Do you have control issues? Where do they show their ugly faces in your life? Does it come out in your relationships or your attitude towards others? Or maybe it comes out in your work? Wherever it shows itself, being a control freak is NOT a fruit of the Spirit. In fact, it's precisely the opposite! To truly live in the Spirit, we have to give up control.
Read MoreFollowing Jesus is about anything BUT normal and anything BUT routine. Being led by the Spirit of God in your life is an adventure - one that will take all kinds of unexpected twists and turns. Psalm 119:105 says, "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path." Note that the psalm doesn't say, "your word is a floodlight onto my future." God's will is going to take you in directions you never anticipated, so don't get too caught up in your 100-yard plans; pay attention to what God is illuminating in the one yard in front of you!
Read MoreKathy Book was a high-level manager in a nationwide grocery chain. Outside of work, she was a Christian, but while she was at work, she didn't act so "Christian." But everything changed one day when her boss pulled her aside to have a hard conversation.
Read More“When you left for work today, did you put on your Faith Hat, or did you leave it home? Is your Faith Hat in a hatbox where it is neat and can't be crushed or wrinkled? Do you only bring it out on Sunday, or is your faith hat on all the time, wrinkled and worn but shaped by being used in all kinds of circumstances, especially work time?”
Read MoreLet me ask you a question: When you go into vacation mode, is your spiritual life still switched on? If I’m honest, many of my past summers I went on vacation and switched off my faith-life. All I wanted to do was get out, enjoy, and forget about work and all the stressors of the day. I didn’t think about going to church on vacation. I didn’t think about sharing my faith on vacation. I certainly didn’t think about the gospel on vacation. I was basically a summer vacation Atheist.
Read MoreA year and a half ago, we set off on a journey to write a trilogy that would encourage everyday believers in their work and retirement: iWork4Him, sheWorks4Him, and iRetire4Him. When we started this project, we had no idea the enormous undertaking it would be to write and release three books simultaneously. Everybody said it was impossible. I said it was like eating an elephant, one bite at a time.
Read MoreThe reality is that our world is broken; our communities are broken; broken by sin, by poverty, by hatred, by darkness. And tragically, the Church has largely turned over its responsibility to bring hope, healing, and provision to government programs. But God is asking you to step up, to bring hope and healing to your community and all He requires is willingness.
Read MoreMost churches I have been a part of, celebrate women by asking them to join a daytime bible study or serve in the children's nursery. Of course, there is nothing wrong with these things; however, the reality is that many women are called to areas outside of these traditional "female roles". When a woman comes to be a follower of Jesus she is filled with the Holy Spirit and is gifted accordingly. The supernatural call on her life may include any number of things from being a stay-at-home mom, to a gifted leader, to having a workplace calling. However, most churches don't have a place for career women to find encouragement in living out their faith at work.
Read MoreGrowing up, I always wanted to be a businesswoman. I loved numbers and would daydream about walking into an accounting office in a tailored blue suit. But I was never sure if my passion for business was actually something God wanted me to do. Sure, I was gifted in it, but no one in the Church ever talked about business being a God-given calling; it was never endorsed from the pulpit as such. Then, when I was 13-years-old, I felt strongly like God’s purpose for me was to go into full-time Christian ministry. It’s not that my passion for business ever left, just that I couldn’t figure out how to connect those two callings on my life into one. I wanted to serve the Lord, and I wanted to be in business, but NO ONE could connect those dots for me.
So, what about you? Have you heard God’s voice calling you to full-time Christian ministry? Have you also felt a call towards the marketplace, government or education, health care or the arts?
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