Here’s a thought question for you. Did Jesus have a best friend? If so, who was it?
Aunt Ruth, who was neither my aunt nor was she named “Ruth,” used to say it was Judas. “Only a friend can betray a friend,” she would say. I told her she was nuts.
You could obviously make the case for Peter, James and John collectively. He took them places the other disciples didn’t go, and let them see parts of Him the others didn’t necessarily see. He also gave each of them nicknames – something guys like to do with their friends.
Individually, Peter and John seemed to have this ongoing competition for who was going to be the closest to Christ. John even referred to himself as the “disciple whom Jesus loved.” But Jesus said more to Peter directly than any other disciple. Of course, Peter was also saying more to Him apparently.
I have another suggestion for who his dearest friend was…
…and it was a girl. [click to continue…]
The more you love someone, even God, the more you’d better get used to the World of Never Enough. Some days that’s a peaceful and practical place to be. At other times it’s mind-numbingly frustrating.
As we’ve been repeatedly told over the last decade, everybody has a “love language” by which they both measure and naturally express love. Doesn’t matter. Whatever language you speak or listen for, at the end of the day you’re still inadequate to communicate all that’s in your heart or all that those who depend most on you for love need.
Take words, for example – one of my most trusted tools. There’s a lazy streak in me that wishes I could just find the magic words and loop them over and over, without having to think of any more ways to say it. The problem is that words, despite their power, are gloriously limited.
That’s when you action folks take the stage. “Love is something you do,” you opine.
Amen!
So do it. And when you’ve done all you can do today, guess what? There’ll still be more to do tomorrow – especially for those you love most.
Now. You have two choices when it comes to the World of Never Enough. [click to continue…]
On this cold December night, when life, relationships and future hope seem more complicated than ever, I pray that that the Father of lights would give you the joy of His presence and the gift of simple happiness throughout the coming year, with the light of every new sunrise.
I pray that he would remind you often of how deeply you are loved, unforgettably engraved in the palm of His hand, steadfastly held by His grace day and night.
I pray that in an age where nothing seems to last, that the One who promised us a home with Him forever would keep the language and love of forever dancing in your heart and mine as long as you and I have breath. [click to continue…]
We all were born with the capacity to dream. To envision a life that could be… that will be… and the pathways to get there. To imagine a tomorrow that’s better…
Safer…
Happier…
Stronger…
Lovelier.
“Be fruitful and multiply,” He said. That’s the stuff that dreams are made of. We dream of fruitfulness. We dream of abundance.
But life on this side of the Garden sometimes aims our dreams toward the mirror. Nighttime comes to the soul, and our imagination gets lost in what once was. Of those we once dreamed with or about, but now for whatever reason are lost to us. And it hurts like hell. [click to continue…]
Remember what it was like as a kid to go to sleep on Christmas Eve?
Stockings hung with care, note and snack left near the tree…
Listening with both ears for any sound that resembled, well, anything…
Sneaking a peek out the window to see if you could see, you-know-who…
Trying to go to sleep cause you-know-who can’t you-know-what until you’re fast asleep.
[Cue the choir…]
Then came the morning! Wow! Where to start? All that stuff!
And then… [click to continue…]
This just in, in case you missed it. Christmas is less than a month away.
True confession: Yesterday I snarled in my journal, “I’ll just be glad when it’s over.”
But today, in honor of the late Zig Ziglar, who passed away yesterday, I’m “doing a checkup from the neck up.”
Every year, we have the same choice when it comes to the enchantment and the challenges of the holidays. Do we hunker down, sit tight, and hope for the best? Or do we seek to flourish? To make the most of our relationships, our worship, and even our painful experiences?
Survive or Thrive? It’s up to you. It’s up to me.
When it comes to being a thriver, here are five suggestions, for how you can come out of the bunker and actually have a season of delight:
[click to continue…]
Sort-of-random thoughts from going over the river and through those woods for Thanksgiving…
When the weather report is rain-free and the only wind that is blowing is in your face as you’re roaming through the pasture on a hayless hay ride, that’s a sign you’re having a good week.
I wonder what would happen if there was a new global holiday and the whole world got to swing as high as they could on a swing that is big enough to hold lots of different people. Maybe people would be less on your case and more at your side. It works for little kids – why not big ones?
[click to continue…]
I rarely get to sit at weddings. But I’ve stood in more than 200 of them. And may I say, I usually get the best, um, standing position in the house.
I’m not talking about seeing the bride make her way down the aisle – everybody gets up to see that. The best place to stand in a wedding is next to the groom. When they fling that door open and she comes in on Daddy’s arm, I can sense it. I can feel it. Heck, sometimes I can hear it.
There in that least-photographed moment, an otherwise robust, strong-hearted man melts. I’ve seen grown men cry. I’ve seen them rendered speechless. I’ve sensed their breathing and pulse increase. I’ve heard them say under their breath, “Ummph,” or “Wow,” which sorta says it all.
Friends and family have helped his beloved adorn herself. For him. And in that moment, there is nothing he wouldn’t do for his bride. Nothing he wouldn’t say to express the depth of his love for her and the level of his commitment to her.
And after that, they both live happily ever after. [click to continue…]
Do you believe that God has a plan for everybody’s life? Do you believe that He wants you to know what that plan is?
Ask the average believer and he or she will probably answer, “of course.” The idea that God has a plan for our lives is right up there with the idea that we have a guardian angel and God wants us to go do heaven.
Ask Henry Blackaby, however, and he’ll probably tell you something different. The esteemed author of Experiencing God says we get it backwards. It’s not that God has a plan for my life… it’s that God has a plan, period. And our task is to align ourselves with God’s plan for the world.
Point taken. That doesn’t change the fact, however, that those whose hearts are turned toward God have a sincere desire to please Him, and to have confidence that they are following in a path He wants the to follow.
So… back to the question someone asked – How do you know when you’re doing God’s will? Let me suggest three guideposts you can use to evaluate your life in light of God’s will for you. [click to continue…]
The years so many and memories still real
Point to chances and dances with life-setting choices.
And oh, how my heart could believe in illusions
And stubbornly choke on the mirrors and smoke
Of promises from a deceiver,
Whose only aim was to take and shame –
Never to give or forgive
Or redeem or fulfill a single dream
Like those I found in You,
My One More Chance.
What could I offer to You in return
For the touch of Your grace and the things I have learned?
I will offer the first of my heart to the dance
Of worship to You, My One More Chance.
[click to continue…]
