Guidelines For Living Devotional

The Bible Was Written For You

One of my favorite snapshots is that of my son kneeling down with both hands outstretched towards his eleven-month-old son who is just learning to walk.  Their eyes are locked.  Steve, my son, has a big smile on his face.  What the photo doesn't capture is his warm, inviting voice, as he says, "Come on, Christian, come on…."

There’s Help For Beating Our Own Evil Desires

The conflict between good and evil is not a drama akin to that which John Milton described in Paradise Lost, written in 1674, long before the Holocaust or the atom was split.  It's a contemporary battle that is played out in business, politics, science, and human relations.  Today's world is one of disjunction, turmoil, conflict, inner frustration, and selfishness.  The battle is not just out there, either.  It's within--the constant conflict between what you know is right and what feels good; between what is just and what will get you what you desire which you know is wrong.

Is The Human Heart Really Evil?

When Richard Smith spoke at a workshop on a Christian approach to counseling, he talked about the fact that we were created in the image of God yet the human heart is depraved and evil.  A pastor objected, feeling that he had gone too far.  As Richard explained what the Bible says about both issues, the man responded, "It depends on what side of the horse you get off."  Looking back Richard says, "I should have responded, 'Why can't we just stay on the horse?'"  The reality is that both positions are true.

3 Things To Remember When Your Dreams Are Shattered

What do you do when your dreams are shattered and your prayers go unanswered?  Or more specifically, what do you do when you pray and ask God for something and you don't get it? 

Here’s Why We Need To Remember The Past

“Remember that you were a slave in Egypt,” Moses instructed as he came to the end of his life.   But did these sons of Abraham need to be reminded?  Had they not sat around campfires listening to the stories of parents and grandparents?  Had they not seen the scars on their wrists and ankles, and the marks on their backs—imprints without and far more within—which they would carry to their deaths?

7 Guidelines To Deal With Frustration

How do you combat frustration?  Or must you learn to live with it, like dandelions in the grass, dandruff in your hair, and wrinkles on your face?  No!  There are some things you can do to eliminate frustration and make your life less complicated.  You can fight back.

The God Who Smiles

Does God have a sense of humor?  Does He smile? Does He laugh with joy?  Pastor, writer and editor, Sherwood Wirt said “Yes!” to all three questions. Wirt was convinced that God created His children to have fellowship with Him. He believed God is a good Father, not a bully with a whip, and not a judge who notes every transgression.

How Can I Choose Blessings Over Curses?

Suppose the pastor of a large church divided up his flock into two groups, and instead of the normal “whatever they do” routine practiced on Sunday morning, he announced, “Half of you represent blessings, and the other half curses.  Now, I’m going to read a list of what you are to do if you want to be blessed, and you on the left say, ‘Amen.’ Then I am going to read a list of what will bring God’s curses on your life, and you on the right say, ‘Amen.’”

When Bad Things Happen

What happens to you may well be beyond your control, but how you respond to trouble is entirely your call.  Though I don't really believe in what we call luck, either good or bad, there are certain things which happen that are the result of just living in an imperfect broken world.  The front tire of the bike you are riding slips into a crack in the pavement. You are thrown and sustain a badly broken leg.

How To Develop A Passion For God

Nobody ever really succeeds at anything for which he does not have passion.  To make it to the top, there has to be a burning desire, a willingness to pay the price of study, perhaps loneliness, and certainly a tough-enough hide that what others think doesn’t really count.  Whether your interest is—doing medicine, making money, succeeding in a given sport, or living for God—, without a passion for what you want to do, the flame goes out, and the journey becomes too arduous and difficult.