We want a behavior change, but it doesn’t seem to happen. However, it will happen with many changes in the mind (repentance). We always notice significant behavior change, don’t we? Yet, people who change dramatically are often given the stage and a microphone to trumpet the difference. I remember as […]
Relationships
To demand or expect forgiveness is like a chess player trying to manipulate the board, but that’s not true repentance. Instead, repentance submits itself to the poetry of waiting, praying, and hoping. They thought they could use the Bible to manipulate and control. Verses were hurled, and they were told, […]
Accepting the consequences is a repentant heart saying ‘Yes’ to what has been done, praying for mercy, and possibly discovering grace. A few years ago I was caught speeding. I was going too fast. The police officer pulled me over and asked if I knew what speed I was traveling. […]
We do something we regret and want to make amends for, but what about the heart. Come as a servant but don’t become a slave. I was working in a garden the other day when I accidentally knocked over a small pot plant. It toppled over and fell onto a […]
A feeling of being abandoned can be like a cold chill across the soul. But God is always at work, so we need to remind ourselves of this truth. I was recently at the help desk in a large store returning some items, and I noticed a small boy in […]
Who are the Five people you spend the most time with? They will be the ones who have the most influence over you. Her response to a betrayal of friendship has probably helped thousands of others to get a better group of friends. The other day I was listening to […]
No one likes to submit. It feels foreign and dangerous, but we long for intimacy (in-to-me-see), so we taste and see if the other is good and safe. There was movement and rhythm as the couple glided across the dance floor. He gently led, she moved in response. She would […]
Are you tired of being the Scapegoat but don’t know how to stop it? Six key steps to stop being the dumping ground of other people’s rubbish. She felt like they were making her a scapegoat. They were saying she was responsible for all the terrible things that had happened. […]
Some people seem to like to rain on your parade, but we can learn how to hoist an umbrella and continue on. They couldn’t help themselves. Anything my friend did was negated. Any attempt at doing something special, creative, or different was criticized and smashed with harsh words. Sometimes an […]
So why did the Samaritan cross the road? Perhaps he wasn’t afraid of the sky falling in. Let’s not be chicken with people like us. I happened to call an acquaintance of mine a few days ago. He does some jobs for me every now and then. As we talked, […]