Peace and joy in Christ are not automatic when we are saved, and we can’t manufacture it through our own efforts. Earlier in my faith walk, I tried with all my might to do it that way and, of course, failed miserably.    Over time I learned that God’s peace can only come out of an intimate relationship with Christ where he lives in our hearts and rules in our lives every day. Most of us...

We seek police protection from crime and the violence in our midst. We seek medical protection from health problems and fire department protection from the threat of fire. We seek protection in relationships, at work, and in play. We are constantly seeking protection, and of course that is a prudent thing to do.    But why are we reluctant at times to ask God for his protection?    There...

The express elevator is right there, promising to zoom us to our destination on the 50th floor in a matter of seconds. As we stand in the lobby, our inner voice asks, “Stairs or Elevator?” And we quickly think, “Stairs? Are you kidding me!?”    That is how it typically plays out in our mind. But if you connect the metaphor with our Christian life, sometimes taking the stairs is the only...

If we don’t make a small move toward God’s road, we’ll remain imprisoned on our current road. The only commitment we have to make is to begin. As Martin Luther King said, “You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”    There are no shortcuts to the top. We climb the highest mountains one step at a time. If we take the first step, God will do the rest.    If...

During my time as a Corporate CEO, I used to think that if I kept the “right things” in my mind I could chase the negative voices away. I was trying to make up for my “un-Christian” thoughts and the guilt they produced by staying busy and chasing worldly success to force all of that negativity into retreat or cover it up. I was playing a no-win “activity management game,” and I lost.    The...

I have never met or heard of anyone who leverages the power of visualization better than Pastor Rick Warren. He has no filter or governor on his vision engine. There are no restrictions on that car’s carburetor and his vision gas pedal is always pressed through the floor.    Rick’s visualization prowess has produced two very important results over 30 years of ministry: It maximizes the...

Earlier in my faith walk, I DEFINITELY was playing it safe. No prayer. No action. No commitment. That makes me sad now. But it makes me thankful, too, because God taught me how playing it safe minimizes his love for us and thwarts his ability to perform the supernatural in our life.    It gets worse if we play it safe.    Playing it safe also buries the talents God gave us. The...

I woke up this morning with a deep sense of peace as the new day emerged from a charcoal sky. I ambled into my quiet time with an extra bounce and a simple thought: “God’s Protection Promise.”    I can’t really say how or why that line slid into my consciousness, but it did, so I embraced its power to thwart the worry and doubt that would surely greet me this day. (Make sure you read all...

I know from years of experience that being busy sounds great until you realize what comes with it. Always being frenetically occupied is what many people aspire to, until you wake up shaking and sweating in the night worrying about keeping your life’s deck of cards from tumbling into a heap.    It sounds great until you have to live through the anger and yelling that spews forth from the...

Have you heard negative thoughts whispered in your ear?    I have.    They come from Satan, aka the “Voice Villain,” who spews negative and destructive messages in my head that wreak havoc with my ability to live out God’s purpose for my life.    BUT HERE’S THE TRUTH: Despite our best planning, tests and trials are inevitable in the life of all believers. They crash into...