Joy and Strength (Christian life and music)

Perhaps you think I am going to say that the #1 thing that changes people is God.  And that is true.  Only God can change a human heart. However, there is something that we can do to help others along the way, and it is this: Accept them as they are. It is that simple. People can sense when we are judging them.  No matter what we say on the outside, our thoughts and demeanor carry an intangible weight. Are we placing ourselves in God's position by acting as judge and jury?  "I would never do that," you may claim.   Yet we do it all the time when we make judgments about others.  Is it possible to see only the good, and is that what God requires of us? Well, let's go to the Source and see what He has to say about the matter.  As always, He is very straightforward about it, if only we would listen and obey! “ Do not judge so that you will not be judged. 2 For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. 3 Why do

God is building us.  God is after our hearts.  God is chipping away at us until He is formed in us fully. This is no instant endeavor!  I always marvel at how everything in life takes time to build.  Nowhere else in the world are there "instant" results.  And yet sometimes, we Christians want the easy way through difficulties.  We want that miraculous, instant deliverance from the Lord. Yes, He is more than able to deliver and heal instantly.  But these cases are the rare ones.   It's not that the Lord wants to see us suffer.  But He is the Master Technician knowing exactly which tools to use to bring us to our knees.  He wants us humbly at His feet because that is where the power is!  When we are weak, He is strong.  Even the children's Sunday school song reminds us of that.  The paradox is that He wants us strong!  Over and over again in Scripture, He tells us to be strong and courageous.  He tells us not to fear. But where does our boldness come from?  If we rely s

I recently came across a book written by Donald Miller.  It is a business and marketing book.  Since Miller is a common last name, I figured it couldn't be the same Donald Miller who wrote, "Blue Like Jazz," which was a best-selling spiritual memoir he wrote years ago.  I read it and remember liking it and thinking of him as more the artsy type.  A true seeker of Christ. So when I discovered that the marketing book was written by the same Donald Miller, I coudn't wrap my brain around it. I simply could not see him in that light.   He was a spiritual writer, and now he's writing business/marketing plans?!  The two just don't coincide in my thinking. Even if he has chosen to "reinvent" himself, which is very popular these days, that is quite a switch. So it should come as no surprise that those who know me in my "day job" as an administrative professional cannot see me as the artist that I also am. Hats. Some of us wear very disparate ones ou

We're living in a different world.  Different from the way things were.  This pandemic has brought us to our knees collectively.  Hopefully, it has caused us to stop short and take stock in life itself.   The pandemic is a reminder of what we knew all along but pushed to the back of our minds - life is fragile.  Life is unpredictable.  Life is not something to be controlled. Whatever we are in the habit of seeking for security, comfort, truth, and peace, these are what we will seek during a pandemic.  We will not suddenly become something different from what we were.  We are all creatures of habit. If you were accustomed to turning to food or alcohol  or the internet or work for comfort or escape, then you most likely turned to it even more during this time.   If you like to control, be in control, then you will tighten the reins.  Only how in the heck to you control a pandemic?  You don't. If you have been a Christian for any length of time, you have probably formed some spiri

All the laws in the world do not have the power to change the human heart. Oh there may be outward compliance, but that is no indication of what is going on in the heart. Think about wearing a mask during this pandemic.  Did you ever once feel  like wearing a mask when you went out?  Probably not.  I know I didn't.  Do we always feel  like doing what is right?  In today's world, do we even know right from wrong any more?  I mean, what the Bible calls sin has become acceptable in our society.   Only Christ can change the human heart.  And that is not done from the outside-in. When we are born again, Jesus comes to live in our hearts through the Holy Spirit.  That is how He is able to change us from the inside out.   As far as I have experienced, there is no other route to genuine change.  No self-help, no striving or trying to "be good" can change the heart of the matter.  Doing the right thing outwardly can be done by just about anyone.  But the Lord is after our hear