Blog
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The Five-Minute Trade Off of Time
Choosing a Different Rabbit Trail–Social Media Vs. Biblical Study A minute here, a swipe there. All so innocent, right? Or maybe not. Most days a person that engages in social media spends an average of 147 minutes per day viewing different social media platforms. Yes…you are spot on with your math…. that is 2 hours and 27 minutes!! This is something I struggle with at times. I justify taking a look for work…LOL! Yes….I say what if I have a new message from a potential client? What if I have new likes or comments that need a response? I am continually told in my industry that response time is the…
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Spring Cleaning and Spiritual Cleaning
What comes to mind when you think about spring cleaning? Perhaps it is cleaning windows, dusting, washing the bed sheets, and so on. Maybe it is going through closets and cupboards and getting rid of excess stuff we no longer use or need. The feeling of getting our spring cleaning done is one of energy and a sense of renewal and ready for what comes. Have you ever added to your spring-cleaning list a spiritual cleaning. What does spiritual cleaning look like. The bible tells us to draw near to God and cleanse ourselves from within. Let’s take a look at Psalm 51:10 Create in me a clean heart, O…
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Spiritual Growth:
Identify feelings and behaviors that are holding you back Depending upon what you are reading, people have different names for the feelings and behaviors that hold us back from growing spiritually. Some people call them sins. Some roadblocks. Others, character defects. I tend to like the term character defects or patterns of sin. The feelings and behaviors that hold us back are not one-offs, but usually patterns of behavior or emotional reactions that we have developed over time to make sense of life, cope with life, or get what we want. The important thing about character defects is that what once may have been helpful creates problems in our lives…
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Find the Misery and Make a Rule
I recently listened to a podcast from Dr. Henry Cloud, where he presented a simple but powerful idea. When things aren’t going well in life, if we are struggling with feeling depressed or directionless, perhaps finding the source of the misery and making a rule about it is the best advice we can get. Let me give you an example from my own life. I had a period of feeling anxious and overwhelmed this fall. I felt hopeless, fatigued, and generally depressed about much of life. I admit I spent more time being in this funk than I did doing anything about it. I almost wore it like a warm…
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Review: The James Method of Bible Study
The Bible holds a vast amount of knowledge, and there are many ways to study that knowledge. I have used a variety of methods over the years. In some cases, the method chosen has been dictated by purpose. I use academic exegetical analysis methods if I am engaging in academic work. For my everyday bible study, I have used the SOAP (scripture, observation, application, prayer) method or prewritten bible studies on specific texts or topics. Recently, I decided to undertake a series of biblical topics using the James Method. The James Method incorporates several components, including: Overall, I am enjoying the process. I love words, so the verse mapping component…
