We are all wounded. All. Of. Us. I’m not bringing this up to minimize my poor choices or anyone else’s foolish actions, but we all are broken, and, as a result, we hurt others. We all walk with a limp in the darkness at times. We all have titled halos. I agree with Chris Rollman who wrote, “The entire Christian narrative is based on human failure . . . and the saga to bring redemption to failing humanity back into a relationship... Read more
From the outside, my marriage looked fine. We didn’t fight or scream, curse at, or abuse each other. For the most part, we were kind and at ease in our marriage, but I felt stuck in a dull, passionless routine resulting in indifference. According to Forbes, 75% of individuals and couples cited lack of commitment as the reason for their divorce. When we grow comfortable, we can become complacent, leading to mediocrity, often resulting in relational breakdown. My wife and I... Read more
Most of us have a plethora of lies etched into our souls. As a result of those false beliefs that bamboozle and betray us, we become highly insecure. And our insecurities always (and yes, I mean always) lead to serious relational problems. We can’t flourish spiritually or relationally in an environment of anxiety and doubt. Whether told to us by a person in authority, someone close to us, the enemy, or our self-talk, untruths weaken our ability to love others... Read more
Is it possible that God wants to use our pain, even our self-inflicted agony and depression, to make us stronger and better rather than weaker and bitter? Is it possible that God can take whatever we surrender to Him, even our mess, and turn it into a miracle when we cry out for His help? What if God’s blessings sometimes come disguised as difficulties? Depression doesn’t sit well on me, but as hard as I try, sometimes it covers me... Read more
People who constantly stress about what-ifs are problematic because they typically go to a place of worry that is unproductive and relationally draining. Stressing about what might be different today if you had done something different yesterday is pointless. None of us can change anything about our past. We can and should learn from our experiences, but we cannot alter anything about what happened. So, imagining a thousand “what ifs” is futile and fruitless. What if I hadn’t married that person?... Read more
More teenagers die from suicide than from cancer, birth defects, heart disease, pneumonia, and influenza—combined. In fact, suicide is the second leading cause of death for ages 10-24. One source reports that for students in grades 7-12, there are over 5,000 suicide attempts each day in our nation. Let that number sink in for a moment. That’s over 200 attempts every hour of every day. When I read the recent story of an 11-year-old boy named Tysen who hanged himself,... Read more
Our way of life is far from perfect on this side of eternity. The unmasked and naked truth about humans is that you and I consistently struggle with our old nature, which is nothing like our new nature in Jesus. We’re all broken. We all fail. We all cheat. We all lie. We all pretend. We all say one thing and do another. All of us. Of course, we don’t always fail, and we might even go an hour or... Read more
Relationships make life worth living despite stress or a less-than-fun situation. The importance of relationships cannot be overstated. There you have it. I said it. And I stand by it. We find love, acceptance, and joy when sharing life with other humans. Communicating, sharing, and loving someone who chooses to do the same in return is exhilarating. I love my dog and value his unconditional affection, but he doesn’t mean as much to me as my wife does. (Sorry, Oscar.)... Read more
The desire to be liked and approved by others runs deep in most of us—maybe all of us. We are wired to connect with other humans and made to be in meaningful relationships. And when we know or sense that someone in our sphere of influence doesn’t like us, it hurts. From the time we start school as young children, we do whatever we can to gain the acceptance and approval of others. If we’re nerdy, we play the smart... Read more
Many things in the Bible are not as black and white as we would like. You may come from an extremely fundamental, conservative background where you were taught certain things as biblical truth, but they were theological opinions and possibly the traditions of men. For example, I grew up in a church that taught that drinking, smoking, dancing, and masturbation are evil. Are they? Anything in excess (including too much television or gaming) can be hurtful, but many things in... Read more
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