Prayer has the power to do amazing things in our lives and the lives of others. Even miraculous things. Maybe you have prayed before for sick loved ones to get well, but those prayers just didn’t seem to yield the results you were hoping. Is there a correct way to pray? In short, yes...at least James seemed to think so.
Read MorePeople love money. Now, there's nothing particularly wrong with money. It can be a great and necessary resource. The problem arises when we become obsessed with it. Money doesn't last forever, and it can't actually fulfill us. But we can use money to make an eternal difference.
Read MoreJesus promised that one day he would return to once-and-for-all renew and repair our broken world. In the meantime, we wait and continue to endure the hardships of life. And only one thing can get us through it...patience. But how does the hope of Jesus' return help us gain a new perspective on life, and give us the ability to react to extreme trials with patience?
Read MoreLife is one decision after another. Most decisions will have very little long term effect on our lives. But some decisions chart the very course of our future and impact the lives of others. No one wants to make bad decisions. So, how do we make good ones?
Read MoreIn nature, you plant a seed, you care for it, and then it grows. The same is true when growing healthy relationships and a healthy life. Whatever you plant and care for, that is what will grow. How can we begin sowing the kind of seed that will result in a harvest of good, close and loving relationships?
Read MoreWisdom is putting God’s truths into action. But because of our ongoing struggle with sin, there’s a battle between two wisdoms within us. One is from heaven and the other from earth. The challenge is, we can’t always tell which one is leading us.
Read MorePeople love to talk. Our words are a dead giveaway as to who we are. But more than just revealing what’s inside, our speech determines where we go. It sets a course of life for us. The tongue, perhaps more than any other part of our body, reveals what our spiritual condition is.
Read MoreTrue faith always produces good works. Works of self-sacrifice, charity, and kindness. True faith is right belief, coupled with right action. Few people have enacted truer faith in their lives than Abraham, a man whose journey helped him discover that it is not faith and works; it is not faith or works; it is faith that works.
Read MoreIt's one thing to say you believe something on an intellectual or emotional level. It's another to let your beliefs actually change you. As people we can make a great profession about what we believe, even about Jesus, without it making much practical difference in the way we live.
Read MoreWhether we admit it or not, our hearts are plagued by favoritism. We’re all guilty of discriminating against others based on outward appearance or social status. It’s only when we learn to see other people as God sees them that we’ll be able to truly change. Love is the only cure.
Read MoreWe all want happiness. We all want blessing. But a life filled with happiness and blessing is only available to those that actually put God's words into action in their daily living. The Word of God is not just meant to be heard. It’s meant to be responded to and reflected in our lives.
Read MoreMany who come to faith in Christ think that the richness, satisfaction, sense of well-being and, peace in life come just by signing on the dotted line. Just by proclaiming Christ as Savior. Just by being a Christian. But just because the word has been planted in our souls, doesn't mean that it will just sprout up into this thing of great beauty effortlessly. We must actually accept the Word that is in us. But how?
Read MoreWhen temptations come our way, they do not promise to pollute or hurt us. In fact, they never even hint about the consequences. They merely promise to fill all the desires of our hearts. In Part 6 of our series, we examine the words of James on how to deal with and overcome temptation.
Read MorePerseverance is the road. It is the path to maturity, and the backbone which lets us stand against the trials and brutalities that life throws at us. To all those who persevere, God has promised to make it worth their while. In Part 5 of our series, Just Do It, we examine what it takes to stand firm through our trials and the outcome (or reward) of persevering through life’s hardships.
Read MoreWe live in a world where people are valued based on how much they make, what they do for a living, or how successful they are. The battle with money, is one of the most demanding trials we face on a daily basis. But, trials give us an opportunity to exercise our faith. And from time to time, we need to be reminded that money is not the measuring stick of our self-worth, Christ is! James reminds us that it’s when we treasure Christ that we’re able to see who we truly are.
Read MoreHow is it possible to look upon the trials of life not as enemies, but as vehicles to get me where God wants me to be? The key is wisdom. Wisdom equips us with the skill for living and in this context, living through, and rising above life’s trials. Wisdom in the context of the trials of life, is knowing, and then carrying out God’s will in the midst of trials.
Read MoreIt's interesting that James begins his letter with the subject of life’s difficulties, writing: "Consider it pure joy, my brothers whenever you face trials of many kinds.” How can, and for what reason would anyone face their trials...with joy?
Read MoreWe begin our series with the first verse of the book of James. We’re introduced to James, a skeptic turned saint, turned servant of God who saw the importance of putting God’s words into action. The strength of a life, a family, a community and a nation rests on the shoulders of God’s people who know, embrace and live out God’s truth, and Just Do It.
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