• 10 Prayers for Patience

    Patience is hard. In our fast-food, drive-thru, one-day-Amazon-delivery world, it’s a lost art. A muscle we don’t like to exercise often. Yet as Christians, we’re called upon to use that muscle. God desires for us to wait steadfastly upon Him and be longsuffering with each other. “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (Colossians 3:12). Patience hurts. A few years ago, I broke my ankle. After weeks of healing from surgery, it finally got cleared to bear weight. That first second my foot hit the floor, fire burned up my calf and my ankle wobbled. It took weeks of physical therapy…

  • 20 Goals Every Christian Should Set

    Whether we’re talking about our personal lives, spiritual lives, relationships, our character, or our future, we need to ask ourselves what kind of people we want to be. Having goals can center us, keep our eyes on Christ, and encourage us to grow. Without goals, we have no reason to press on, and we can flounder, feel lost, or lose track of our purpose. I’m doing something a little different over on Crosswalk.com today–a slideshow. Come check out 20 Goals Every Christian Should Set. What are your spiritual goals? How will you reach them? (added note 1/8/2017) **I’ve gotten quite a few comments about not being able to read all…

  • You Don’t Know What You Have…

    1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NIV) “Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”       This morning, I hopped out of bed, raced to the bathroom, and stood under the hot shower for fifteen minutes. I know what you’re thinking. Big deal. I do that every morning. You’re so not jealous of my quarter-hour shower. But maybe you should be. A few months ago, that same morning routine went something like this: I rolled over to face the wheelchair parked next to my bed, my broken ankle waking with me, the throb timing itself to match the staccato pulse blaring from the alarm.…