This past week I had a particularly stressful day. I called my father the day after to talk about various things and mentioned to him that the other day was stressful. He asked if it was work stress or family stress. Family stress? That never even entered my mind. Not that it was an unfair … Continue reading “A Life Without Intense Family Stress”
SO Self-Righteous!
How can you say to your brother, ‘Brother, let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when you yourself fail to see the plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye. -Luke 6:42, … Continue reading “SO Self-Righteous!”
Personal Growth Or Just Blame Acceptance!
And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man. – Mark 7:20-23, KJV, (emphasis mine) When … Continue reading “Personal Growth Or Just Blame Acceptance!”
Name it!
But Jesus said, “Judas, would you betray the Son of Man with a kiss?” -Luke 22:48, NLT As I work to prepare for Easter, I was struck by this exchange. Notice how Jesus calls out the action for what it was. Jesus labels it betrayal and points out the especially awful means of that betrayal–namely, … Continue reading “Name it!”
A pass given for emotional affairs too often
But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. -Matthew 5:28, NIV Too often, emotional affairs are treated by Christians and professionals as symptoms as opposed to sins. Clearly, Jesus saw emotional affairs as sins. They were only symptomatic insofar as they are … Continue reading “A pass given for emotional affairs too often”
Who is served by the “reminder” to forgive the cheater?
Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. -Romans 12:15, NKJV What astounds me about some Christians is how they believe they are helping faithful spouses by telling them that they must forgive their cheater. Most of us–faithful spouses–already understand forgiving our cheater is on docket of things to do in the … Continue reading “Who is served by the “reminder” to forgive the cheater?”
Much Ado About VP Mike Pence Following “Billy Graham Rule”
Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. -I Corinthians 6:18, NKJV The news and social media is abuzz with revelation that VP Mike Pence does not eat alone with women or attend events where alcohol is served without … Continue reading “Much Ado About VP Mike Pence Following “Billy Graham Rule””
My take on the forgiveness command found in Matthew 6:14-15
One good thing that came out of my ex-wife’s adultery and my consequential divorce from her is that I know God’s Word much better than before particularly in regards to forgiveness and repentance. A lot of what I got from the Christian community was Matt 6:14-15: 14 For if you forgive other people when they … Continue reading “My take on the forgiveness command found in Matthew 6:14-15”
Have you forgiven your ex?
“Have you forgiven your ex-wife?” -Inquiring Christian Let’s assume this person has not already passed judgment and condemned you as “bitter.” In other words, they are asking this question in good faith and out of genuine love for you. My response would be: What do you mean by “forgiven?” The answer to this question will … Continue reading “Have you forgiven your ex?”
Super Stupid and Divisive
Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother…. -Genesis 2:24a, NKJV Having a father-in-law (FIL) tell his son-in-law how he is “failing” as a husband and man–in general–is incredibly stupid and divisive on the part of the FIL. Something like that happened in my situation as I remember it. I look back on that … Continue reading “Super Stupid and Divisive”