“I’m not advocating Pollyanna positivity. We need a negative feedback loop to survive. Without it, we keep making the same mistakes over and over again. But we need a positive feedback loop to thrive. Simply put, celebrate what you want to see more of.”- Mark Batterson “Do not let an unwholesome talk come out of […]
“The Spirit . . . is more committed to leading us than we are to following him. So relax. If you don’t sense his guidance, ask again. . . . He might use a nudge, a prick of the conscience, a reminder of Scripture. The Spirit speaks first through the verse. He may complement the […]
“When you don’t still, you react. When you don’t, first and foremost, purpose to utilize the strength of stillness — there’s no way to pay attention to who God is, or to your location, or to what your soul deeply wants. . . . Where there’s no cruciform, truly reaching toward the one true God […]
“You don’t have to go out and look for resistance. It will find you soon enough! My advice? Don’t look for a work-around, work through it. . . . The obstacle is not the enemy; the obstacle is the way. In fact, harder is better! – Mark Batterson (emphasis author) “When Pharaoh finally let the […]
“The Celtic Christians referred to these kings of moments — where heaven and earth seem to touch — as thin places. Natural and supernatural worlds collide. Creation meets Creator. Sin meets grace. Routine meets the Wild Goose.”- Mark Batterson “When the LORD saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from […]
“Full life consists of both peace and pain. It’s hard to have one without the other. We don’t crave peace until we feel pain. We don’t know how to define pain unless we have peace. They are in extreme opposition, yet they happen to coexist in this place that we call life here on earth.”- […]
“Sometimes you have to sow a seed at your point of need. One reason is that it takes your eyes off your problems! When you focus on others, it puts your problems in perspective. And don’t be surprised if a blessing comes out of nowhere.”- Mark Batterson “Sow your seed in the morning, and […]
“To be clever enough to get a great deal of money, one must be stupid enough to want it.”- G. K. Chesterton, A Miscellany of Men About Naphtali he (Moses) said, “Naphtali is abounding with the favor of the LORD and he is full of his blessing; he will inherit southward to the lake.”- Deuteronomy […]
Max Lucado begins Chapter 8 (“Walk Circles Around Jericho”) of Glory Days with a recap of some Jericho facts. The immense and impenetrable walls consisted of two concentric circles rising a total of forty feet above the ground. Jericho’s inhabitants were ferocious and barbaric. God, not Joshua, was responsible for bringing down those walls. Pastor […]
In Chapter 7 (“Call on Your Commander”) of Glory Days, Max Lucado writes that when Joshua and his soldiers faced the challenge of Jericho’s high walls and protected sides, he had a divine encounter during this dark, difficult time. Perhaps, Pastor Lucado observes, like Joshua you’re facing a unique challenge. Like Jericho, your challenge is […]
As Max Lucado begins Chapter 6 of Glory Days, he remarks that, for a book about military conquests, Joshua really skimps on battle details. We don’t know the military details because the emphasis in Joshua is not on physical battles, but on a spiritual one. Therefore, the book of Joshua isn’t about claiming land for […]
“Our Promised Land isn’t a physical territory; it is a spiritual reality. It’s not real estate but a real state of the heart and mind.”- Max Lucado Max Lucado continues Chapter 1 of Glory Days by asserting that Canaan is not a metaphor for heaven. Rather, Canaan represents the life we can have right now. […]