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Archive for October, 2025

God’s Expectation

Posted in Uncategorized on October 20, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Have you spent much time thinking about what God wants from you? The foundation of faith is found in the fact that God knows you and loves you. You were created for a relationship with Him. If you have ever contemplated the meaning of life, that’s it. The meaning and purpose of your life is to have a relationship with the creator. Now you know – – you are welcome!

It really is that simple. But we don’t stop with just knowing God – we should grow in that understanding and how it impacts who we become and how we live each day. God created you on purpose, for a purpose.

Paul reminds us in Ephesians 2:8-10, that it is by grace we are made right with God – not by any thing we do to earn His love. But then he goes on to explain that we were created by Jesus as His masterpiece to “do good works.” As Dallas Willard said, “Grace is not opposed to effort but it is opposed to earning.”

So where do we start in trying to live this out? Paul, again in Ephesians, gives us guidance. Ephesians 5:1-2 says, “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

We are to follow Jesus’ example and walk in the way of love. Specifically, we are to walk in the Way of Jesus – the way of love, the way of truth and the way of life. We do this by following Him – imitating Him.

Ephesians 4:32 is the verse just before this instruction and it says, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Perhaps we start there.

May we be found faithful in walking our daily lives in the Way of love being imitators of Jesus.

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What Do You Need to Lay Down?

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , on October 16, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Often, there are multiple reasons we have a hard time connecting to God. In the last post, I mentioned the issue of FOMO. We can become so consumed with not missing out on things that we add and add to our lives to the point that we live a hurried and worried existence. Hurry can also become our norm when our focus is efficiency and productivity. Slowing down to focus on Jesus is hard to do when our lives are lived at mach speed.

But today I am thinking about another reason we lose focus on our relationship with Jesus. Sometimes, it is the burdens we carry that distract us. One of the many powerful experiences I had on the Camino de Santiago was a practice that many along the way added to their journey. Many would pick up rocks along the way to symbolize burdens they were carrying.

One day, early in the walk, I did that. I found a rock to carry and pray over. The rock had a name – the name of what I was carrying in my heart. For a couple of days, I carried that rock in my pocket and every time I noticed its presence, I prayed for God to work in the situation – to bring about healing and restoration. Then about day 3 of carrying that rock, I laid it down at one of the direction markers along the trail. As I laid it down, my prayer was one of surrender. I gave that burden, as best I could, to God and asked Him to take care of it. As I walked away, I felt His answer. What He told me was that I needed to continue to pray for the situation and show love as best I can, and leave the rest to Him.

I would like to be able to report that I have done a great job of not picking up that burden again, but I can say there has been a new sense of peace and hope.

There are so many things we carry – concerns for family, for careers, for community, for our world. But we were not designed to carry the world on our shoulders – that is God’s job. Whatever we carry can become a distraction that prevents us from truly connecting to the One who can take the weight from us.

What do you need to lay down today? Jesus is ready to take it but you have to offer it.

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The Irony of FOMO

Posted in Uncategorized on October 15, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Several years ago, an acronym became popular – FOMO – Fear of Missing Out. With the rise of social media, it has become easy to fall into the trap of seeing the lives of others lived out in front of our eyes through their posts of all the amazing things that make up their existence. The problem is, these images are snapshots in time and not the reality of their lives. But we see these images and think, “My life is not like that,” or “I want a life like that.” We fall into the hole of thinking we are missing out.

So we strive to do more, to see more, to taste more, to experience more. The irony of chasing this false reality is that by doing more we rush past what is really important and truly real. God created each of us for the best life we could ever imagine. The life God created us to live can only be found in slowing down and focusing less on the world around us and more on knowing Him. His reminder is just as important today as the day this verse was written: Be still and know that I am God. (Psalm 46:10) The literal translation of “Be still” is “Relax and let go.”

If you don’t want to miss out, then slow down, relax, let go and get to know God.

I don’t want to miss out on a minute of what God has for me.

How about you?

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Stay Salty

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , on October 8, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Over the past several months I have given much thought to living the life in The Way – daily following Jesus. I have thought about my effectiveness to this point – and often times the lack of effectiveness. But more recently, I have been thinking about my effectiveness as a believer moving forward. There are now many more days on this planet behind me than there are in front of me. So how do I make sure the days I have left are spent pleasing Jesus?

In my devotional life, I am reading through the Sermon on the Mount – the greatest sermon ever preached – offered by Jesus Himself to His followers on the northern side of the lake in Galilee. At the beginning of the sermon, Jesus gave us a list of characteristics we should try to exhibit each day – what we have come to call the Beatitudes. Immediately after the list, He said this, “You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.” (Matthew 5:13)

Salt brings out flavors in food; in moderation, it is a good thing. It also can be used as a preservative. Our lives are to bring enhancement to those around us – to add flavor to life. Our lives can bring preservation when our lives point others to the One who rescues. I don’t know about you, but if I am to be salt in a tasteless world, I don’t want to lose my saltiness.

What I have found is the only way to stay salty is to stay close to the source. When we move further away from the source, and allow ourselves to be diluted by the world, we lose saltiness. Jesus reminded us, in the Gospel of John, that we must remain or abide in Him – like a branch connected to a vine. Our effectiveness – or saltiness – is dependent on our staying close to Him.

How will you stay close and stay connected to Him today to ensure you don’t become diluted by the world around you?

Stay salty!

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