The Blessedness of Possessing Nothing – Tozer’s thoughts on Genesis 22, Abraham and Isaac

This post is an excerpt from A.W. Tozer's The Pursuit of God, The Blessedness of Possessing Nothing. I believe it to be some of the highest thoughts in all devotional writing. --- As he watched him grow from babyhood to young manhood the heart of the old man was knit closer and closer with the...

Walking In the Light of Known and Unknown Sin – Thoughts on 1 John 1:7

Adapted from Oswald Chambers’ My Utmost for His Highest The Holy Spirit applies the Atonement (holy spiritual cleansing by the blood of Jesus) to us consciously and unconsciously, and it is only when we get a grasp of the unrivalled power of the Spirit in us that we understand the meaning of 1 John 1:7....

C.S. Lewis on the Interstellar and Redemption

I'm reading The Business of Heaven by CS Lewis and read an excerpt called Life on Other Planets. Below I have adapted his thoughts in modernized American English. "If there are other rational species other than life on earth, are they fallen and sinful like us? This is a point easily forgotten. Some think that...

One Mark of New Birth in Christ

There are certain evidences of the validity of a Christian's faith but none more obvious than a heart, once was cold and self-serving, now beats warm with tenderness. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a...

A River Ran Through It

My wife and kids and I were visiting her parents in Grand Junction Colorado a couple years ago and took a short drive together to a place called Rifle Falls during our visit. The view of the mountains was breathtaking and I couldn't stop commenting on it the entire way. I had asked her dad...

10 Things to Remember the First Year of Your New Job

Starting a new job is exciting! You get a blank slate, new friends, challenges that hopefully fit your experience, among many other perks that come with the new digs.  The time of year is high time for people taking new jobs so I thought of a few things that will hopefully be of some use...

5 Ways for the Underrated to Grow in Influence

Among the things floating around in the top drawer of my dresser, various bins in the basement storage, on a top shelf on my bookcase or in the glove compartment, there are a few items I treasure more than most. The list of things I treasure has changed through the years. When I was 5...

Leading from the Comment Section

Either you missed the casting call or didn't make the cut. You saw yourself on the stage dropping diamonds and picking up roses but somehow you're not on it. You are, however, subjected to listen to someone else read the same lines you rehearsed and delivered with conviction. What do you do when your life...

6 Tips on Discovering Your Writing Voice

I've never been a big U2 fan, but I admit that they are likely the greatest rock band of my generation.  Whether you're a fan or not you can't deny the impact they have had on music and culture.  Bono is more than just a front man to many.  His message has authority from his...

Be FEELED with The Spirit

“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,” - Ephesians‬ ‭5:18‬ Many well meaning Christians ask God for a filling of the Spirit when what they really want is a feeling of the Spirit. There are many different reasons people desire a filling: evidence of God...

Two Critical Things Influencers Do

Abe Lincoln knew a lot about a lot of things, but something he knew exceptionally well was how to influence people. This post touches on two things that Lincoln did that put him in the hall of fame of leaders and they are simple enough that anyone who's willing to pay attention can do. The...

6 Words That Can Change Everything

I got this message today from a friend of my sons. He's 14 and his life was changed by Jesus this summer at church camp. What 14 year old does that?! I'm at the gym fighting back tears writing this post. This is a natural outcome when someone really meets Jesus. I met Jesus at...

Help me see me.

In 2010, my family and I were in north central Ohio where I was pastoring a small church. We didn't have a copy machine so I was going to Office Depot weekly to have the bulletins printed for our Sunday services. I was in the van with my daughter, who at that time was around...

Friend or Footnote

Ben Folds quotes his "friend" who is a musical therapist in his new book, A Dream About Lightning Bugs. I don't know why this person didn't get a footnote. Maybe her comment isn't in print or publication. Maybe he couldn't track her down in time enough to get permission to quote her. Either way, the...

The Tender Love of God – thoughts on Genesis 46:2

[These are Spurgeon’s thoughts with some adaptations.] 46:2 “Jacob, Jacob!” God uses two names in this passage. “Jacob” was the name of his weakness and “Israel” the name of his strength. “Jacob” the natural man and “Israel” the spiritual. When he set out to go down into Egypt and see his son Joseph, he started...

“Umm… dad.” Thoughts on Genesis 45, Jacob and Joseph

Genesis‬ ‭45:26, “And they told him, saying, “Joseph is still alive, and he is governor over all the land of Egypt.” And Jacob’s heart stood still, because he did not believe them.” For 20 years Jacob had grieved the loss of Joseph. No doubt the possibility of him being alive stopped being considered because of...

Jacob Eats a Snickers – Thoughts on Genesis 42:36

The ten elder sons of Jacob had gone to Egypt to get grain during a famine and were unwittingly intercepted by their brother Joseph whom they'd sold into slavery 20 years prior. Only now Jospeh was 2nd in command over Egypt and the keeper of the food stores to be dispersed among the starving nations...

The Empty Hand of Prosperity

This is a summarized story of Joseph and Potipher's wife in Genesis 39:6-22 and features two hands with two preoccupations. 'Thus he (Potipher) left all that he had in Joseph’s HAND, and he did not know what he had except for the bread which he ate. Now Joseph was handsome in form and appearance. But...

Generational Greatness and Weaknesses – Thoughts on Genesis 26, Abraham and Isaac pt. 2

Isaac’s character is dwarfed by the greatness of Abraham, his “heel-grabbing” son Jacob, and his clever wife Rebekah. No matter how exciting the scene appears, he is a supporting role. By contrast to others, his role in life was uneventful and obscure but nonetheless important. Our faith, whether marked by either the underwhelming or extraordinary,...

Kids Get Dibs in the Kingdom – Thoughts on Genesis 21:14-21

When Hagar and Ishmael nearly died in the desert from thirst, God “opened her eyes” to find a well, and spared them. Ishmael was 16-17 at this time and verse 15 likely means Hagar pushed him under one of the shrubs in his weakness so she would not have to “watch him die”. Ironically, Ishmael...

Sledding Wisdom for Adults

We don't have snow in Kansas City at the moment but I do hope we get a little bit this winter. If you plan on hitting the sledding hills anytime soon, here are 13 key things I've learned from a former lack of wisdom. 1. Having a child "safety test" something you're contemplating is bad...