These feel good sayings have become quite popular these days. While they sound good, many of them just aren't true-even if they are said by a famous and well-respected celebrity like Dr. Seuss. Beware that you don't fall for them, and worse yet, communicate as if they are true. Take this one for example. Not everything you feel needs to be said. Those who matter to you may, indeed, mind how you say them even if they don't mind what you say. And those who mind may not matter to you, but they matter to God. How we say things are often even more important than what we say. How we communicate with each other is important to God. He...
Most Christians have heard many times how we are to praise God in the storm, but what has always frustrated me is that nobody has ever told us how to do that. It's hard to just begin feeling thankful when you're in the midst of a financial mess or a loved one's death. Merely understanding that you should do something doesn't help you do it. All devotionals on this topic will tell you to read the Bible and pray. This is obvious since we are trying to get closer to God and further away from our pain or struggle. This is also something we should do when we are not struggling. But just reading the Bible when you are struggling...
All this month, we've been talking about shyness. On the flip side of shyness is assertiveness, but it's not all it's cracked up to be either. Check out this article, The Assertiveness Myth: “For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” -2 Timothy 1:7 In the 70's and 80's there was a fashion trend (a fad) in communication. Assertiveness Training was all the rage. It presumed that most people were shy and needed to assert themselves in order to take their rightful place in a conversation and get their point across. It was believed that charisma and persuasion were the solution to everything from winning arguments to...
“In all things shewing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine shewing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity, sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you.” -Titus 2:7-8 The NIV translation puts it this way, “In everything set them an example by doing what is good. In your teaching show integrity, seriousness and soundness of speech that cannot be condemned, so that those who oppose you may be ashamed because they have nothing bad to say about us.” Titus 2 is talking about being a good Christian example to others. In fact, Titus 2:15 goes on to say: “These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke...
What does it really mean to thirst and what is the deeper significance of Living Water as spoken of in the Bible? Last week, my friend Cindy posted about Living Water on her blog. It got me thinking about the deeper meaning of God's Word. A while back my daughter sent me some audio files of Ray Vander Laan who had spent time in Israel learning about the culture of the Jewish people. He talks about how not knowing the culture of the Jewish people and the times the Bible was written in can dull our understanding of the deeper meanings of God's Word, for example, Living Water. My parents have lived here in the ARIDzona desert for about 12...
