All throughout the Christian world, Christians scream: I’m free! Some focus on freedom from sin, while others emphasize freedom from the law. Both perspectives are accurate, but why are we free? In Christ we are free, but free to do what? We want to be saved with our sins, not saved from our sins. Or, we want Christ to free us from our sin but we’re really not interested in serving him. This is wrong. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus…
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MARRIAGE: 7 Reasons Why I Love My Husband
I thank God for marriage. It’s such a beautiful thing. I thank God for the man that He has blessed me with. There is no other man that I adore the way I adore him. Next to Jesus, he is it. Why do I love my husband the way I do? 7 Reasons Why I Love My Husband 1. I know without a doubt that God blessed me with him. I encourage women desiring a husband to diligently seek the Lord for His confirmation before saying “I do“. I sought the Lord, I said I do, and I have experienced the blessing of the Lord over our marriage from day…
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Can You Diplomatically Disagree? 3 TIPS!
As I watch the inauguration events, I’m humbled and encouraged by the diplomatic engagement between former President Obama and current President Trump. I’m forced to look within and ask myself: Am I capable of diplomatically disagreeing? Can you diplomatically disagree? I believe that this is a question that all of us should ask ourselves. So many marriages dissolve because of the inability to diplomatically disagree. Friendships end, violence erupts, people hate and even kill all because of an inability to disagree. This shouldn’t be so. The ability to disagree diplomatically displays a high level of maturity. It also displays a high level of emotional intelligence and self-control. It takes intention, and…
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JEALOUSY: Fight against it
All of us have our vulnerabilities. We all have those weaknesses that we will constantly have to battle against: pride, insecurity, anger, and the list goes on. We shouldn’t downplay any of them because they all have the potential to limit us in life, but this morning my heart is on jealousy: “Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy? – Proverbs 27:4 Jealousy left unattended is dangerous. If jealousy is not an issue for you, be grateful but be compassionate towards those that do struggle with it. Who decides what our vulnerabilities will be? We all come into this world with our…
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Marriage is Not Merely About Happiness
People desire marriage for various reasons. While happiness is certainly an aspect of marriage, keep in mind it is only a part. No doubt you should marry someone who makes you happy, but you do so realizing that they won’t always make you happy. How could they? No one is perfect. This leads us to the realization that: Marriage is not merely about happiness. Marriage is about so much more than happiness, but so often we have in our minds that marriage itself should make us happy. Or, we have the fantasy, Disney story mindset that marriage is ALL about happiness. Both of these are unrealistic expectations to have in…
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16 Lessons from 2016: Living & Learning
Another year is coming to a close. Before I enter into the new, I must reflect on the lessons I’ve learned this past year. 16 Lessons from 2016 1. Take care of yourself. There is always something to do but we can only offer what we have to give. Replenish, refresh, rest and restore yourself. 2. Don’t lose yourself. Before you are anything else, you are you. Always remember that. 3. It’s all about the heart. We must get deep and pay attention to the heart issues. The heart, not our actions or appearances, will tell us everything we need to know. 4. Just apologize. No explanations or counter-arguments. Just…
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FAMILY LIFE: 10 Ways to Celebrate Christ during Christmas
What is Christmas all about? How does your family celebrate Christmas? December 25th is the day that the world acknowledges the birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, but do we truly celebrate Christ during Christmas? Do we spend more time exalting Santa Clause than Jesus Christ? Do we spend more time shopping than praising God for the wonderful, perfect gift of Christ? Throughout the last few years our family has been on a journey of making Christ the center of our Christmas. First, we started by buying less stuff. There is a tendency to just buy, buy, buy; but how is that celebrating Christ? If we’re…
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You Control Your Mind
In life, we often find ourselves trying to control everything around us: our mate, our children, our friends, etc. You may not think you’re trying to control, but how do you respond when things don’t go your way? Instead of trying to control situations, I’m encouraging you to control your mind. Our mind is such a powerful force, yet we must control it to make it work for us and not against us. Where our thoughts go everything else will follow. Our emotions follow our mind. Our actions follow our mind. Beliefs, attitudes, and even self-esteem are all directed and influenced by the mind. We can have everything in…
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LIFE: Fight For Your Focus
If you are going to overcome the challenges that you face in this life, you must fight for your focus. If you are going to accomplish your goals, you must stay focused. In order to even enjoy the things that you currently have, you must stay focused. Without focus you won’t get very far or acomplish very much. When you are focused on something, it affects how you deal with the things that you aren’t focused on. Staying focused helps you to ignore those things that aren’t important. Think about it, you can’t focus on everything- and that’s okay. That’s why we must prioritize where our focus needs to be.…
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10 Tips for Living Well
No matter what season we find ourselves in, we can always benefit from tips on living well. 10 Tips for Living Well: 1. We live and we learn. We’ve worn this phrase out but it is oh so true. Don’t beat yourself up over past failures. You can’t change the past, but you can learn from it and do better next time. 2. Adjustments are necessary. It is so necessary to stop and readjust in life. Has your life changed? Expect to readjust. Feeling off and can’t really explain it? It may be time for an adjustment. 3. Listening is critical. I mean really listening. Don’t just listen enough…
