Of all people, Paul knew what it was to struggle with the law. In Romans Chapter 7, verses 15-25, he makes this very clear to us: “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but…
Robert Louis Stevenson, the Scottish novelist, poet, and travel writer said, “I kept always two books in my pocket, one to read, one to write in.” Christianity Today magazine did a survey and found that only about 10 percent of Americans who are Christians read the Bible daily. Don Whitney, professor of biblical spirituality at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary notes that, [The Bible is] “a challenging book, and even if people believe, in the abstract, that it would be good…
Author-pastor-teacher John MacArthur wrote a book in 2002 called Twelve Ordinary Men. This was an in-depth character study of each of Jesus’ 12 closest disciples. MacArthur describes Simon Peter as the disciple with the ‘foot-shaped mouth’. Jesus gave Simon the name ‘Peter’ (meaning Rock) because that is what Jesus wanted him to become, not what he already was. When you read Jesus addressing him as “Simon”, it’s when he was displaying his flesh and failures; when Jesus addressed him as…
Anyone take a road trip this year? Spring break, summer vacation, or the holidays? Directions have gotten a little easier with GPS in our cars and Google Maps on our phones. Every summer growing up, we would visit my cousins who lived in northwest Wyoming. It was an all-day drive—depending on which way we went based on the atlas and the fold-up maps in the back seat—but ultimately, we always pulled into their driveway right around dinnertime. In the account…
© Jennifer Slattery, JenniferSlatteryLivesOutLoud, printed with permission Read Part 1 here Read Part 2 here Read Part 3 here Our real life, the life which we were created for, the life which will bring us the greatest joy and fulfillment, is hidden in Christ. We discover this life by throwing off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles and running with perseverance the race marked out for us (Hebrews 12:1). Our real life is found not in promotions…
© Jennifer Slattery, JenniferSlatteryLivesOutLoud, printed with permission Read Part 1 here Read Part 2 here It’s relatively easy to serve Christ in our safe Christian bubbles or in our planned and church-supported outreach events. It’s another matter entirely to live for Christ in our neighborhoods and at the workplace. Especially if the environment is hostile to us and our faith and shows no signs of improving. But I believe God won’t expand the boundaries of our reach until we prove faithful…
© Jennifer Slattery, JenniferSlatteryLivesOutLoud, printed with permission Read Part 1 here Pause to consider the successful individuals you know. Look past their actions to their character. Perhaps some rode on family wealth or landed a lucky break, but most inched forward because of hard work, perseverance, patience, and dependability. In fact, I’ve heard coaches say they prefer a hard worker over a natural star any day because ability has a limit. They’ve learned success without struggle is momentary, faltering the moment…
© Jennifer Slattery, JenniferSlatteryLivesOutLoud, printed with permission Do you ever feel like your days run endlessly together? Wake up, go to work, come home to innumerable chores, go to bed, repeat. Where is the abundant life God promised? Are you missing it? Is it possible to find purpose in the predictable and meaning in the mundane? If we are followers of Christ, the answer is yes, for nothing done in surrendered obedience is ever wasted. At each moment, God uses…
© 2001-08, By Tom Brown Sometimes life’s wake-up calls are the equivalent of being hit by a two-by-four. In my case, a long prison sentence has served this purpose. It’s the ultimate irony that I had to lose everything to find out what real wealth is, and I had to come to prison to learn how to be free. Life’s cycles with its twists and turns often make it seem like we’re living many lifetimes within this one. Each step…
I read an article earlier this year about how we are living in an increasingly blame-oriented society. And when shopping for a birthday gift for a friend recently, I saw a sign that said, “I didn’t say it was your fault, I said I was blaming you!” A recent project placed me right in the middle of this very issue. The project was several weeks behind, nothing seemed to be going in the right direction, and to make matters worse,…