I don't want to be among the nameless crowd who knows something is amiss, but waits for someone else to be brave enough to speak up. I would rather be an Azariah: willing to be personally inconvenienced. I want to be a Berechiah, willing to stand out awkwardly from...

I've heard it said that 'leaders are the shock absorbers of an organization'. The storms will blow, the sun will beat down harshly, the desert will dry up the water--but the princes (or leaders) consistently operate as a shelter and a protection for those they lead....

God alone sees what I cannot see, and understands what I do not understand. He knows not only my past and my present, but also my future. Today I choose to seek the counsel of the Counselor, to guide me through the challenges of this season. I know He will not lead me...

When I am properly aligned with Christ as the cornerstone of my foundation, I can walk with confidence on the journey: No longer in a panic, no longer rushing, no longer with inefficient haste...but instead laboring peacefully as He has called me to....

There is a great and eternal reward set before me in Christ! It is worth the discipline, and worth the discomfort of the training process. It is worth the cost of anything that must be endured or given up in the pursuit of God's best for me. Today I choose to take a...

It's easy to put people in a box based on their past wrongs. But if the infinite and holy God of the universe is willing to call them His own...then I have no right to hold them at arms length for that which He has already forgiven. Today I pray for each 'Egypt' in my...

In the middle of stress, anxiety, chaos, tensions, and even an assassination attempt today on a presidential candidate...today's SOAP reading reminded of the Biblical survival strategy for crazy times. =======================================   Scripture Hebrews...

When I take the time to look at the enemy that God defeated on my behalf yesterday, it gives me faith to stand strong knowing that my Savior's strength is no less today than it was yesterday. =================================   Scripture Isaiah 14:16-17 16 Those...

Heaven's conspiracy is one of joy and hope: "For to us a child is born, to us a son is given..." Today I choose to focus my attention on heaven's conspiracy theory, and let my heart by ruled by the fear of God. ==========================   Scripture Isaiah...

My job isn't to stress about the future, but simply to be obedient in the 'now'...and trust that God is putting the pieces in place today, to fulfill a divine plan in my tomorrow. =========================   Scripture Micah 5:2 "But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,...

God is interested in more than just my victory today: He wants me to learn that true victory is found only in him, and not in my accumulation of resources, wealth, influence, and power. ==========================   Scripture Micah 5:9-10 "Your hand shall be...

When my attention is on the counterfeit, the counterfeit looks pretty good! My heart begins to pursue and seek after the glitter of the enemy's paltry offerings, and my attention turns from eternity to temporary. The solution, and my only hope for true joy, happiness,...

I may not see the culmination of God's plans right away, but I can trust that the end result of His process will be abundant life for me in his presence. This week I must make the decision to trust His love for me, even in the uncomfortable times....

Like a freed slave who has not yet realized that his shackles are gone, I can still allow old fears and mindsets to keep me from walking in the full freedom which is mine in Christ. Today I choose to let go of fear, so that I can walk in freedom....

I don't want to become so focused on the enjoyment of my freedom that I allow it to separate me from the very source of the freedom that I have! Instead of using my freedom merely to pursue what I desire, I must instead use my freedom to pursue the fulfillment of...

I want to know my need of God, so that I could experience his cleansing and transformational power. =============   Scripture Isaiah 6:1,5 "In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of his robe filled...

My social media metrics, my finely-tuned Call of Duty reflexes, and my secret recipe for smoked beef brisket are tools to be used in connecting people with God--but alone, they hold no eternal value. Today I choose to pursue success in eternal things, rather than...

It's God's job to bring people to repentance--but it's my responsibility not to allow my own heart to become infected with corrosiveness around me. ============================   Scripture Titus 3:10 "As for a person who stirs up division, after warning him once...