Two Suggestions for Becoming Great
You want to be great? You want to make a lasting impact? You want to make a significant contribution? I don’t think that’s a bad ambition—if we’re talking true greatness.
You want to be great? You want to make a lasting impact? You want to make a significant contribution? I don’t think that’s a bad ambition—if we’re talking true greatness.
While intercessory prayer is certainly biblical, I wonder whether some of our assumptions and motivations behind this kind of prayer are unbiblical.
We must tell the truth...in love. Confronting is not the same as criticizing. Be careful of using the truth like a battering ram to force the pastor to change. You don’t want the confrontation to turn into a power struggle.
Misunderstandings can easily lead to broken relationships. Before this happens do your best to come to a resolution. Then graciously forgive. And move on.
You probably know by now life isn’t fair. And it’s easy to become bitter because of what happens—but if you don’t forgive you will be trapped in a prison of your own making. Forgiveness is the key to releasing you from bitterness, hatred, and resentment.
Forgiveness is a required course in the curriculum of the Christian life. It isn't an elective. And the exams are tough to take. If you've gone through the process of seeking or giving forgiveness you know how tough it can be. But there's nothing more healing than a forgiving spirit.
Is there an offense you can’t forget? Write down that hurt, bring that paper to the cross, and etch FORGIVEN across it. Ask your Lord to fill the holes in your heart and help you press on.
How do you respond to change? Most circumstances are beyond your control. But what you can control is your response.
Far too many Christians have bought into the “pursue pleasure at all costs” philosophy. Marriages are breaking up at almost the same rate inside the Church as outside. Christian leaders often create just as much scandal as any movie star. And many churches no longer place holy living at the top of their priority list. But purity, as Paul explained in Romans 6, is a powerful alternative to our culture’s formula for living.
In my heart I knew my self-righteous standoff was petty and immature. But in order to end the madness I had to be the one to break. And that meant humbling myself.