Reboot: Reframe Differences

Romans 14:19 “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.” 

Now that we are beginning to emerge from 15 months of Covid-life, our city is slowly coming back to life, people are remembering what it is like to be around others, and the gears of society are starting to move again.  It’s like someone pressed a giant reboot button and we are all readjusting. 

Tags:  Reboot, Romans, Differences

Hope and a Future: What Could this Become?

Romans 8:28 “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.”

I love to see when people find creative ways to repurpose old things, in creative ways.  One of my favorites is a company called modpools.com who take old shipping containers and turn them into swimming pools!  (If you have one let me know, I’d love to take a dip!)

Tags:  Romans, A Hope And A Future, Jeremiah

Empathy

Romans 12:15 “Rejoice with those who rejoice, mourn with those who morn.” 
Are you empathetic? I have to confess that empathy is not my top gift. Sadly, I am too often focused on my personal goals and ambitions to notice the pain of others. Luckily, God gave me a wife that is gifted in empathy. It comes natural for her. She has even taught me to be more empathic. She will often open my eyes by asking me to imagine being in a difficult situation. “How would you feel?” “What would you do?” she will ask. Then she says that is how _________ feels. Putting y
Tags:  Empathy, Romans

Keeping Our Friendships & Resolving Conflict

Matthew 18:15 “If your brother or sister sins, go and point our their fault, just between the two of you. If they listen to you, you havewon them over.” 

Have you ever made a trade or purchase you wish you could take back? Maybe you thought that car would make you feel amazing but after the second payment your thought: “Why did I buy this?” Or maybe the FFL trade made sense but after one week you thought: “Why did I give up my best running back?” 

Tags:  Friendships, Conflict, Matthew, Romans

Through The Pain

Romans 5:3 “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.”
Pain is a part of life.
None of us like to think about it but we know
this is true. In a world where comfort is valued above all else we can often ask ourselves “What did I do?” When we experience pain. Now, it is true that sometimes we experience pain because of our own choices.
Tags:  Through The Pain, Romans, God Is For You, Paul, Suffering

A Faith That Saves

Romans 10:9 “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
Sometimes I feel sorry for people who are learning English, because we have words that sound the same but have different meanings. For example: None and nun. Are you talking about a quantity of zero or a religious sister? That’s confusing! Clicks and cliques. Are you referring to a type of sound or an exclusive group?
Tags:  A Faith That Saves, Romans, Paul, Trust, God Is For You

Good News . . .Bad News

Romans 3:23-24: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 
 
When someone says “I’ve got good news and I’ve got bad news, which would you like first?” I always choose to hear the bad news first, for two reasons: One, because if I hear the good news first I won’t fully enjoy it knowing that there is bad news coming.  And two, maybe the bad news will cancel out the good news. So I want to hear the bad news first.
Tags:  Good News Bad News, Romans, Paul, God Is For You

Habits

Romans 7:19 “For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do-this I keep on doing.”
The other day I received a notice that was troubling. I glanced down on my phone to see a report that I used my phone for over 3 hours that day. I know that some of that time was for work but when I looked deeper into the report it revealed that much of the time was used to browse newsfeeds, social media, and a certain golf game that has become a little addiction.
Tags:  Habits, Romans, Paul, Addictive

Hear It

Romans 10:17  “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ.”

Are you a good listener?  Few people have the natural ability to give others their full attention.  One leadership expert reminded me that the average person speaks about 120 words a minute while our brains can comprehend 480 words a minute.  This leaves 360 words a minute where our minds can wander.  This is why it takes effort to give someone your full attention. 

Tags:  Romans, Hear It, John