Practice Discernment and Humility
Have you ever encountered a false prophet?
More searchingâand more uncomfortableâhave you ever been one?
How would you know?
Scripture is clear: Godâs plans for us are good. Yet the path to that good is not always pleasant or easy. The apostle Paul reminds us that God works all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. That does not mean all things are good. Many are not.
We live in a fallen world. Difficulty, loss, confusion, and suffering touch every life.
The good news is this: God is present in it all. When we turn toward Him, we gain wisdom, purpose, discernment, help, peace, and joyâoften right in the middle of the struggle. He deepens our faith. He forms our character. He builds our lives as we learn to prize relationship with Him above outcomes. He is with us.
False prophets, however, tend to promise positive futures while missing what God is actually doing now. They say what people want to hear. They aim for affirmation rather...
Whatâs In Your Wallet?
This time of year has a way of stretching us, doesnât it? Our time, energy, relationships, and even our finances can feel pulled thin. And when weâre stretched, whatâs really in our hearts often rises to the surface. Weâre given countless opportunities to give, but the truth is simple: you can only give what you truly possessâand you can only give as the person you truly are.re
If you are a person who is generous of heart, you will be able to give generously. And Scripture is clear, âGod loves a cheerful giver.â (2 Corinthians 9:7) Though you may not be able to give much, your abundant heart will carry the gift â and it will minister joy to others.
But if your mindset is shaped by scarcityâif your heart feels tight, protective, or fearfulâthen giving can feel more like a loss than a blessing. Proverbs warns us that a stingy heart clouds even good actions. (Proverbs 23:6â7)
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So while this is often called a cheerful season, itâs also a revealing one. It exposes the longings, hurts, ...
Whom Do You Resemble?
Who do you take after in your family? Maybe youâve been told you have your dadâs smile, your grandmotherâs eyes, or your auntâs sense of humor. Itâs always fascinating to see how traitsâboth physical and personalityâtravel through generations. Some show up right where youâd expect, and others seem to skip a branch or two before popping up again.
It makes me wonder: who did Jesus resemble? Did He have Maryâs uncleâs expressions? His great-grandfatherâs laugh? Were there family members who felt especially connected to Him because of some familiar or shared trait?Â
Matthew begins his Gospel by laying out Jesusâ genealogyâAbraham to David, David to Joseph, and ultimately to Jesus. Itâs his way of showing us that Jesus truly came from Israelâs royal line. He was the Son of David, the Lion of Judah. His roots ran deep in the story God had been writing for centuries.
But then comes the surprising part. Joseph wasnât Jesusâ biological father. His role was real, meaningful, and essentialâbut...
A Better Way to Measure
Do you ever catch yourself sizing up your lifeâwondering if you measure up to others, or even to your own expectations?
We all do this. We compare ourselves to people, timelines, and unspoken standards. And honestly, measuring isnât wrong in itself. It can help us grow. But if weâre using bent or broken rulers, the results will always be off.
Scripture is often called the âCanonââthe true rule of faith. It gives us a trustworthy way to understand what really matters. But even then, we can take biblical ideas and twist them into something that misses the heart of the Kingdom.
The disciples did this more than once. In Matthew 18, they were busy ranking themselves, trying to figure out who was the greatest. Jesus interrupted their scorekeeping with a startling correction: âUnless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.â (Matthew 18:3)
He wasnât talking about childishness. He was inviting them into humility, openness, and the simple clari...
When âIllusory Delightsâ Call Your Name
Sometimes we just want a little satisfaction, donât we? A touch of comfort, something that takes the edge off, a moment where we feel filled. But, the real question is: what actually meets us at the deeper level?
Paul hints at this in his letter to the Corinthians:
âYou say, âI have the right to do anything,â but not everything is beneficial. âI have the right to do anythingââbut not everything is constructive. No one should seek their own good, but the good of others.â (1 Corinthians 10:23â24)
Thereâs an even higher call woven through Scripture: to seek Godâs will and pursue it with our whole heart, mind, soul, and strength.
And yet, weâre often tempted to meet our own needs firstâand fast. We lean on our own strategies, or we look to others to fill the gaps. At first, that urge can feel almost noble or necessary. But Ignatius of Loyola, writing in the 15th century, named these moments for what they are: âillusory delights.â
Theyâre the offerings that shimmer just enough to catch...
When Life Feels Aimless
 Do you ever feel a little aimlessâlike youâre going through the motions, but the motions no longer mean much? Itâs easy for weeks to blur into months of treadmill living: lots of activity, not much direction. And ⌠wouldnât it be nice if our path was simply marked out for us?
Most of us long for wisdomâthe kind that blends knowledge, experience, discernment, and the ability to put it all into practice. We want to know what to do, when to do it, and how to do it well. We want to be effective and grounded.
But how do we actually get wisdom?
Scripture tells us we begin by believing wisdom exists outside of ourselves. There is a reason, a design, a deeper logic woven into this world and into our lives. And that wisdom isnât hidden. Itâs found in relationship with God.
âThe fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.â âProverbs 9:10
Wisdom doesnât originate with us. It resides in God. He is its source and author.
Moses understood t...
Whatever You Do: Reclaim the Fullness of Your Spiritual Life
 If I asked you, âHow are you doing spiritually?â you might need a moment to think about it.
Youâd probably start mentally reviewing your Bible reading. Have I been consistent? Did I even open it this week? Do I remember anything I readâand did it make any difference in my life?
Then you might check in on your prayer life. Have I actually been talking to God, or just thinking about prayer? Have I lifted up my family, my work, my community? Have I interceded for anyone at all?
From there, you might evaluate your church involvementâattendance, serving, small group participation.
And after that quick internal survey, youâd likely give yourself some kind of grade⌠then adjust up or down depending on whether youâre wired as an optimist or a realist.
But hereâs the thing:
Your spiritual life is so much bigger than your religious activities. It touches every part of who you are and what you do.
Paul said it this way:
âWHATEVER you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the ...
Be Inspired, Not Discouraged
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When you see someone excellingâwhether in school, sports, relationships, work, self-discipline, or communicationâwhatâs your first reaction? Do you feel motivated to grow in that area, or do you feel left out, thinking, âWhy donât I have those abilities?â Or worse, âI could never do thatâ?
Hebrews 12 offers us encouragement for moments like this:
âSince we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, letâs throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.â (Hebrews 12:1)
The heroes of faith in Hebrews 11âpeople who trusted God against impossible oddsâare recorded not to make us feel small, but to inspire us. Their lives are meant to encourage us to step into the faith and purpose God has for us personally.
Unfortunately, itâs easy to fall into the trap of comparison. We look at someone elseâs success and either feel like failures or become prideful. As the apostle Paul reminds us, compar...
Seeing What God Is Saying
Some people live as if there is no God.
Some believe He exists but assume Heâs silent.
And others are doing everything they can to hear His voice more clearly.
But maybe the way to hear Him isnât through doing more.
Maybe itâs through quieting down and paying attention.
Our lives are noisy. Constant motion. Constant thought. Constant input. But when we slow our anxious energy and become still, something shifts. Suddenly, the world around us starts to speak. We begin to notice Godâs fingerprints everywhereâHis will, His beauty, His steady activity woven into ordinary life.
Psalm 19 says,
âThe heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them.
Yet their voice goes out into all the earth.â (Psalm 19:1â4)
Creation speaksâwithout saying a word.
The problem isnât that God has stopped speaking; itâs that weâve stopped ...
The Point and Power of Pausing
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When Life Turns Up the Pressure
What do you do when you feel the pressure closing in?
Do you double downâdetermined to push harder until things finally give way? Or do you pull backâhoping that if you wait it out, the heat will die down on its own? In other words, when stress hits, do you tend to fight or take flight?
We all have natural reactions to pressure. The key is knowing what yours isâand learning when it helps and when it hurts. Sometimes our first response fits the moment. But other times, itâs just instinct taking over, not wisdom leading the way.
The truth is, when pressure and quick reactions mix, things often go poorly.
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If youâre a fighter, remember that moving too fast can land you in trouble. Proverbs 19:2 says, âDesire without knowledge is not goodâhow much more will hasty feet miss the way!â In other words, rushing ahead can leave you with regretsâa commitment you canât keep, a word you canât take back, or a problem that just got bigger.
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If youâre a f...
