Do we need New Year’s resolutions to make improvements in our lives? Or should we be into “spiritual disciplines” to make our lives better? I ask because several Christian authors claim our spiritual growth (or formation) depends on the rigorous practice of spiritual disciplines, and they quote Paul in 1 Corinthians 9 and 1 Timothy 4 [...]
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A New Year dawns and with it a determined resolve to get our spiritual lives in shape. Echoes of 1 Timothy 4:7 come to mind, perhaps, when Paul told Timothy, “Train yourself to be godly.” Ah yes, we say to ourselves, it’s time to get rid of those embarrassing spiritual cobwebs and get back into [...]
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Where do New Year’s resolutions fit in with Christianity? Is willpower a part of our Christian walk? Is strict self-discipline a part we play in our sanctification? If so, wouldn’t the New Year be a good time to get a grip on ourselves, resolve some niggling problems at last, and make a determined effort at [...]
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We know God loves us, because he “demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us,” Romans 5:8. And it was “when we were God’s enemies that we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son,” verse 10. And it was “because of his great [...]
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It’s fascinating how people state with such confidence that “God helps those who help themselves,” as though they’re great experts on how God operates and what the Bible says. But there’s no such quote in the Bible, nor does the Bible even hint at God only kicking in to help us if we help ourselves. [...]
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What do people actually mean when they say “God helps those who help themselves?” Do they mean God is more likely to get involved in their lives if they’re doing their part? For instance, will God more likely help us find a job if we’re out there looking for one? Or that he’ll more likely [...]
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I’ve been learning about the tricks women play to shave off those crucial ounces for weighing-in at Weight Watchers – like don’t eat breakfast that morning, wear the lightest weight clothes you’ve got, no underwear, and use the scales at Weight Watchers that register the lowest weight. It reminded me of the tricks people play [...]
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I’m amazed at people who don’t have time to eat. How can anyone miss out on eating?! But young people, especially, have so much going on and so many friends in need, as well as their own emotional crises, that they can’t find time to eat. What have we done to ourselves to create such [...]
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I was on my first train at 5 years and I’ve loved trains ever since – waiting at the station as the train draws in, jumping on board, pulling out of the station, picking up speed, watching the landscape flash by. It’s wonderful. All is under control, the destination is fixed, no worries, just sit [...]
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Now that we’ve been saved from past sins by Christ’s death, is it up to us now to obey God? It seems like it is in Romans 6:12, “Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.” That sounds like it’s up to us now [...]
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