“I failed, again.”    You’ve heard that line whispered in your ear, right? It comes from Satan, aka the “Voice Villain.”    We know that despite our best-laid plans, setbacks are inevitable. But they still produce angst, extreme doubt about our self-worth, and muddle our relationships in life. Yep, fear of failure is not easy to accept, especially when God tells us NOT TO FEAR...

The spiritual fruits embody everything good in life, and they form a composite view of Christ himself. We can produce these fruits only when we trust God and put Christ first in our lives. The fruits of the Spirit join each other to create God’s magnificent mosaic of love and strength.    “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness...

  An important question to ask when seeking God’s peace in Christ is to consider whether or not we have “done anything with our salvation.” Yes, we have come to faith in Christ, and we have invited him into our lives. This assures us we have escaped hell and have secured eternity in heaven for our souls. But have we lived a life that imitates Christ and uses the gifts and blessings the Holy Spirit...

Have you reflected lately on God’s promise to be a refuge in times of trouble?    That we can cast all our cares on him no matter what the circumstances?    That we can trust him completely to keep us from being shaken.    Like baking a cake, it’s worth the wait. Let me explain.    When we are tested in the furnace fire of life, God wants us to immediately...

Many of us retreat to a “warm and safe” bunker to wait out the storms of life. But in the bunker’s dank and dark space, we become disconnected from REALITY and what God would have us do for His Kingdom—OUTSIDE.    God is beckoning us to follow Him into the light and be used to spread the Good News.    As followers of Christ, we must be connected to and immersed in the reality...

It is dangerous to ignore our car’s check engine light flashing its plea for attention on the dashboard. Of course it is. Our car may keep running, but eventually it will break down and we never know when it will happen. The worse part about this scenario is that if we keep ignoring the lights, our trip becomes filled with anxiety where we hope for the best and fear the worst.    Our life...

  When I lived a fast-paced and stressful existence on life’s roller coaster as a CEO in my mid-thirties, I was constantly battling anxiety, emotional confusion, temptations, and anger. I failed to deal with the issues early before a negative pattern developed. With each new wave of anxiety my mind locked onto the wrong things and I slid a bit farther from God and the truth.    Living...

Endurance is persevering even when the pressure is extreme.    Endurance is the ability to withstand life’s toughest challenges.    Endurance is winning the day-to-day battles under God’s protection.    God promises us perseverance, and he assures us we will prevail. We can know with absolute certainty that we are on the right path and that God will protect us all the...

“You talk too much” has been the hook of many songs through the years from rock’n’roll parody group Sha-Na-Na to Run DMC to George Thorogood to The Strokes—just to name a few. Then there’s a line you are no doubt very familiar with: “Open mouth, insert foot” which evolved from the original phrase “to put your foot in it,” meaning to say or do something inappropriate and embarrassing.    You...

Some people take verses like Luke 11:9-10 and try to twist God’s protection promise around to mean that Christians should never suffer in life and that everything will be perfect and everyone will be wealthy if they only believe. They believe God wants everyone to have spiritual, physical, emotional, and material blessings, prosperity in all things, and untold abundance. Just ask for riches, and they...