Mark Affleck

Go Home! The Movie Is Over.

Christians cannot expect to go through life without at least some pain and suffering, right?    Of course.    So why are we prone to do everything possible to avoid pain and “make people pay” if they cross us? Are we surprised that life on earth is tough? I mean, c’mon. People don’t stay in the theater and complain when a bad movie ends.  They get up, walk out, and get on...

Have You Ever Heard The River Whisperer Speak?

I’ve always loved rivers!    I love the rivers that snake across the globe and continually gain personal strength from the incredible metaphor they provide for my life.  Rivers are indeed powerful and majestic creatures capable of teaching us myriad lessons. No wonder this word shows up so many times in the Bible.    The most compelling “river lesson” for me came as I was...

I Wanted to Destroy All 10 Pins, And He Deserved It

You have got to be kidding me! How could a close friend, a Christian no less, let me down in such a dramatic and hurtful way? I can’t believe it…and I am furious.    Those exact words appear in one of my journals when a trusted and dear friend let me down. It’s a story I continually draw strength from and my hope is that it resonates with you.    I can remember this day as if it...

Are You Showing Up For Practice, Or Just On Game Day?

“Game Day” is special for any athlete. It is where we experience the ultimate high points of the activity and our passion. For Christians, game day is on Sunday at church or during the few-and-far-between spiritual highs on the “mountaintops” of our journey with Christ.    Of course these game days are blessings from our Father in Heaven. They’re great! But it cannot be game day every day....

Guilty! I Failed God’s Time Test

Have you ever felt guilty for not spending as much time with God as you, and he, would like? Of course. We all have…and do.    All too often that feeling has us taking some kind of “God Time Test” to see how we’re measuring up in this regard.    Stop!    Don’t get me wrong, taking stock in this way is a great idea. But believe it or not, the answers to this “God Connection”...

I’m Ashamed, I Didn’t Even Write It Down

It’s true. Early in my faith walk I had no idea there would be people who needed to hear my story. So I didn’t pay much attention to what God was doing in my life, let alone write it down. Fast-forward a few decades to the clarity of today and I can see that these people were, and are, waiting in my neighborhood. At work. And on the other side of the world. All of them, waiting to meet Jesus.    I’m...

Hide--You’re Under Attack!

We all are. Every minute of every day. Even now, this very instant.    The noise level from today’s avalanche of information crashing down the slopes of our life increases its decibel level exponentially. Left in its wake are those people who could not separate the important from the meaningless. Good from evil. Edifying from damning.    Everyone is at risk for obvious reasons....

I Failed the Selfishness Test

  It’s true. Looking back today on an earlier time in my faith walk, it is clear to me that I was holding back full expression of my faith.    What I did not know then but can clearly see now is how this was a selfish act of defiance after I had been saved by Christ and his grace for eternity. God used that flashback as a lesson that there are real consequences to real people who are...

We’re Living in a YOUniverse!

We are born self-centered. We grow up self-centered. And we navigate the waters of life as an adult self-centered.    Making matters worse is the instant-gratification society we are living in right now. It’s what Jonathan Stagno, my great friend and senior advisor to Love God Fear Nothing–calls a YOUniverse!    Today’s cultural force field acts as a filter through which...

You’ve Got a Mona Lisa Hand

What Am I Really Worth?    Men and women have been trying without success to figure out that question on their own since the beginning of time.    It has been, is now, and will always be FUTILE. But we keep trying, nonetheless. Today’s search typically looks for the answer in possessions and position and power. Others use their family, hobbies, or church service. There are myriad...
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