Joy and Strength (Christian life and music)

I'm trying to figure out why the popular fad of "setting an intention" bothers me.  It bothers me because it is creeping into even Christian circles. There is a vast difference between prayer and "setting intentions."  How do I know?  Scripture. The intent of our hearts is simply the condition of our hearts.  Do we seek God solely to worship Him?  Do we seek Him to help us "manifest" our intentions?  Ugh! We must be very careful in these End Times.  Remember, our enemy is crafty and sneaky, subtle and not obvious in his attempts to steer us away from Christ.  He is happy to use "good" - ideas that help us feel more in control, ideas that rely on self more than God (placate our flesh) - rather than blatant evil. I see it as a matter of who is in charge.  The only way to get our hearts right, and have good will, is to allow the Holy Spirit His work in our lives, transforming us by His power, grace, His Word, and in His ways. I think the danger ...

Years ago, someone once told me that my music was for a time.  I took that to mean a time when people are broken, lost, suffering, and hurting.  A future time when life would be harder than it is now.  The Lord seems to inspire much of my songwriting in a prophetic way - lyrics to soothe, exhort, and call to Christ for a time in the future, collectively. But there are always hurting people around us.  Oh they may put on a good show, but God knows the pain they carry in their hearts.   I asked someone the other day what her "takeaway" from the pandemic was and her answer stunned me with its shallowness. She said something about wearing a mask, or some such thing.  Wow.  To be fair, I had only just met this person, so maybe she didn't feel comfortable opening up her deepest feelings to me.   But there was gold to be mined during this pandemic!  Did we turn to Christ more?  Did we see His hand in all of this?  Did the isolati...

God's wisdom is perfect.  God's knowledge is unlimited.  God is omniscient. Ask Him anything, He knows the answer.  Will He tell you?  He promises to give wisdom to those who ask Him. Wisdom for what?  Knowledge for knowledge sake?  Wisdom to "get rich?"  How God answers us has a lot to do with our hearts, our motives. If we want wisdom to know His will, He will oblige.  He does not always answer us at once, in a tidy sentence.  Sometimes He does.   But much of the time He walks with us as the answer unfolds.  Being the perfect Teacher that He is, He wants us to truly know and learn, not just gather facts or answers. So, for example, if I ask Him for wisdom about a situation, He usually tells me a bit about what is going on.  He speaks to my spirit.  He leads me to certain Scripture passages that reveal the true nature of the circumstance. When I want to know what to do , that may take a bit more time.  He shows ...