Useful Troubles

Our troubles can be helpful because they humble us. They wean us from the allure of the world and all that it offers. Troubles drive us to our knees and back to God. They vitalize our prayer life. They allow us to experience God's faithfulness in tangible ways. Our troubles make us more dependent on God and make us more compassionate toward others in their troubles.

Who knew that troubles could be so virtuous!

Pleasing God

A sincere desire to please God will result in an alignment of your desires with God's You will love what God loves and hate what God hates. Truly desiring to serve God brings about the nature of Christ in one's character.

Perspectives & Pride

Our perspectives (on anything) can be distorted by our pride. It could be pride in our accomplishments. It could even be pride in our perspectives! Indeed, pride could be considered to be a lens through which we see everything else. It is a lens that will distort everything else.

Fearing God

Fear is a paradigm shift in God's world. The Bible tells us repeatedly, "Do not fear." But then it also tells us that fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. True fear of God will lead to a fearless life. To fear God then really means to revere, respect and stand in awe of Him. When we do that, or rather when we can accomplish that, we trust Him and find that all other fears subside.

God's Blessings

God offers many blessings to Christ followers. But most of them - if not all of them - require our active participation. We must do our part. In order to "appropriate" God's blessings, we must seek Him, cry out to Him, trust Him, fear Him, revere Him, seek peace, be broken, serve Him, refrain from lying, turn towards good, desire righteousness, value Him, turn from evil, resist temptation, do good, etc. Without these things --- God's blessings are always just out of our reach!

Super Powers

The truly powerful nation is not the one with the military might, or the one with all the wealth. No, the truly powerful nation is the one that relies on God's strength and remains corporately submitted to Him. Why then does the world pay so much attention to wealth and military power?

Excellent Leaders

Excellent leaders are confident in God's strength, courageous in the face of opposition - and teachable. They seek to know God's will, listen well and move swiftly when they know they have God's instructions. Strong leaders are led by God. In fact, what makes them strong leaders is their submission and surrender to God as their leader!