Category: Thoughts and Meditations

“When I think on my ways,
I turn my feet to your testimonies;”
– Psalm 119:59

Do you, like King David, think on your ways? Do you take time to step back and reflect on your habits and patterns of life and how they compare to the example and commands of Jesus? Do you consider the direction of your life and whether you’re moving closer to God or further away? It’s a good and healthy habit for every follower of Jesus to practice. Every few months, schedule time to pray and ask God to reveal any concerns He has about your ways. Think about what you have seen, heard, and read about Jesus and how your ways compare to His ways.

Most Christians don’t decisively move away from God. Instead, they drift away, little by little. One decision at a time. One choice not to worship, read, pray, fellowship, or meditate at a time. One choice to sin rather than honor God at a time. Before we realize it, our ways can be very different from God’s ways. So, be like King David and if you discover your ways aren’t the most obedient, edifying, or glorifying, do what he did. Turn your feet toward the testimonies of Scripture. Make intentional choices to reject sin and reject laziness. Reject the world, the flesh, and the devil and re-engage your mind, heart, body, and soul in the ways of God.

Worship with other believers. Read and meditate on Scripture daily. Memorize God’s Word. Pray, give, and fast in faith. Get engaged with a small community of fellow believers seeking to grow in the ways of Jesus. Serve the Lord and share your hope in Christ. Practice Five to Thrive and #FollowJesus

“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. This is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior.” -1 Timothy 2:1-3

Do you want to know what’s good and pleasing to the Lord in divided political times like these? You better!!! It’s this – praying, pleading, and giving thanks for people in authority at every level from local government to national government. County officials to presidents. Regardless of party. Regardless of platform. Regardless of whether you voted for them or against them. Regardless of whether you like them or despise them.

Be faithful in this before the election. Be faithful in this after the election. Be faithful in this after officials take office. This is what pleases God. He may or may not be pleased by how you vote, how you advocate for the people for whom you vote, or what you post and repost online. But He is definitely pleased when you pray for blessing, salvation, and wisdom for those in office. Regardless of whether they are friends of His or enemies.

The purpose of these prayers is so that followers of Christ may live peaceful, quiet, godly, dignified lives making disciples, loving God, and loving ALL our neighbors. With 100% certainty, that’s God’s will for you right now, next month, and next year. #FollowJesus

“The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.” – 1 Timothy 1:15

Paul is speaking, first and foremost, of himself. By the time he wrote this, he’d spent decades reflecting on the extraordinary grace of God that saved him from the horrors he had committed. In his misguided zeal for God, Paul had persecuted the church, hunting down Christians and condemning them to death. He knew the evil God had rescued him from through Jesus Christ and he rejoiced in God’s love, grace, and mercy.

However, this “trustworthy saying” is about far more than Paul. It’s about you. To truly understand, appreciate, and rejoice in God’s grace, make this saying about you. Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners, of whom “I ________ (fill in your name) am the foremost”. That’s when this statement becomes powerfully true!

Our minds hate to think about the horrors of our sin. We don’t like to admit that we were really all that awful, depraved, and hopeless. We like to say, I’m better than most people. We like to console ourselves that we probably haven’t killed or tortured anyone recently. These words radically misunderstand sin. ALL sin, no matter how “small” or “harmless” we consider it to be, is outright rebellion against God’s Kingship over the universe. All sin is our defiant, obscene gesture pointed toward God. ALL sin! Yours included…

Whatever your favorite sins may be, each one is a declaration of war against the Lord. Thus, each of us, you included, can say exactly what Paul did. Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. Once you can bring your mind and mouth to speak this truth for yourself, your love and appreciation for God’s grace and Christ’s saving work on the cross will skyrocket! #FollowJesus

“Finally, brothers, pray for us, that the word of the Lord may speed ahead and be honored, as happened among you” – 2 Thessalonians 3:1

The last chapter of this letter includes many excellent examples of how to pray big Kingdom prayers aligned to God’s will. Studying it is a wonderful way to learn to align your prayers to God’s will rather than trying to align God’s will to your prayers. It begins in this verse with Paul declaring his top personal prayer request. He longs for fellow Christians to pray for him and his team so that the Gospel of Jesus Christ will spread faster in the world.

Paul didn’t prioritize personal comfort or need. He prioritized the most critical spiritual need of people who aren’t yet reconciled to God through faith in Christ. The most desperate need of people still facing God’s just and righteous wrath for their sins. His heart’s desire is for them to know the Lord, be made new and clean in Him, and walk with Him.

That needs to be the top prayer focus for followers of Jesus. This is what Jesus taught us all to pray first by asking that God’s name would be hallowed (praised as holy) and His Kingdom come on Earth. How much time do you typically spend praying for the advance of God’s Kingdom and the salvation of lost people? How much energy do you devote to praying for unreached people groups around the world? If these aren’t among your top prayer priorities, make the decision today to begin praying like Jesus taught and Paul practiced. Pray that the word of the Lord would speed ahead and be honored (believed, trusted) wherever it currently isn’t. #FollowJesus

“Do not quench the Spirit.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:19

This seems to be a pretty straightforward command. However, many Christians disobey it regularly. Do you???

The Holy Spirit enters a person the moment he or she first trusts in Jesus as their Lord and Savior. The Spirit seals them as genuinely belonging to God and He will never leave them. However, each person can either be filled with the Spirit or quench the Spirit at any given moment. To be filled with the Spirit is to live a life empowered and transformed by the Holy Spirit’s constant leadership, correction, and direction. To quench the Spirit is to block Him from controlling or even working in your life. It’s very easy to quench the Spirit.

How does one quench the Spirit? There are several ways. One way is to continue committing some sin. If you’re habitually disobeying God, you prevent the Spirit from working meaningfully in your life. That quenches the Spirit. Examine your life – is there some habitual sin (habit, addiction, attitude, or behavior) that God’s Word forbids? Recognize it, repent of it, ask God’s forgiveness for it, and refuse to indulge it again. Fiercely fight its ongoing temptation.

One way is to constantly fill your mind with the things of the world rather than the things of God. How much of the world’s news, entertainment, social media, and information are you consuming each day? How does that amount compare to your intake of God’s Word through reading, studying, and meditating on Scripture? If you’re mostly feeding your soul the world’s content rather than God’s, you’re quenching the Spirit. Devote your time to God’s Word each day.

Another way to quench the Spirit is to refuse to do what God calls you to do. When you know what God wants you to do (a sacrifice, a change, a gift, an action) and make excuses not to do it, that seriously quenches the Spirit. When you follow God’s promptings, you allow the Spirit to fill you. When you hold onto control over your life, you quench the Spirit. Surrender control to the Spirit if you want to be filled with the Spirit.

An unquenched life in the Spirit looks like total surrender and submission to the Lordship of Christ and the Word of God. It looks like turning your daily agenda over to the Lord with no strings attached. It looks like pursuing personal holiness and listening for God’s leading with the intent to do whatever He says. Anything short of that quenches the Spirit. Do not quench the Spirit! #FollowJesus