by | Faith Lived Out
Sometimes we don’t realize how far we’ve come in our faith journeys until we remember some of the really stupid things we’ve done. I was driving the other day when I had a memory of the time I smoked pot on Easter Sunday. My heart still hurts thinking about it; thinking about the heartbreak I caused my Heavenly Father.
Have you ever heard the quote from Joyce Meyer:
I’m not where I need to be but thank God I’m not where I used to be?
That statement couldn’t be more true in my life as I think back on that day. I wasn’t a believer then, but I thought I was. I prayed every night before I went to bed and sometimes I would even wear a cross necklace around my neck. I thought that’s what Christians did. Beyond that, I knew nothing about what it was like to have a personal relationship with Jesus.
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by | Faith Lived Out
It really all goes back to child-like faith, doesn’t it? Kids are fearless most of the time. My best friend’s son Jackson is two and he’s all boy. His favorite game when I visit is for me to hit him with a pillow and knock him back on the bed a gajillion times. “Again,” he says after each round. The bigger he gets, the braver he becomes. He falls down and gets back up, not afraid to try again. When he jumps off his bed into my arms, he has no fear because I told him I would catch him and he trusts me. I pray he never loses that excitement of the next adventure that waits.
I pray I keep that same excitement. Somewhere on our faith journey, many of us lose that child-like faith. We get so caught up in busyness, routine, the disappointment of others, and the valleys of life, that we take our eyes off who God really is and put Him in this tiny box and stick Him on the shelf to collect dust. We only open the box to let Him out for emergencies.
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by | Faith Lived Out
Someone asked me the other day, “Is it really necessary for me to confess my sins to someone else when I’ve already confessed them to God?” That’s a really great question, so I thought we could talk about it here on the blog.
Let me first say this. Is confessing your sins to someone else a requirement for salvation? No. It’s not going to keep you from heaven. But I can tell you this.. It’s going to keep you from being healed and set free.
Let’s dig into the Scripture, because that’s where we’ll always find the right answer.
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by | Faith Lived Out
I was so excited to take myself on a date. I’d had an incredibly full week full of training. My brain was full and my mind was ready to focus on absolutely nothing. I was reminded in my training how important self-care is, especially in my line of work. I pour into others constantly, which means my cup can quickly become empty if I’m not careful. So, I’m working hard to remind myself that self-care is not a suggestion, but a requirement.
I did a little Saturday house cleaning, washed the car, payed some bills, then got dressed for my big date. I was going to take myself out to dinner and some shopping, followed by a comedy I’d been looking forward to seeing. I was ready for a laugh.
I settled into the theater seat with my pretzel and cheese and Pepsi and mentally noted I needed to watch a couple of the movies they’d shown in the previews. Side note: I should never mentally note anything. I have no idea what the movies were, but man they looked good.
Show time.
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by | Faith Lived Out
I was going through my morning devotion on the Abide app, which I absolutely love by the way, and we were covering Matthew 22:37-38. The shortened Sundi Jo version – love God with every part of you.
One of the ways I hear from God most is through journaling. I ask questions. I wait for Him to answer. Then I write them down. Sometimes I don’t shut up long enough for Him to give me answers, so I find myself doing more talking. This particular morning I was actually quiet enough to hear Him.
As I was meditating on loving Him with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength, He brought the five senses to mind: smell, touch, hearing, taste and sight. And with each sense, He gave me a Scripture to match up. Sometimes I’m just amazed at His goodness and how He always shows up at just the right time.
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by | Faith Lived Out, Spiritual Warfare
This is fourth and final part of a series I’m teaching on the Sin of Ignorance. You can read
Part One here. Read
Part Two here. Read
Part Three here. I hope you’ll join me for the whole series and walk away with the tools necessary to be set free.
We live in the most fast-paced culture in history. We have everything we need and want at our fingertips and still sometimes it’s not enough. There’s a fast food restaurant I drive by a few times a week that expects their team members to get their drive-thru done in 2:30. That’s from the time the order starts until the time the customer drives off. And they expect the order to be perfect. But what they don’t take into consideration is the traffic. The restaurant is right along the busy highway and you often have to wait to pull out due to traffic. So what happens? Cars get backed up in the drive-thru line, even though their orders have already been fulfilled. However, until they drive over a specific point in the line and the timer resets, the clock is still ticking.
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