Category: Interior Life

Nothing motivates humans like the hope of a wonderful destiny. And if that destiny is certain then people become absolutely fearless because they dwell in the peace of knowing that no matter what happens their ultimate future will be blissful. This is why God wants us to be absolutely confident in our destiny with him. This confidence will strengthen us to endure any troubles. We realize that “our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us” (Rom. 8:18 NIV). Awareness of our destiny enlightens our minds to see beyond the physical realities around us to the reality of the kingdom of God around us. This unstoppable kingdom marches along its predetermined course bringing all the people of God to the complete fulfillment of the kingdom in the New Creation. We will live in a perfected community of love with God and his followers. Continue Reading →

We are children of God so when we talk with Him we can say “Our Father in heaven” (Mt. 6:9 ESV). Isn’t it amazing that our Father is the God of all creation? He is the infinite One. He knows all things and sees all things. He is all-powerful. He is the good One. He is so infinitely loving that Scripture says “God is love” (1 Jn. 4:8 ESV). He is the One who takes care of us and gives us power to become like Christ so that no matter what comes our way “we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Rom. 8:37 ESV). We must be careful about comparing God too closely to our earthly father. Many people did not have such good fathers. In that case God is not like your earthly father; rather, He is the father you never had. On the other hand Continue Reading →

Several years ago my longtime spiritual counselor Doug was diagnosed with lymphoma cancer. Doug and his wife were effective ministers of the transforming power of God both as pastors in their church and through seminars in other churches. The cancer was tenacious and sent his white blood cells skyrocketing and he lost his energy, which was especially noticeable since he was a very energetic person. He fought back with prayer and chemotherapy and soon his white blood cells went back to normal. He regained his energy. Yet the cancer was not dead and it traveled into his groin and grew into a fist-sized tumor. More prayer and chemotherapy shrank the tumor by 75%. But after some traveling and a sickness the tumor began growing again and weakened him so much he couldn’t do chemotherapy for awhile. When he restarted chemotherapy his strength returned and he could even travel and minister. Continue Reading →

When someone repents and believes in Jesus as their Saviour and Lord then God does something that defies the imagination. He actually creates a new self inside us. Why does He do this? Because in our natural state we are a mixed bag of good and bad. The good comes from the fact that God originally made us in His image, that is, as a limited reflection of himself. But when Adam and Eve chose to disobey God’s command and try to take control out of God’s hands then the image of God in them shattered. This meant that they could no longer think and act in healthy ways but rather in destructive ways, which is what sin is. (Sin is anything that blocks God’s goodness, especially the love we are supposed to have for one another.) Furthermore, they could no longer bond with God because it would be like Continue Reading →