Category — Uncategorized

Five Tips to Get the Most from Reading the Bible

1. Always read God’s Word expecting to meet with him. Approach God’s Word relationally. Listen for his voice. What is he saying to you personally? What do you see from his Word that reveals God’s character and ways? Where do you need to align your life with his character and ways?

2. Set aside a regular time to read God’s Word. I don’t know about you, but I need the discipline of a schedule. It helps knowing that I always spend this time listening to and conversing with God. Self-discipline is a fruit of the Holy Spirit. We do not cultivate self-discipline by always being spontaneous or only reading and conversing with him when we feel like it. [Read more →]

Recently we challenged the men of our church to a New Testament read-thru using the schedule below. The point of the challenge is to get to know God better by spending time with him in his Word. And as we draw near to him and get to know him better, we cannot remain unchanged!

Already, men are reporting how God is meeting with them and changing them as they spend time with him in his Word!

Let me challenge you too, to draw near to God and deepen your relationship with him as you simply read his Word. If you’re not a reader or simply prefer another alternative to reading, check out the free tools for listening to the New Testament on your iPhone, Blackberry or MP3 player: www.sccprimed.org. [Read more →]

1. Recognize that marriage is hard work, so stick with it and give it your best efforts! When our kids were little we were having a discussion about marriage around the dinner table. Our older two children indicated that, yes, they wanted to get married some day. When we asked our youngest son (who was about six at the time) whether he would some day marry, he pondered that question thoughtfully and stated, “I don’t know if I’ll get married. Marriage is hard work! I think I’ll get a job instead.” Linda and I pray that it wasn’t our marriage that gave him the idea that marriage is so hard! Anyways, after the laughter subsided, we had to agree with our six-year-old psychiatrist—marriage is hard work! So roll up your sleeves and put into your marriage the work required to make it great! [Read more →]

For 40 years God led Israel through the barren wilderness of the Middle East. In spite of their repeated grumblings and rebellion, God continued to love, lead and provide for his people. Even when they were unfaithful to him, he remained faithful to them. In all those years, God sustained this massive company of people by miraculously providing them with manna. Manna was a food substance like bread that God caused to appear on the ground each morning. The people of Israel gathered manna as their staple food through all those years.

 In year 39 of Israel’s wandering in the wilderness two men woke up one morning. One man got up, put on his outer garment and lifted the flap over the door of his tent to step out into the desert morning. As he ducked under the tent flap it dumped a load of sand down his neck. He cursed under his breath and angrily shook out his clothes muttering, “I am sick and tired of this infernal sand! I’ve got sand in my bed, sand in my hair, sand in my food! Everywhere there’s sand! I hate this life of constant moving and upheaval. And guess what’s for breakfast? Manna—again!”  [Read more →]

Right after high school I attended Multnomah Bible College in Portland, Oregon. Now you might think, “Wow, Bible college, pretty holy dude!” But unfortunately, if it’s possible to hang out with the wrong crowd at Bible college, I did just that. I was neither serious with my studies nor with my relationship with God. You see, I had accepted Christ as my Savior, so I was “in”. I had my “ticket” into heaven. What more did I have to do? What more did God want from me? I had a relationship with God, but he seemed somehow distant and irrelevant to my everyday life.

Still, there were aspects of Bible college I really enjoyed—especially the relationships I had built with friends. So after the first semester, when my money had run out, I was crushed because I couldn’t continue. I remember wondering why God didn’t provide for my tuition like he had for other students. Having to leave school just didn’t make sense to me. Why would God allow this to happen? Isn’t going to Bible college a good thing to do? [Read more →]

Others have a profound impact on us, whether for good or bad. The Scriptures remind us of this in a variety of ways. Proverbs 27:17 NLT says, “As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.” And the apostle Paul urged us, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1 ESV) But we’re also warned, “Bad company corrupts good character.” (1 Corinthians 15:33)

The other day I began thinking back over some of the key people in my life who had a profound impact in modeling Christlikeness for me. My parents played a huge role in demonstrating the lifestyle of a Christ follower for me. They were human, sinners and had weaknesses just like everybody else, but their lives were also on a continual upward trajectory of growth in Christ. Who they were in private at home was who they were in any and all other settings. [Read more →]

When I was 12 years old our church launched a campaign to raise pledges for missions for the coming year. The church leadership challenged us to spend time asking God what amount he would have us trust him for. Our leadership also led by example. God had given me a vision for reaching the lost around the world and I knew that he wanted to use me in a small way to see that vision accomplished. I prayed and sensed that he wanted me to trust him to give $4.00 per week through me.

As a 12-year-old I received a dollar per week for my allowance, so I couldn’t simply divert what was already coming in to my giving. I prayed that God would give me opportunities to earn enough to meet my pledge of $4.00 per week for the next year. I still remember how excited I was that morning in church when I turned in my pledge card. I knew I was embarking on an adventure with God and I could hardly wait to see how he would work in my life! [Read more →]

When I was twelve years old I went to camp for the first time. One of the highlights of camp for any twelve-year-old boy was swimming in the lake on a hot summer day. But the oversight of a couple hundred high-energy boys is a huge responsibility for the camp staff! They knew there were too many boys and too few staff to provide a safe swimming environment.

So, to make swimming safer they established the “buddy-system”. We were not allowed in the water without our buddy. And when the whistle blew we grabbed each other’s hand and raised our hands high to show that we had our buddy and that everyone was safe and accounted for. [Read more →]

In Luke 5:11, Luke tells us about one of Jesus’ first encounters with Peter, James and John. After hearing Jesus teach and seeing him miraculously fill their nets with fish, these fishermen “left everything and followed him.” Now think back to the initial occasion when you decided to follow Jesus Christ. What was going on in your life? In what ways did Christ change your life?

I first surrendered my life to Christ as a four-year-old child and grew up in a Christian home. But when I was 19 I realized my Christian life was stale. I was focused on me and my performance for God. At that time I attended Bible college, but had to leave after a semester for lack of funds. Even at Bible college I was running with the wrong crowd. I knew and said all the right things, but my relationship with God was shallow. I was a phony. [Read more →]

A few days ago we looked at Abraham’s ever increasing faith in God in spite of the ever dwindling likelihood that he and Sarah would have a child. We saw in Romans 4 that this acount was written for our benefit.

Just a few verses further Paul writes, “Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.” (Romans 5:1-2 NLT) [Read more →]