If you were given one day this week to do nothing but rest...what would you do?

What - in your mind - is restful? Maybe it is sitting down, reading a good book, watching a marathon of your favorite show, getting away from anybody and everybody, taking a long bath, going shopping, driving out of town, or simply going outside into the sun...

This morning, I walked into the living room where I found three toddlers divvying up the contents of my wallet.

Jack and Traeh, clearly the leaders in this little endeavor, were throwing cash, cards, and receipts in various directions...

Many times, I am tempted to zoom past passages like this and pick out a very quick application for myself...For instance, we could read Psalm 96 and easily state that it is calling us to "Lala" God's name everywhere. Feeling good about our in-depth biblical exposition, we then tweet verse one with the killer hash-tag, #lalaeverywhere...

"Show me Your glory." I have written down these four words on so many things in my lifetime: journals, sermon notes; homework; notes in class; etc. Ever since I had first heard this prayer, I desired to understand it; to see, know, and experience His glory...

If you were asked to define yourself, what would you say? I would probably answer wife, mother, friend, Christian. You, however, may say husband/wife, student, athlete, musician, artist, entrepreneur, boss, employee, or Christian. Obviously, there are lots of ways that we define ourselves.

But if I’m honest, most of my answers don’t satisfy me...

A pure heart is the first step to experiencing a pure family, city, state, and world. 

Today's Psalm was written by King David. Here, David is determined to maintain the purity and righteousness of his empire by seeking to first maintain it in himself; to discipline his fleshly bend towards wickedness...

It is very easy to take things for granted. The house we are living in. The job that we have. The family that we've been given. The education that we receive (or have recieved). The friends that we are surrounded by. The clothes in our closet. The food on our table. The money in our bank...and the list could go on and on....

Do you ever pause and think back to life “back in the day?” No internet, texting, FaceTime, data, or GPS. Funny thing is that those times weren’t too long ago...

Today's Psalm is written to the "redeemed of the LORD" - the people who have literally been made new by God. It challenges them - us - to give thanks and praise to the One who deserves it.The writer motivates us to do so by telling four stories of how God has brought deliverance to His people in the past. The passage above is just one of those stories...

Noise. Noise. Noise. Noise. Noise. Noise. Have you ever stopped and thought about just how noisy our world is? In any given moment, hundreds of sounds fill our senses...

Our world is full of inconsistency and unfaithfulness. Our town is full of inconsistency and unfaithfulness. Our home is full of inconsistency and unfaithfulness. And our heart is full of inconsistency and unfaithfulness. Humans are - as I like to call it - flaky and sketchy...

Have you ever heard this phrase: "Things are never as good as they seem..." Even if your answer is "No," then odds are that you have thought and/or felt something very similar to this phrase in your lifetime.

For some reason, we all doubt seemingly good things...

Before we dive into this passage, I have a random request for you... I want you to make a mental list of all of the things (and people) that fought for your attention yesterday. It could deal with work, family, friends, chores, sports, ect...

David's life, before becoming king, was anything but delightful. In this passage, David is alluding to a stretch of time where he was being pursued by King Saul. In an effort to kill David, Saul turned many people against him. David's friends became enemies and everyone's words became untrustworthy. The whole world seemed to want David dead.

But in this, he discovered God's power...

Have you ever walked into a group of Christian people and felt compelled to dismiss your current sadness, hurt, hardship, or struggle in order to "put on a happy face?"

Today's passage is so rich.

And it begins with a simple, yet profound question: How can young people - students, young adults, dare I say, all children of God - keep their way pure?

No matter who you are or what kind of personality you have, there is something about asking for help that makes every one of us cringe at times.

Most of us have mastered the art of backing down during a "time to shine." You know... those particular moments in time where we get to actually show God off, illuminate His power, and make His love and glory known.

Do you want to know one of my un-super powers? You know... those anti-talents that we all seem to possess.

Well, you see, I have incredible ability to lose most things.

There comes a point in our faith - a dramatic turn in our development - where we no longer focus on our personal need for deliverance.

In fact, as our faith grows, so should our empathy and true care for others. 

Today's Psalm calls us to do something strange... To recognize God's awesome deliverance through comparing what has happened to what would have happened if we would have never known Him.

How many of you get tired of hearing Christians use “silver linings”? You know - those stories that describe the hardships, struggles, and obstacles that life can bring, BUT God did this great thing that made it all better.

I feel as though the stories (or perhaps the way we choose to tell them) often minimize the suffering that we have gone through.

Have you ever looked back on something and felt as if it was all worthless? Like you worked, labored, or cared for something "so deeply" yet - in the end - it felt unprofitable and almost empty? Or perhaps it was a series of time that felt both purposeless and dry?

There is an unfathomable power in divine forgiveness.

I say "divine forgiveness," because human minds can only grasp but pieces of this high level of love. Let's be honest, our giving of forgiveness feels extensive. It seems like a constant process. We think that we have "forgiven fully," yet find ourselves in need of forgiving that person, that situation, or ourselves again and again...and again.

Have you ever experienced a situation that felt just shy of being heavenly? One where your chills were overwhelming, excitement peeking, all doubt, worry, and fear was vanishing, and you simply felt peace? 

Do you like to know things?

Goodness, I do. I am a planner; I like to know what I am doing and when. Schedules and to-do lists are some of my life-long friends. I’m also a research freak. If something comes up with my kids that I don’t know about, you can bet that I am going to read and read until I better understand the situation.

In the matter of one day, our mouths say a lot.

They encourage, speak truth, uplift, call out, show love, and worship God. Yet during that very same day, they lie, whisper enviously, tear down, speak hatred, gossip, belittle, and worship the self.

We do not know our own strength.

Have you ever playfully hit someone - or maybe received a "playful" hit - and had both actions result in a similar response:"OW! You don't know your own strength!"