There is no way out of one’s inner life, so one had better get into it. On the inward and downward spiritual journey, the only way out is through. ~Parker J. Palmer1 Have you ever read the beloved children’s book We’re Going on a Bear Hunt? It’s the simple story of a family who sets…
Time Alone with Jesus
Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. — Luke 5:16 Often when I am under stress and pressure, I feel one of my greatest needs is to get a good night’s sleep. But I’ve found that physical rest alone is not enough to revive my flagging spirit. I need the spiritual revival that comes…
I Don’t Believe In Balance
How will I do it all? How do I balance life and family and work? I don’t believe in balance. I don’t believe in balance because I cannot find it anywhere in Scripture. Achieving perfect balance is impossible. It’s a losing game. Instead, what I see in God’s Word is surrender and obedience. Matthew 6:33:…
Turn Over Control to God
Turn Over Control to God How do we do that? How do we turn over the control of our lives to God as Jesus did, and as Jesus invites us to do? It’s not easy. I sometimes liken it to what trapeze artists do when they have to release their grasp on one bar in…
Yielding to God in Prayer
God invites us to pray in such a way that it scares what is scared within us. If you are not praying the type of prayers that scare you, they are certainly not frightening the enemy. — Lisa Bevere, author and teacher Are you praying big? Are you asking God for the impossible? Sometimes…
Dear God, Help Me to Daily Surrender to You
I have a proven tendency to mess things up. I have good intentions and even a few really good ideas. But sometimes things can go sideways so fast that I find myself questioning not only my actions but also my worth as a child of God. Not too long ago, I traveled to The Cove…
Unanswered Prayers
It’s easy to slip into the mentality that we somehow fell through the cracks of God’s good plans. Things are too final. The ink is too dry. The page has been turned. Their heart is too hard. Your heart is too hurt. The doctors have said impossible. The account is too bankrupt. The biological clock…
I Give Up Online Bible Study Week One — What Is Surrender Anyway?
God is not interested in signing off on even our best-made plans. God is much more interested in our surrender, our surrender to Him. ~ Laura Story So, here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life — your sleeping, eating, going-to-word, and walking-around life — and place it…
Surrender by Acting “As If”
When I find myself feeling unsure of my identity in God’s eyes, His Word offers me plenty of assurance about who I am in Christ. Ephesians 2, especially, gives me this helpful and hopeful reminder: But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even…
10 White Flag Prayers for a Surrendered Life
Editor’s Note: Surrender. Should we sit here and try to unpack that word together? We’d be here for a while, wouldn’t we? To cut to the chase, Merriam Webster defines “Surrender” this way, “to give up completely or agree to forgo especially in favor of another”. Though the Bible doesn’t give us a word for…