The more you say, “Yes,” the more adventures you have. Saying, “Yes, and…” is usually much more powerful and creative than saying, “Yes, but…” The more you say, “No,” the more you are at home alone. There are, of course, times when you should be home alone. They should be strategic though, not lazy or afraid or stingy. No matter […]
The more creatively you think and act, the more likely you don’t see problems as problems. In fact, if you simply respond to problems by fixing them, it points to your skills set as being more like a maintenance person than a builder. That is not a failure – we need both, but identifying your place and doing good work […]
When I owe taxes, Paul believes that I should pay them. If it is proper to respect someone, he counts that also in unpaid debt terms. He implies that I should pay off all my debts but one – I always owe you love (Romans 13:8.) What is different in cultural terms today that should influence the way I try […]
Hupernikao (“hoop-er-nik-ah’-o”) is a Greek word. A transliteration of it might pass as “hyper-victor.” Nike, the shoe manufacturer, likes their name because it means something like “overpower,” or “win a victory over,” or “conquer.” “Hyper” can mean “above,” or “greater than” something else. “Nikodemos” means something like “victorious among his people.” In Romans 8:37, hupernikao is the way Paul described […]
Expect that because you are going to be one of the people who will do what you have been ordained to by the King of Glory, that there will be an impact in the earth because you were alive. You will not be one of the diverted – taking up men’s yokes and being distracted from the call to settle […]
Nehemiah was quite likely comfortable in his government job in Babylon. Nehemiah was comfortable, but not at peace. He had learned that Jerusalem, the “City of Peace,” had been razed and its gates and walls had been destroyed. This broke his heart to the end that his employer noticed it and inquired about it. Nehemiah shared his pain with the […]
WRONG RULERS Every time the leaders of the church have come to believe that they need to rule over the rest of the world, what was birthed was something evil. WRONG RULERS Every time members of the church have come to believe that they should abstain from becoming leaders in government and other culture-forming entities (including […]
Suppose you were authorized to travel through the nation forgiving debts. Jubilee style. Imagine if the American federal government had given indebted people the trillion dollars a few years ago, empowering them to pay off their debts, instead of to the corporations who were being rewarded for poor business decisions. When someone sins against you, it is a wondrous opportunity […]
There is a legend (maybe true) about two cardinals of the Roman church who were observing some work being done on a new building – a basilica. One commented to the other, “No longer do we have to say, ‘Silver and gold have I none!’” The other cardinal responded, “True. Nor can we continue to say, ‘In the name of […]
I have just become eligible for a new telephone from Verizon. If I bite the bait and get a new phone, I will shop for the phone that does what I like done. My phone is really a pocket computer that happens to also work as a telephone… I will then complain silently for a while as I find the […]