I had made it my mission one recent Saturday to be an encouragement to others. In the dairy aisle, I encouraged the new mom with the baby strapped to her chest. As I walked down the specialty diet aisle, I encouraged a middle-aged woman who was newly diagnosed with celiac disease, a condition I share. While in the checkout line, I (more…)
sanctification
Top 10 Signs You Need Revival—and the Cure
So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I am going to vomit you out of My mouth.—Revelation 3:16
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.—Matthew 5:3
As I’ve written before, the church – the universal body of believers – desperately needs revival. If you’re a believer and a reader of this blog, you’re probably (more…)
Your Will Be Done
Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. – Matthew 6:10
We pious types like to throw around the notion that we pray according to God’s will, but do we really? Do we voluntarily sign up to be afflicted, to see loved ones taken from us, or to face hunger or hardship because of some greater (more…)
Let Life Imitate Art
As a writer, I’m hypercritical of books and movies. It’s hard to read a book without editing or rewriting it as I read, and it’s hard to watch a movie without calling out vapid dialog or flat storylines. But my biggest pet peeve is something all my literature and writing instructors drilled into me: A properly written story should be character-driven, not plot-driven.
The (more…)