The Reality of Our Present World

Warfare prayer is not a “back-up” category when all else fails. It is not a specialty form of prayer for the uniquely called or gifted. Yes—there are some who become “experts” in this field, just as there are some who become especially trained to heal or to preach the gospel. But we are all called to preach the gospel; we are all called to resist the enemy. You are living out your daily life in the context of war. The men and women who choose…

It’s fairly obvious that peace is incompatible with hurry. If you don’t believe me, next time you’re running late to “catch” a flight, or ten minutes late for an appointment, or overdue on an assignment, take an interior inventory and see if you feel the deep shalom of God in your soul. Do you sense a grounded, present sense of calm? Or something else? And yet: we continue to cram more and more in to our already overfull lives, forcing us to…

Jesus set love as the highest value in his kingdom’s economy. When asked what the greatest commandment in all of Scripture was, he responded with “Love the LORD your God with all your heart, soul, and strength,” but he refused to stop at one command; he added another, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But love is painfully time consuming. All parents know this, as do all lovers, and most long-term friends. There’s no shortcuts. No life.…

Our tendency is to monitor our behavior while pretty much ignoring our hearts. After all, how do you monitor your heart? I can’t get too far off base in my behavior without somebody drawing it to my attention. But my heart? That seems a bit more complicated. Jesus said something that still has huge implications today: “The things that come out of a person’s mouth come from the heart,” and then, “Out of the heart come evil thoughts.” The…

Does everything happen for a reason? The short answer is “yes”; because God is sovereign, there are no random, out-of-control happenings. God’s purposes may be hidden from us, but we can be assured that every event has a reason behind it. There was a reason for the blindness of the man in John 9, although the disciples misidentified the reason (John 9:1–3). There was a reason for Joseph’s mistreatment, although his brothers’ purpose in…

Goliath was a daunting enemy of Israel, and a strong incentive was offered to anyone who could kill the giant: money, exemption from taxes, and marriage to King Saul’s daughter. Though these rewards would intrigue any young man, David was not foolhardy. The young shepherd had a different motivation for standing against Goliath: He wanted to serve the Lord. And so David called out, “For who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he has dared to defy the armies of…

Godly wisdom enables us to view things as the Lord does and to respond according to biblical principles. This discernment isn’t automatic, but it is available to all believers who “try to learn what is pleasing to the Lord” (Eph. 5:10; James 1:5). And the best way to know what pleases God is to read His Word. When we resolve to honor the Lord in all we do, say, and think, it transforms the way we make decisions. Instead of following natural instincts or…

If for all practical purposes we believe that this life is our best shot at happiness, if this is as good as it gets, we will live as desperate, demanding, and eventually despairing men and women. We will place on this world a burden it was never intended to bear. We will try to find a way to sneak back into the Garden and when that fails, as it always does, our heart fails as well. If truth be told, most of us live as though this life is our only hope. In his wonderful…

Would you describe yourself as totally in love with Jesus Christ? Or do the words halfhearted, lukewarm, and partially committed fit better? The Bible says to test ourselves, so I am going to offer you a description of what lukewarm people can look like. As you read these examples, I encourage you to take a searching, honest look at who you are now, and how you are living today. Lukewarm people: Attend church fairly regularly. It is what is expected of them, what they…