The World Through My Eyes

As believers, we can get overwhelmed juggling daily tasks and responsibilities while burdened with what we see God doing in our lives spiritually.  As we walk through our lives we carry what is happening inside with us everywhere we go. The internal journey evolves slowly, but for the most part it’s consistent and constant. We wake up every morning with it staring us in the face. God teaches us more and more as we grow and walk with Him.  On the other hand, the external is ever-changing. Our daily tasks may be a mundane routine, but no two days are the same. As time passes, our roads take many twists and turns along the way.  It can be very overwhelming to walk and stay focused on the external when the unfolding of what is happening internally gets to be more than we can bear. This happens because so much of what takes place day to day reminds us of the inner passage.   We see all of this before us and challenge the old idea that “God does not give us more than ...

Confession #1:  I'm a "scripture scroller." It sounds very high and spiritually mighty, but I assure you it is not. It's quite the opposite, in fact. By "scripture scroller" I mean when I see a single Bible verse posted on Facebook, I tend to scroll past it and not read it. Probably because I'd rather feed my flesh on social media than my Spirit. Because of the latter, I immediately feel shame for bypassing words that come from that which gives all meaning to my life. I have two reasons for doing this. One I like to think is spiritually noble and the other is flat out sinful. We'll start with the noble one. While many single Bible verses are great and can stand alone, some cannot. In many cases context matters so when I see one I cringe a little that it will be applied out of context therefore clouding the glass of my Spirit's beloved living water. Now as for my sinful reason, I just don't like reading Bible verses. Yeah, you read that r...

I write often, but I do not share everything I write. I hesitate to share when God teaches me something in a powerful way because I wrestle with the voice of pride that says “you just want to share this so people will think you’re super spiritual” or “you just want people to look at YOU and think you’re so good.” I mean let’s face it I AM awesome ;), but I’m also a walking disaster and those who know me well are aware of both things. ;) (wink again) But I loathe the voice. It debilitates me from sharing what God has taught me. God recently helped me determine whether my motives are pure in a different situation and it has given much peace. And guess what?! He used his Word to show me. You know, that good book that’s been collecting dust on the nightstand for a few days.   In that book, Paul writes to the church of Corinth in 2 Corinthians to encourage them after having had to rebuke them over sin they had allowed to take root in the church. Paul wrestled with having to rebuke them ...

Math and I have a strained relationship. We never got along all that well in high school, but he’s proved to be helpful from time to time through adulthood so I have not written him off completely. As a visual learner, I gravitate toward picture problems like bar or line graphs and pie charts. This I understood better because I could see it broken down in single dimensions. I realized recently that I tend to view my spiritual status on a bar graph too. When my prayer life seems good, my household is thriving and temptation to sin seems fairly low, I feel best positioned for ministry and service. Unfortunately, this type of “if…then…” approach to ministry doesn’t always work and certainly does not last. I can recall a time in my life when all my bar graphs were looking pretty good and I decided to graciously sacrifice my “holy self” by spending an entire day in prayer for others around me in need. Although my motives were pure, the hidden pride that prompted this endeavor could not...

I’ve never been able to find certain places on the map. You know, those far away exotic countries like Courage, Bravery, Confidence, or Adventure. It’s all fine and good for the superstars on TV or the great Bible heroes, but I see them and think, “yeah, that will never be me.” Most likely you will find me in a little hidden town called Fearville at 1505 Worry Ln. enjoying a nice big bowl of anxiety for breakfast. This is where I reside. This is where life makes sense. A friend recently said that bravery isn’t the opposite of fear; rather, it is overcoming something you are afraid of despite the fear. Her statement stuck with me. I’ve never considered myself to be brave at all, but I have definitely pushed my way through some moments of uncertainty, so maybe it isn’t so far from home. Throughout my teen years and on into adulthood, I’ve walked through many seasons of extreme anxiety. As a teen, my fears were a bit more irrational than they are now. I conjured up all sorts o...

As a believer in Christ, the issue of setting boundaries within relationships has often eluded me. I've always thought since God's love for us knows no bounds, neither should mine. Not to say our sin has no consequences, but simply that we cannot out-sin his mercy and grace. Knowing this, we try to be Christ -like in every way by loving all people unconditionally regardless of how difficult and unpleasant they may be. We do this because we know that God has offered us forgiveness and mercy and we want to make that available to others as well. However, the list of broken relationships within the family of God keeps getting longer. From marriages that finally dissolve after months of counselling to acquaintances that never stood a chance at real friendship, some measure of broken trust severs all hope of a lasting unity.  We become unable to maintain the relationships due to a person’s unwillingness to change certain behaviors. With this reality in mind, I’m beginning to believe...

I was raised in a bubble. Better yet, a bubble inside several other bubbles. I had the typical Christian upbringing. Mom taught Sunday school and my dad was a deacon and they both sang in the church choir. We lived “clean” lives and God blessed us. At the time I probably thought those were directly related. I never wanted for anything. I had great Godly friendships. Life was good. I had accepted Jesus as my savior at the age of seven and was a faithful Christ follower through college. But when I became an adult, I realized I was really a big mess. One by one all the bubbles I had depended on began to burst, and God was holding the pin. At about 22, I learned the cold hard facts about church. It’s made up of a lot of Godly people who sometimes do ungodly things. No church is immune. I was always taught this, even from the pulpit, but I never really got it until I experienced it. Church was broken.   I no longer had security in the body of believers. When I was 23, my dad, ...