Married to Katie, Dad to 5 fun kids, I lift weights, I'm a Pastor, I smoke meat, I wrote Breathing Room: Stressing Less, Living More https://nitter.cf/t.co/Nkj3hP6P60.
Seekonk, MA
Joined October 2008
- Tweets63.8K
- Following695
- Followers3K
- Likes17.4K
Scripture is the word of God understood, comprehended, honored. Prayer is the word of God assimilated, absorbed, lived. -Eugene Peterson
“Never feel guilty for doing things that feed your soul.” -in @Tish_H_Warren book “What grows in weary lands”
6 Myths about Forgiveness, Letting Go & Dealing with Hurt in Relationships buff.ly/2g3vS96
What if the trouble you are facing isn’t some kind of punishment from God but an invitation to experience and rest in the peace of God (John 14:26, 16:33)?
The irony is that those who grow up as the center of attention often live with a deep fear of losing it. We engage God through that lens, and God never takes his attention away from us.
josh reich retweeted
The Top 10 Leadership Articles I Read The Week Of October 26th tinyurl.com/dmef6mhb Features writers like @collabfund @Clawlessjr @PredSuccess @JoshuaReich and many, many more!!!
josh reich retweeted
My Latest: We put teen girls in groups with their peers all the time, and then wonder why they struggle at 25. The research says they need their dads and older women more in high school, not less. Here are 10 critical things teen girls need from their fathers:
[LINK's below]
josh reich retweeted
Few people appreciate the challenge of pastoring.
• Be a caring, thoughtful, shepherding presence
• Lead organizationally with vision and skill
• Oh, and prepare a new keynote address every week
Pastors, I'm praying for us. Let's serve in the strength he supplies.
We all have things about ourselves that we hate; something we do, things we think, things we feel, and things in our past. We spend a lot of energy trying to change these things. We hope that something will be different tomorrow. Maybe we’ll magically stop looking at porn, buying things we can’t afford, or working too much, stop being so desperate for love, stop feeling lonely, and stop saying something at the wrong moment. Perhaps that memory will finally go away.
So, we read our Bibles.
According to the book of James, Struggling with sin is the everyday Christian experience. Not because we don’t have power over sin. We do have power because of the work of Jesus on the cross in our place and rising from the dead. We have the ability through the Holy Spirit to battle our sins and win, but we often lose.
In Romans 7, we see this struggle in Paul. Tim Keller lays this out as to why this is the present Christian experience:
At the beginning of chapter 7, Paul talks in the past tense; in verse 14, he changes to the present tense.
In 7 – 13, Paul talks about sin killing him; he’s dead, but in verse 14, Paul begins talking about an ongoing struggle with sin. He is fighting sin, struggling, but refuses to surrender.
In 18, Paul says, “I know that nothing good dwells in me.” Those who don’t know Jesus are unaware of being lost and sinful. Without Jesus, we think we can save ourselves or are good.
In 22, Paul says, “I delight in God’s law.” If you don’t know Jesus, you can’t delight in God’s law.
Keller concludes, “Often we repent of past sin and think it’s done, but God wants to show us how to hate it when the seeds come up again.”
To move forward in freedom, it is essential to name and confess those things you do that you hate. Those struggles you battle with. To admit what dwells in you. Often, we have an inflated view of our goodness, but to experience the grace, we must understand the depths of our brokenness. Otherwise, what do we need God’s grace and forgiveness for?
We must establish guardrails to overcome sin and temptation. Guardrails on the road are there to direct and protect. They tell us where to go and where not to go. Guardrails aren’t in the danger zone but are built in the safety zone. One of the problems that leads us to fall into temptation is that we ask, “How far is too far?” Basically, “how close can I get without sinning?” When we have this mindset, we fall into sin.
As you think about finding victory, here are a few questions to answer:
What sin, temptation, emotion, situation, or relationship do you need to place a guardrail around? We need to identify the nature of the battle. Is it food, porn, going into debt, gossip, or working too much? It could be a relationship where you need to set boundaries to protect your heart or exercise wisdom in the access you give someone. We often fail to identify where a guardrail needs to be placed; if we don’t do that, we won’t protect ourselves.
What does a guardrail look like in that situation? For each person and each case, the guardrail might look different. I have a friend who, to put a guardrail around porn, doesn’t have a smartphone. Some people cut up their credit cards to avoid overbuying; they might also stop going to a place or put themselves in a situation where they'd be tempted. Yes, God promises to give us a way out of every temptation, but sometimes, that way is not showing up or opening yourself up to that opportunity. If the thing you are placing a guardrail around involves someone else, let them speak about what the guardrail might be.
What freedom will a guardrail lead to? This is a crucial step. What will a life of freedom look like if you place a guardrail around that situation or thing? This focus can be compelling as you navigate the complex steps toward freedom.