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Consider This: Trying is the Way In

  When my kids were young, we would drive by the exhibition grounds at night during the fair. It was spectacular! The lights from the Ferris Wheel, the Zipper, the Ring of Fire, and many other rides flashed and swirled across the dark sky. As a bonus, the smell of popcorn wafted through the air, and you could hear people laughing, screaming and having a great time.   It is one thing to sit outside the fence and watch the fair. It is a completely different experience to pay your money, go through the gate and ride the rides.   The only way to really experience the fair is to try it. Watching is not enough. One must act!   The same is true in spiritual matters: Action is required! One cannot study their way into a spiritual life. Thinking is not enough. One cannot memorize enough scripture to be holy. Beliefs are not enough. One cannot listen their way to a new life. Lessons are not enough. While those things are important, the only way to experience the n...
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Stop Being A Baby (1 Peter 2:1-3)

 Being immature is a great place to start, but it is a terrible place to stay. Here are three concepts that will help.  https://youtu.be/ECO9vF6rX3Q  
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Consider This: The Bride of Christ

I officiate a couple of weddings per year.  Even though they take a lot of time, effort and organization, I really enjoy them.  Weddings are the exact opposite of the grouchy, negative, complaining world that we live in most of the time. Weddings are full of joy, hope and fun. Out of all the comparisons God could have used to describe his relationship with us, he chose a wedding analogy.  Jesus is depicted as a groom waiting for his bride (See Matthew 9 and 25, as well as Luke 2 and 5).  When John sees a vision of heaven, he describes the celebration as a wedding feast (Revelation 19). The marriage analogy gives us several understandings about our connection to Christ.  Here are a few. First, this relationship is a choice!  In my family, we celebrate birthdays, but anniversaries are the really big deal.  You were a passive participant in your birth, but an anniversary celebrates a decision you made.  Whether it is a wedding anniversary, a celebrat...
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Spectacularly Ordinary Faith (1 Peter 1:22-25)

 It is great to have an unusual story to tell, but your best story is your everyday one.  https://youtu.be/UbECto9_FI4  
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Consider This: The Need for Open Eyes

    Consider This:  The Need for Open Eyes “Give us open eyes to our blessings”.  I accidentally prayed that phrase many years ago.  I had not planned it, nor had I thought about it ahead of time.  It just happened.  Since then, I have repeated it a lot.  I almost always include it in any public prayer.  I have come to believe that having open eyes is of supreme importance.  Too often, we are drowning in blessings, yet we are discontent.  We could do so much good for others, but we think only of ourselves.  We have been gifted a million wonderful pleasures, yet focus on our few small problems.  Open eyes would change that situation.  Seeing what we actually have would cause us to be grateful, generous and kind.   Not only that, seeing how God has blessed us would help us trust him.  The future would be less scary if I remembered what God had done for me in the past.  Faith must look back occasional...
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Well Done, Good and Faithful Servant (1 Peter 1:17-21)

How Christians go through the Judgment Day and why it matters. https://youtu.be/IQ8yZoEfAA4   
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Consider This: The Danger of Drifting

   Consider This: The Danger of Drifting Most people will not blow up their life in one big, messy moment. It can happen, and when it does, the damage is obvious and instantaneous. Like a car wreck at an intersection, people make a bad decision, and chaos ensues. Parts and pieces scatter all over. People get hurt. Situations like this are unexpected, loud, shocking and scary. Most of us will not wreck our lives in one big, terrible moment. The real danger is that we will lose what is valuable in small, almost imperceptible steps. It happens all the time. You can leave your marriage without ever leaving your house. You can leave your faith while still attending church. You can leave your life while you are still living it. Many people lose what they love, not by making one big, out-of-character decision, but by coasting, disengaging, neglecting and missing what matters. Almost every Biblical list of Christian characteristics mentions “Self-control”, yet I have not g...
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