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You and I better get this one right - we all die and we need to know. But really, how do we know God is real? I'm not going to pretend I can settle that for you in the next 5 minutes of reading. And pardon my cheesy image of God looking down on you while you pray. But how do you create an image of God? Can anyone prove God is real? Nobody can. But I can tell you what I've found after doing the homework, and why the question matters more than almost anything else in your life.

So, what do I write about - and why? Well, I read the Bible cover to cover every year. And there a tons of topics in the Bible. I believe the Bible has so many lessons, topics, and keeps us grounded. So I study deeply and write of its topics. Today, I write about goals, objectives and life’s purpose. I hope it might get you thinking. If you are bored, stuck or it’s all getting hard, maybe this will help. One more thing. A good friend who is a great writer told me to add sub-t

What is your attitude toward the things you own? How much of your life is spent working to earn money, buying things, maintaining them, upgrading them, organizing them, protecting them, and worrying about them? There is nothing wrong with working hard or enjoying God’s blessings. But have you ever stopped to ask yourself, Am I living like this world is my home, or am I living with eternity in mind? Temporary vs Eternal If someone watched how you spent your time, money, energy

How much control do you really have over your life? How much control do you desire over your life? Most of us think we have control. We choose where to live, who to marry, what career to pursue, how to spend our money, what to eat, where to vacation, and what goals we want to accomplish. Every day we make hundreds of decisions, and those decisions usually produce predictable results. We call it “cause and effect”. If you study hard, you’ll probably make better grades. If you

What areas of your life are you overconfident in? Have you ever caught yourself thinking, “I’ve got this.” You don’t ask for help. You don’t confess weakness. You don’t seek counsel. You don’t pray much about it because you’re convinced you can handle it on your own. Yet, how many times have you felt that way only to watch everything go sideways? What are you involved in right now that could possibly fail? Your marriage? Your finances? A business decision? Your health? A rela

If I asked you when you’re most likely to fail, what would you say? Most of us would answer, “When life gets hard.” We imagine failure comes when we’re under pressure, our finances are tight, our marriage is struggling, our health is failing, or we’re simply exhausted. But that’s not the pattern I see in the Bible. Some of the greatest spiritual failures didn’t happen during hardship. They happened during seasons of incredible success - me included. The danger wasn’t having t

What is a modern-day idol? And if I asked you whether you worship an idol, you’d probably answer, “Absolutely not!” I know I would have. After all, I don’t bow down to statues, burn incense, or pray to carved images. The reality of worshiping idols became more real when Wendy and I visited Rome. Everywhere we looked were enormous statues of gods and emperors and huge buildings with marble columns that had stood for nearly two thousand years. What did these places look like wh

What in your life keeps beating you, the thing you just can’t seem to beat? Maybe it’s your weight, drinking, unhealthy eating, pornography, overspending, anger, a toxic relationship, or another habit you keep promising yourself you’ll change. Why does it keep winning? Sometimes it’s because the battle is bigger than willpower alone. But sometimes, if we’re honest, it’s because we simply aren’t trying hard enough. Are we really doing everything we can, or are we settling? I w

How wealthy should a church be? What should a church budget really look like? It’s amazing to me how some churches are barely surviving while others seem to swim in money. I’ve walked the halls of large churches and seen expensive cameras, lighting systems, coffee shops, bookstores, children’s spaces, beautiful landscaping, and even brand-new equipment still sitting unopened in the original boxes. Then there are the salaries, insurance, utilities, maintenance, security, and c

What is truth? Really. Where do you get yours? From social media? Friends? A therapist? Your own experiences? A podcast? A psychic? A medium? An astrologer? An intuitive? A tarot card reader? A spiritual advisor? An energy healer? An AI? We all get information from somewhere. But if something is true at the highest possible level—completely true, perfectly true—shouldn’t that be the source we build our lives upon? This morning I read one of the more unusual encounters in the

Have you ever given the right answer to a question you didn't actually understand? That doesn’t make sense does it. Well, it will in a moment … I did it for years. Honestly for over 10 years. Someone would ask me about my faith and I'd tell them exactly what they needed to hear. I knew the answer, but didn’t understand it. I said I believed in Jesus, but I didn’t know what it really meant. I went to church, I journaled, I tried hard to be a good man. And I was still lost and

What important thing about life, or something important in your life, have you forgotten a little? Asked another way, is that important thing still on the forefront of your mind? Should it be? What kind of thing should be on your mind every day? And if that thing begins to erode or slip, how will it affect your life? I was reading today and came across these words: “Jerusalem, if I forget you, let my right hand lose its skill. Let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth if I

Who in your life needs some wise advice? Maybe even a reprimand? When should you say something? Jesus said, “Why do you notice the speck of dust in your brother’s eye, but you don’t notice the log in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take that speck out of your eye,’ when there is a log in your own eye? You hypocrite! First take the log out of your own eye; then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:3-5 NCV). Most of

What is your mission? Do you have a life mission? Are you just floating through life chasing things that benefit yourself? For some people, Christianity becomes little more than getting their ticket to heaven punched. They believe, attend church, try to stay out of trouble, and then spend the rest of their lives pursuing comfort, entertainment, money, travel, hobbies, or retirement. None of those things are wrong. Work hard. Take care of your responsibilities. Enjoy your fami

Pain. How would you define it? I see some people grumble about the smallest things, and I say that respectfully. Some people have never really fought a serious battle—yet. Give it time. Life has a way of introducing all of us to pain. Sickness comes. Loss comes. Betrayal comes. Financial hardship comes. Death comes. Nobody gets a pass. The older I get, the more I realize that many of the things I once called problems were really just inconveniences. Real pain has a way of cha

Whoever you are with right now, a spouse, someone you’re dating, or even someone you’re simply getting to know, where is that relationship taking you? Is that person helping you move toward God and His ways, or are they pulling you away from Him? And just as importantly, where are you leading them? I read today: “You must not marry people of other nations. If you do, they will cause you to follow their gods.” But Solomon fell in love with these women. (1 Kings 11:2 NCV) That

What kind of people do you attract? Birds of a feather flock together. So what kind of people do you spend your time with? Are they drawing you closer to God or further away from Him? More importantly, are you the light in the darkness? Or has the darkness become so familiar that nobody can tell the difference anymore? I came across this verse this morning: “None of the others dared to join them, but all the people respected them.” (Acts 5:13 NCV) I think the backstory is imp

How are you different today compared to ten years ago? If you could sit across from yourself ten years ago, what would surprise you most about who you’ve become? I’m not talking about your waistline or your knees, though I understand if that’s the first thing that comes to mind. I mean the deep stuff. Your desires. Your conversations. What keeps you up at night. What gets you out of bed in the morning. Who you love and how you love them. What you can’t get enough of. What you

What are you chasing today? Is it a promotion, a successful business, financial security, better health, peace of mind, or the respect of others? Whatever it is, why are you pursuing it so hard? For many people, life becomes an endless pursuit. They work harder, achieve more, accumulate more, buy more, build more, and strive for more. The problem is that the finish line keeps moving. As soon as one goal is reached, another appears. As soon as one mountain is climbed, another

It’s good to pause and self-evaluate How familiar are you with Mary Magdalene? How do you and I compare to her, and why would we even compare ourselves to her? Her relationship with Jesus was unique and incredibly deep. Yet asking that question naturally leads us to another one: What kind of relationship do you and I have with Jesus Christ? It sounds like a simple question, but it may be one of the most important questions we ever ask ourselves. Let me tell you about Mary. Sh

How did your family member become so distant from you? Maybe you have stopped communicating. Maybe it’s them. How did it happen? Are you concerned? Do you miss them? I’ve had this happen with more than one family member. Sometimes I was the problem and the offender. Sometimes it was other things. One thing I have learned is that most family breakdowns don’t happen overnight. They happen one hurt at a time, one disappointment at a time, one avoided conversation at a time and t

When to speak and when to be silent - Who would you like to have a serious conversation with, but you just kept finding reasons not to - or just don’t get around to it? Man, I use to think I need to tell “everybody” the truth - not anymore. As I say this, I know there are those out there that never say anything. So, what about you? Who needs a serious conversation? Maybe it’s a grown child whose choices are quietly unraveling their life. A friend you’ve watched drift for year

Quit trying on your own - you have help How would you feel if there was help that could give you the power to do things you struggle with? The Helper that can finally assist you to overcome? Would you be interested? How much do you know about the Holy Spirit? How much do you really talk to the Holy Spirit? Let me ask you another question. How much do you pray? When do you pray? How often, and how long? How do you view prayer? And when you pray, are you actually talking to GOD

I’m going to be pretty vulnerable today. What have you waited on so long to deal with, that you are finally moved to a pain that has become unbearable? I mean really think about that. It’s a very personal question. What are you sufficiently disturbed about? So disturbed, so done, so fed up, that you must do something about it, right now, starting today. That’s where I found myself this week. And I want to talk about it, because I think this is one of the most honest things in