then living what you know and what you’ve embraced in your moment-by-moment life on earth!

Take A Moment: Read Proverbs 3:13-20, then on a piece of paper, write down in one column the benefits of pursuing and attaining wisdom. After you have done that, write down in another column the benefits of pursuing and attaining money, pleasure, power, and things. The answer will be obvious, but it serves as a good reminder: Five minutes after your death, which column of benefits will matter then?

Posted on

Viewer Discretion Is Advised

Learn to T.H.I.N.K. Before You Decide, Speak, or Act

SYNOPSIS: How many lives have crashed and burned by a lack of discretion? How many careers have been ruined by an absence of understanding? How many marriages have failed and families imploded because of poor judgment? How much potential evaporated because someone did not make wise choices? Here’s a sobering exercise: Go back to your high school yearbook and take note of the wreckage of far too many people who squandered one opportunity after another simply by failing to exert discretion. Here’s the deal: God has given you a wonderful gift—the ability to choose wisely. Simply exercising discretion today will keep you from disaster tomorrow. I trust that you will use that gift to its fullest potential.

Discretion is Advised

Moments With God // Proverbs 2:11

Discretion will protect you, and understanding will guard you.

Harry Emerson Fosdick, the well-known preacher of a hundred years ago, wrote, “He who chooses the beginning of a road chooses the place it leads to. It is the means that determine the end.” The ability to choose the right road is what discretion is all about.

The dictionary defines discretion as sound judgment and the power to decide rightly. It is the ability to judge right from wrong and choose what is wholesome from what is harmful. Solomon, one of the wisest men who ever lived, tells us that discretion—the power to choose plus the decision to choose wisely—is one of the main ingredients to wisely navigating the sometimes rocky and often dangerous course on the journey of life.

How many lives have crashed and burned by a lack of discretion? How many careers have been ruined by an absence of understanding? How many marriages have failed and families imploded because of poor judgment? How much potential evaporated because someone did not make wise choices? Here’s a sobering exercise: Go back to your high school yearbook ten, twenty, or thirty years after your graduation, and chances are you will see the wreckage of far too many people who squandered one opportunity after another simply by failing to exert discretion.

As noted, the practice of discretion, or the lack thereof, tells much about who we are and the places we will go in life. Listen carefully to the wise words of Eleanor Roosevelt: “One’s philosophy is not best expressed in words. It is expressed in the choices one makes.” She goes on, as does Solomon in Proverbs 2, to place the responsibility of exerting discretion and making wise choices squarely at our feet: “And the choices we make are ultimately our responsibility.” (Tim Kimmel, Little House on the Freeway, 143)

God has given you a wonderful gift—the ability to choose wisely. Simply exercising discretion today will keep you from disaster tomorrow. I trust that you will use that gift to its fullest potential. The choice is yours!

Now, the question you likely want to ask me is, “How can I nurture discretion in my life?” Or, “how can I help my child learn to use discretion as they grow into their teen and young adult years?” Well, I would say, first of all, that prayer never hurts. Ask God for it. James 1:5 exhorts, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.”

Beyond that, I think the THINK method ought to be a mental checklist we use and teach our children to use throughout the day. I am not sure who came up with this simple formula, but it is good. Before you decide, speak, and act, first THINK:

  • T – true: ask, “Is this true?”
  • H – helpful: ask, “Will this help me and others?”
  • I – inspiring: ask, “Will this inspire people to greater heights?”
  • N – necessary: ask, “Is it necessary for me to do this?”
  • K – kind: ask, “Will  those around me receive this as kindness?”

Train yourself—and your children—to THINK first, and your family will be known for its discretion.

Take A Moment: Ask someone who knows you well and has observed you over the years to evaluate your life in the areas of wisdom and discretion. Ask for their honest opinion and be ready to hear their answers. Be even more prepared to take immediate action if changes are appropriate. Additionally, interview someone known for discretion, and ask them to share their formula.

Posted on

Enticements

Just Say No

Synopsis: As Christ-followers, we are on a glorious journey, but it is no easy trip. An infinitely glorious and eternally rewarding trip, yes, but a very difficult one. In fact, Jesus said that the path we will travel is straight and narrow, and not too many will actually find it, much less successfully walk it. To stay on this path, Jesus went on to say, there will need to be self-denial, cross-bearing, and intense focus—on a daily, if not moment-by-moment basis. But if we will do the hard, focused, self-denying work of turning our back on sinful enticements, we will reap the grand prize at our journey’s end that will far outweigh any pain our self-denial required as well as whatever “loss” we incurred by rejecting those sin’s mouthwatering promises. And best of all, we will hear the Lord say, “Well done! Now come and share your master’s happiness.”

Discerning the sugar-coated manipulations of sin

Moments With God // Proverbs 1:10

My child, if sinners entice you, turn your back on them!

Oscar Wilde famously said, “I can resist just about anything—except temptation.” Me too!

God’s Word says that you and I are on a glorious journey, but the truth is, this is no easy trip. An infinitely glorious and eternally rewarding one—yes—but easy? No way! In fact, Jesus said that the path we travel on is straight and narrow, and not too many will actually find it, much less successfully walk it. To stay on this path, Jesus went on to say, there will need to be self-denial, cross-bearing, and intense focus—on a daily, if not moment-by-moment basis.

That means today (let’s let tomorrow worry about tomorrow), you will have to say “no” to what this proverb calls sinners: “My child, if sinners entice you, turn your back on them.” (Proverbs 1:10) The fact of the matter is, these “sinners” are all along your way, devilish hecklers disguised as adoring fans whose one and only assignment is to entice you down an alternative path, a shortcut to pleasure that, truthfully, always fails to deliver what it promises while saddling you instead with nothing but disappointment, pain, and loss.

Sorry to have to be the one to break it to you like this, but those “sinners” are waiting for you as you head out the door to wherever your glorious journey will take you today—to work, to school, to play, or even staying indoors to serve God in the daily routine required by your assignment at home. Here’s the thing: You have to be alert to them, be discerning to their sugar-coated manipulations, and be ready to give them a throaty “no way” when they ply you with their counterfeit divines.

I am sure you already know this, but these enticing “sinners” may not be real, live people. They may be subtle arguments that enter your mind, slick operators coming through the airwaves, simple desires at work within your soul, or sinful systems at work in the world that throughout the day routinely pull you away from God as sure as the gravitation pull of the moon working twice a day on the tides.

They are called temptations, by the way, and you are called to resist them. Moreover, as strong as those temptations might be, 1 Corinthians 10:13 reminds you,

Remember this—the wrong desires that come into your life aren’t anything new and different. Many others have faced exactly the same problems before you. And no temptation is irresistible. You can trust God to keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can’t stand up against it, for he has promised this and will do what he says. He will show you how to escape temptation’s power so that you can bear up patiently against it.

If you will do the hard, focused, self-denying work of turning your back to the sinner’s enticement, you will reap the grand prize at your journey’s end that will far outweigh the pain your self-denial required as well as whatever “loss” you incurred by rejecting their mouthwatering promises.

Take A Moment: Meditate on 1 Corinthians 10:1-13. Identify some of the “ways out” God has given you in every temptation. Today, look for those divine exits—and take one of them.

Posted on

A Promise Made Is A Promise Kept

God’s Got All Your Concerns Covered

SYNOPSIS: Do you have either a nagging concern distracting you or an overwhelming burden pulling you down? The good news is there is a promise in the Bible that covers all your concerns and burdens: “God will perfect everything that concerns you.” (Psalm 138:8, NKJV) Did you catch that? EVERYTHING! So fulfill your end of the promise: take your concerns to God in prayer, obey what he tells you to do, trust his loving care and complete competence to meet the need, then stand on his promises. You see, with God, a promise made is a promise kept.

Moments With God // Focus: Joshua 21:45

Not a single one of all the good promises the Lord had given to the family of Israel was left unfulfilled; everything he had spoken came true.

What a great verse! Toward the end of the Book of Joshua, after Israel had conquered their enemies and had taken possession of their promised land, Israel’s brilliant commander, Joshua, made this declaration: not a single one of God’s promises remained unfulfilled. What an amazing testimony about God’s faithfulness. But more than just a significant piece to ancient Israel’s historical record, the author of the book, inspired by the true Author, God, included this line so that you and I would know that since he is the same yesterday, today, and forever, this will be our experience with God as well.

A certain Bible scholar pointed out that God has made over 6,000 promises to us in the Bible  Some of those promises are universal in nature—all believers anytime and anywhere who are walking in obedience to his commands can claim them  Other promises are quite specific to certain people at certain times, and the Holy Spirit reveals them to us through prayer and the study of God’s Word in response to situations that arise in our lives.

Whether God’s promises are universal or personal, what we are taught repeatedly in the Bible, including this verse in Joshua, is that God is a promise maker, and more importantly, God is a promise keeper  The fact is, God has never broken a promise—not even one  I can’t say that about me, and you probably can’t say that about you, but we can say that with complete certainty about God  With him, a promise made is a promise kept.

When I was a little kid in Sunday School, we would often sing a song about God’s promises that went something like this:

Every promise in the Book is mine
Every chapter, every verse, every line.
I am standing on his Word Divine,
Every promise in the Book is mine!

Over 6,000 promises—and he will bring every single one of them to pass  Here are just a few of those 6,000 promises that are for you  Upon which one will you “stand” today and every day until God fulfills it in your life?

  • That he will forgive all your sins  (Psalm 103:3)
  • That he will supply all of your needs  (Phil 4:19)
  • That he will never leave you or forsake you  (Heb 13:5)
  • That he will give you Divine wisdom for your lack of human understanding  (Jas 1:5)
  • That he will turn all of your circumstances to your good and for his glory  (Rom 8:28)

What is your area of concern  A promise covers it, so look it up in God’s Word  Fulfill your end of the promise—that’s the big caveat here—and then rest in God’s proven character  What is your end  Pray, obey, trust, and stand  Do that, and you can plant your feet firmly in the certainty of God’s Word because a promise made is kept with him.

Yes, you can expect that “God will perfect everything that concerns you.” (Psalm 138:8, NKJV)

Take A Moment: Are you “standing” on a specific promise  Are you praying, asking God to fulfill it  Are you offering him a life of obedience in your attitude and actions  If not, why not  Don’t leave any of those 6,000 promises on the table  Your Father wants to fulfill them in your life.

Posted on

Trophy Wife

She Deserves A Trophy Husband

Synopsis: As a Christian man, if you desire the wife of noble character that Proverbs 31 describes – the truest kind of trophy wife, not because of her physical beauty and charming personality, but because of her godly virtues – then work on growing as a man of character. She will grow in response to the growth in godliness she sees in you. But even if she doesn’t, you are accountable to God to be that kind of man anyway.

Moments With God // Proverbs 31:10

A wife of noble character who can find? She is worth far more than rubies.

Most red-blooded American men want a trophy wife. And every man deserves one! Oh, not the kind you may be conjuring up in your mind right now—the kind hot babe Hollywood has invented—with the aid of cosmetic surgeons, make-up artists, and photoshop, of course.

The one I am referring to is the kind of woman Proverbs 31 talks about. She is a trophy gal not because she has a hot bod, but a holy character. Guys, that is a longer-lasting and infinitely more rewarding kind of woman than the carefully coiffed and cosmetically crafted woman our sensual and selfish culture promotes. The culture-built woman’s looks have a shelf life of only so long, and while you are enjoying her looks, if she doesn’t have a godly character to sustain her, those looks probably won’t be that pretty after all!

If you have a woman of noble character, like me, you are a blessed man indeed. I am doubly blessed with a woman of both beauty and grace. If you are looking for a trophy wife, take my advice: Set your sites on noble character above all else. As Proverbs 31:30 says,

Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

Now if the wife you have, in your opinion, is not a Proverbs 31 woman, here is what I would suggest: Begin to treat her as if she were, and watch what God will do. And as he is working on her, be the man of noble character she deserves.

And if you are in a serious dating relationship, make sure your soon-to-be trophy wife will have a sugar daddy husband in you. Not the kind you are thinking, but the kind the Bible calls you to be: a man of pure and noble character himself. What kind of husband is that?

  • He offers her a character that is morally pure: “your name [which represents character] is like perfume poured out [refined from all impurity].” (Song of Songs 1:3)
  • He desires to know her, talk to her, and listen to her: “Husband, dwell with your wife with understanding way.” (1 Pet 3:7 NKJV)
  • He refuses to control and pressure her into what he wants her to be: “Honor her, delight in her.” (1 Pet 3:7, Message)
  • He serves and sacrifices for her: “Husbands, go all out in your love for your wives, exactly as Christ did for the church—a love marked by giving, not getting.” (Ephesians 5:23, Message)
  • He loves her just as Christ loved his bride, the church: “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church.” (Eph 5:23, NIV)

As a husband, if you will work on growing in those areas, your wife’s noble character will grow in response to the growth she sees in you. Even if she doesn’t, you are accountable to be that kind of man anyway.

And if you are not yet married, work on being that kind of man. And if you will do that, you will not be able to keep the ladies away—the right kind of ladies!

Take A Moment: If you are a wife, develop a set of growth points from Proverbs 31. If you are a husband, develop your set from Ephesians 5:25-33.

Posted on

Tying God’s Hands

Only You Can Surrender Your Willful Unbelief

SYNOPSIS: What is the one thing Jesus can’t do? Violate a person’s willful unbelief, that’s what. He will help a person’s humble admission of unbelief (“Lord, help my unbelief”), but he will not impose his Lordship on someone’s refusal to give him a chance. And that includes you! Only you can control your willful unbelief.

Moments With God // Mark 6:5-6

Jesus could do no mighty work there, except that He laid His hands on a few sick people and healed them. And He marveled because of their unbelief.

This is one of the most amazing texts in the entire Bible. Jesus—the second person of the Trinity, the visible image of the invisible God; the one who existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation; the one through whom God created everything in heaven and on earth, the things we can see and the things we can’t see. Think of all those things Jesus created and controls, even when it doesn’t seem like things are under control: thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Yes, Jesus is the one by whom all creation is held together (Col 1:15-17). He is the one who had raised the dead, healed the sick, delivered the demonized, fed the five thousand, and walked on water. Astoundingly, this very Jesus could do no mighty works in his own town because of the unbelief of the people who knew him.

And even he—the one who had seen it all—was amazed by their unbelief. I would dare say it must take an awful lot to stump Jesus!

What is the one thing Jesus can’t do? Violate a person’s willful unbelief, that’s what. He will help a person’s humble admission of unbelief (“Immediately the boy’s father exclaimed, ‘I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!’” Mark 9:14-25), but he will not impose his Lordship on someone’s refusal to give him a chance.

Now before we get all huffy about Jesus’ neighbors, do you think we sometimes do that with Jesus, too? Haven’t we seen his glory, tasted his goodness; been touched by his love and grace and power, yet we still question his right of Lordship over our lives? You might say, “but I don’t do that!” Yes, you do—so do I! How? We do that when we give in to doubt, worry, fear, depression, anger, or engage in any number of other self-medicating, self-destructive acts, like overspending, overeating, oversleeping, over-talking, over-sharing, over-indulging in sexually addictive behaviors, substance abuse…and the list goes on.

Why would we surrender to any of those harmful and deceptive things when we have seen and touched the power and glory of the Lord Jesus Christ? Truthfully, I don’t know why we would. Sometimes my own propensity to resist Christ’s loving Lordship amazes me.

Here’s what I do know: If we will take an honest look at where we are resisting Jesus’ right to rule over us—both passively and willfully—and come to him with a humble request that he help our unbelief, even that crack in the door will be enough for him to do his mighty works in our lives.

Otherwise, you will be tying God’s hands. And that will amaze even him—and not in a good way. So instead offer him your humble, simple faith, and Jesus will likewise be amazed—and I mean in the best way possible, just as we see in Luke 7:9,

Jesus was amazed. Turning to the crowd he said, “Never among all the Jews in Israel have I met someone with faith like this.”

Take A Moment: Offer this prayer sincere today: Jesus, there are still areas of my life where I resist your Lordship. Help my unbelief. I open the door of my heart to you and invite you to burst through it to accomplish your mighty works in me.