Progress To A Transformed Christian Life
Is there a more loaded word in the English language than "success"? The types of people we like to tag as successful center around a narrow list of characteristics. Money is usually the first marker, followed by acclaim, and then maybe influence. But am I truly successful because I have money? What about acclaim? I... Continue Reading →
Birth receives far more attention among Christians than growth. Born again, new birth, new life are all terms in high use among Western Christians, and rightly so. But, ignoring or overlooking growth leads to the absence of growth and in the words of Eugene Peterson, we become "a nation of adolescence." Peterson goes on to... Continue Reading →
I like my schedule and I am a creature of routine. I have even shared my Morning Routine here on the blog. But, I have learned to be okay with my rather varied practices and to not be so rigid that I turn every morning into a legal practice that has success/failure outcomes. For example,... Continue Reading →
My daughters like to watch the TV show, "America's Next Top Model." This is a reality show where aspiring models compete to be the top pick and get a modeling contract. Throughout the show they are coached and guided by experts, other models, and people who are experienced in the industry. My daughters have started... Continue Reading →
Since I have been writing this blog in earnest over the last year, I have chronicled the amazing times, the heartbreaking times, and the really hard times. This past year has presented some of the richest and most profound times with God I have ever experienced. But as soon as I experience a spiritual high,... Continue Reading →
Most of the time, I am too distracted, too busy, too worried, too anxious to notice all the good and meaningful things that are around me. I recently picked up Eugene Peterson's book Practice Resurrection. This book is Peterson's conversation on Ephesians. I had read this book, or portions of it, several years ago, but... Continue Reading →
I am the father of three girls, ages 17, 13, and 8. Parenting is hard enough but having kids at such distinct phases of growing up forces me to wear different hats each time I try to be a father figure. For my 17 year old, I am thinking about all the things I need... Continue Reading →
Here is one thing I think but have not said: That Satan possesses people for small moments to disrupt my spiritual growth. I have learned to see this a part of the process of Growing Up but early on, I wasn't always able to handle this. What will happen is that I will have a... Continue Reading →
Jesus, in the Greatest Sermon Ever Given, talked about these things: Anger Lust Lying Revenge Pride Greed Worry Judging Falseness Our great defense mechanism as humans is to recognize these traits in other people but not in ourselves. If we start reading Matthew 5-7 and get to teachings on pride or lust or anger we... Continue Reading →
Growing Up doesn't have to be hard. If you take yourself off the throne of your own life and place Christ there and then you seek the guidance and teaching of Christ inside you, then you are on your way. Those two things will take care of 70 percent of your growth and seem relatively... Continue Reading →
