Too many of us find our troubles Bear instead of Bull Markets. Why? Because we don’t face them as Grace Focused Optimists. Why not? Because we don’t listen to what God tells us about them. The point is not that we don’t listen to some of what God says about our troubles. It’s worse. We […]
The late Jack Miller once asked his wife Rose Marie, “If you could change any one thing about me, what would it be?” She said, “Jack, you don’t listen.” Jack answered, “No, no, no” and repeated his question, demonstrating that Rose Marie was spot on. The writer of Hebrews emphasizes too many of us aren’t […]
Clout. Noun. Informal. “Influence or power”: “The President of the United States has a lot of clout.” The cross has clout. It has incomparable influence and peerless power. The Holy Spirit used its message to change Saul of Tarsus from Christianity’s greatest persecutor into Paul its greatest preacher. And it’s this green-thumbed message of the […]
Caution: This post answers one of the most important questions we can ask. It concerns the struggle every Christian experiences when confronted with the reality of their continuing imperfection. The answer will raise more questions than reporters ask in a briefing when they believe Mr. Trump’s done something wrong. The next post will seek to […]
Anyone can light a fire in the hearth of gratitude with the dry seasoned wood of good things. But because God says, “Give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you” (1 Thessalonians 5:20), we need something that can light a gratitude fire using the wet green […]
Thanking God at mealtime is “saying grace.” This comes from the New Testament’s word for gratitude. It means “good grace.” When you say grace you’re saying, “Lord, this meal is grace and your grace is good! Thanks!” The New Testament also teaches us that saying grace in the sense of thanking God isn’t just for […]
Words work wonders or woes. They’re penicillin or poison, scalpel or shrapnel, friend or foe. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” (Proverbs 18:21). You agree, right? After all, who among us hasn’t struggled with PTSD—post-traumatic speech discomfort—after being hammered with criticism or slammed with sarcasm? Or driven for days—top down, sunglasses […]
History knows England’s King James I as “the wisest fool in Christendom.” He was personally intelligent but politically inept. In a different sense, every Christian is a wise fool. That’s because the wisest thing in the world is being a “fool for Christ” (1 Corinthians 4:10). The Mary who was sibling to Lazarus and Martha […]
She was one of those out-going, easy to be around people who never make you feel like a pair of brown shoes in a room full of tuxedoes. She’d have been a great ambassador for America. I’m sure she’s been one for her husband. He needed one. He became a pastor. She graced us with […]
I’m a Grace Focused Optimist. I live with The Christian Attitude toward life. That’s optimism . . . the optimism that through Jesus my life is a grace G.O.O.D. A God orchestrated opportunity for development (into Christlikeness) through disposition (optimism) for doxology (giving God glory). Today we conclude our series on the O in our […]
