A while back, there was a book that was very popular in Christian circles that centered on this verse. I remember reading it but I didn’t find it very helpful or encouraging. The promise of that book (as I recall) was that if I prayed that prayer with the proper sincerity, like Jabez, I would not experience pain.
Worship in the midst of trials
Our honesty about where we are and what concerns us is an act of worship of the highest value to God. It may not be pretty, it may be really raw or rough around the edges, but God loves for his children to seek Him in the hard times.
Stripping away the illusion
There is something in men and women that desires control over our circumstances. We don’t want to be manipulated, we want freedom to forge our own destiny. Christians understand that this desire can be traced all the way back to the Garden of Eden where Adam and Eve made a conscious choice to rebel. In […]
In a little bit of shock . . .
To watch the spread of the COVID-19 virus as it goes, well, viral, I am amazed and a little bit in shock. So many of the things we previously took for granted now seem comparative luxuries. Never before did I wonder if touching the key-pad to enter my PIN will expose me to a life-threatening […]
Humility in church leaders
Before removing a fence, a wise man will seek to understand why it was put there in the first place. When I look at many churches today, I wonder if they have ever heard this proverb. What I see is a forsaking of anything that could be considered traditional coupled with a full embrace of […]
A Confession of Failure
I have been an elder or leader in several different churches through the years. I have noticed some common areas where I have experienced failure in that leadership setting. We failed in three key areas which were apparent in how we organized our meetings. First, we failed to seek God in fervent prayer to lead […]
Method vs. Message
With the advent of the internet and connected mobile devices, it is likely that most of us are distracted too much of the time. We have instant access to knowledge/facts/data on just about any topic we care to investigate. I can attest that this has had a negative impact on my attention span. With so […]
On discernment ministries
I recently read a post by a pastor who, with a broad brush, condemned all “discernment ministries” as being unloving and promoting disunity in the church. The concern is that such statements could be construed as saying that it is wrong to exercise discernment. Are we to take the position that anyone who claims his […]