“Submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”- James 4:7 Sara Horn concludes Chapter 7 of How Can I Possibly Forgive? with a discussion of six Steps to Overcoming Discord, based on James 4:7. The first two steps are presented today. 1. Submit to God. We don’t like the word […]
Following Chapter 3 of How Can I Possibly Forgive?, Sara Horn discusses five ways to start letting go of bitterness right now. 1. Tell God how you’re feeling. When we keep ignoring the hard feelings about our vocation loss, they build up and grow bigger. Sara stresses that we need to make time to talk […]
“We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all. “- Isaiah 53:6 (NIV) “Not until we are lost do we begin to understand ourselves.”- Henry David Thoreau During my pre-downsizing, elementary teaching days at Ebenezer and […]
“It (love) is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.”- 1 Corinthians 13:5-6 “Resentment is like drinking poison and then hoping it will kill your enemies.”- Nelson Mandela In Chapter 2 (“Letting Go of the Hurt”) of How Can I Possibly Forgive?, Sara Hor observes that when […]
Today Sara Horn continues her discussion of five potential white N-O-I-S-Es in our life, covering the remaining four noises. 2. Other people’s opinions. Sara points out that, as much as we value our own opinions, we want to know what others think. The problem arises when we don’t like those opinions or we’re unsure what […]
How Can I Possibly Forgive? Rescuing Your Heart from Resentment and Regret is the latest book from author Sara Horn. Her previous books include My So-Called Life as a Proverbs 31 Wife. Sara begins Chapter 1 (“Listening Through the Noise”) by observing that there are three popular choices people make when they don’t want to […]
“I will always obey your law, for ever and ever. I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts.”- Psalm 119:44-45 Near the end of Chapter 12 of Soul Keeping, John Ortberg states that the only way to achieve freedom for your soul is through surrender. We must wholeheartedly embrace God’s […]
“I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I don no want to do- this I keep on […]
“The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul.”- Psalm 19:7 In Chapter 12 (“The Soul Needs Freedom”) of Soul Keeping, John Ortberg observes that Israel always has had deep respect for the giving of the law in a way that is hard for Christians to understand. Before God gave Moses the Ten Commandments […]
“Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”- James 4:8 John Ortberg continues Chapter 8 of Soul Keeping by reminding us that the Greek word dipsuchos often is translated “double-minded.” However, we also can think of dipsuchos as meaning double-souled, split-souled, […]
“Call this world if you please ‘The vale of soul-making.’ “- John Keats As John Ortberg continues Chapter 7 of Soul Keeping, he stresses that soul formation is the most important process in the universe. While in our day self-talk often is discussed, in the Bible people talked to their souls. The difference between self-talk […]
“Do not be deceived, God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.”- Galatians 6:7 John Ortberg emphatically begins Chapter 7 (“The Soul Needs a Keeper”) of Soul Keeping with the following statement: “I and no one else am responsible for the condition of my soul.” Perhaps, Pastor Ortberg notes, we operate on the […]