Category Archives: Stewardship

Thoughts on Easter – Three Testimonies You Will Never Hear

“I spent ten years addicted to drugs and alcohol.  My life was wasting away.  I had tried to stop many times but the power of the addictions was just too great.  I was desperate, hopeless and in total despair. Then one day I discovered radical atheism.  I learned that there was no God, no higher power to help me, no reason for my life.  I was thrown back upon myself to try to figure .

Week #9: In His Time – The Refreshment of Patience

But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. (Gal 4:4-5) There are a great number of verses in Scripture that speak of ‘patience’, ‘waiting on the Lord’ and ‘in God’s time’.  I have chosen to reference only one because it so beautifully illustrates our main point. The verse, however, forces a .

Week #5 – Being over Doing – The Refreshment of Perspective

So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.  Matthew 16:32-33  God is infinitely more concerned with who you are than in what you do.  Do you believe .

The Most Dangerous Question You Will Ever Ask

Many years ago my 3 year-old son Anthony had a simple question for me when I told him I would be gone on a business trip for several days. “Why, Daddy?”  ‘Well’ I explained, ‘I have to meet with some people.’  That was not sufficient. The question came again, ‘why?’  I tried to answer, but he would not be deterred.  ‘Why?’ he asked again and again.  I finally gave him the answer all parents .

The Rise of Christophobia

The Greek suffix phobia used to have the simple meaning of  ‘irrational fear’, but it has been expanded in recent years to include ‘antipathy, disdain and intolerance toward some lifestyle or belief system’.  By this new definition I would propose that we are rapidly becoming a nation of Christophobes. My definition for Christophobe is simple; it is a person who is scared to death to encounter the risen Christ!  The great theologian Karl Barth .

Week #1 – The Refreshment of Memory

“Give thanks to the Lord, call on his name; make known among the nations what he has done, Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of his wonderful acts, Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.  Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.  Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles and the judgments he pronounced,  O descendants of Israel his servant, .

Refresh Your Spirit

On January 3rd I launched this blog and I have devoted the month to reflections on what it means to be ‘all-in’ for Christ and to denounce the ‘half-way’ Christian life.  Thank you to all of you who have responded and who have signed up to follow my blog. Here is my plan for the months ahead. There are ten Mondays between now and Easter.  As a lead up to Easter I will be posting .

What If We’re Wrong About Everything?

OK, maybe the title should be ‘what if I’m wrong about everything.’ The values of the kingdom of God define the ‘right side up’ life in an upside-down world.  Too often I hold onto those old worldly values and miss what God has for me.  See if you own at least some of these misperceptions. Kingdom of the world thinking:  We work in order to earn the money we need to do the things .

Is God in Your Kitchen?

This week a friend challenged me to the core by confessing to “an unwillingness to grant God unlimited permission to do whatever it takes to change me.”  That comment led me to re-examine my prayer life.  What do I pray for most often?  Most prayers are focused on asking God to change things.  Yes, there is praise and thanksgiving, but beyond that there is a litany of requests that God intervene and bring change .