The moment we Christians feel justified abandoning love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control for the sake of preserving and enforcing our own power is the moment we find we are being led by something other than the...
It's crazy how the presence of God can completely change your mood and attitude in an instant. One worship song, one whispered prayer, one Scripture verse can take you from the absolute worst mindset to a place of such peace and joy. There's nothing like the presence...
For the past eighty years I have started each day in the same manner. It is not a mechanical routine but something essential to my daily life. I go to the piano, and I play two preludes and fugues of Bach. I cannot think of doing otherwise. It is a sort of benediction...
In the past I always thought of gratitude as a spontaneous response to the awareness of gifts received, but now I realize that gratitude can also be lived as a discipline. The discipline of gratitude is the explicit effort to acknowledge that all I am and have is...
Once you've sung in a choir, or played in a band or orchestra, or played in any music ensemble, you're never the same again. Your ears, your eyes, and your heart are opened up in ways not possible by any other means. Music feeds us, it nourishes us, and it brings us...
Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.
When we encounter a belief system or behavior claiming to be “Christian,” we must ask: Does this produce love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control in me and in the world? If the answer is no, then the Holy Spirit is not...
It's okay to grieve and hope at the same time.It's okay to exhale all of your loss and sadness and pain and feel an aching emptiness words cannot express.And it's okay, in the very next breath, to inhale joy and expectation and assurance with all the strength you...
Dear ones, the world in which we live is challenging and complicated enough without intentionally adding to our burdens. There is no spiritual discipline commended to our embrace that is designed just to make us feel badly. There is no labor suggested in our tradition...
He did not wait till the world was readytill men and nations were at peace.He came when the Heavens were unsteadyand prisoners cried out for release.He did not wait for the perfect time.He came when the need was deep and great.He dined with sinners in all their...