Breaking Secret Agreements – Collusions
Unconscious collusions in relationships harm people in families, friendships, church staffs, and work partnerships. In this case “collusion” does not refer to a conspiracy or…
The Secret of Jesus’ Easy Yoke
A friend of mine was quite late for his appointment with me. He finally arrived breathless as he explained to me that 24 hours in…
Couch Time for Couples
At the beginning of our marriage, Kristi and I were both working full-time jobs and going to graduate schools in psychology. Obviously, we didn’t have…
Dysfunctional Family Roles as Spiritual Formations
Today “spiritual formation” means many different things. Self-help. Learning Bible doctrines. Inner spirituality. Being like a monk. But Jesus’ idea is simply to “love one…
Lift Up Your Head!
This Christmas season maybe you need to appreciate that God bestows his favor on you personally? Maybe you’ve been feeling discouraged or insignificant and need to…
Sightless Among Miracles
Look! God is Doing Miracles All Around You! Two days ago we came home from vacation I found our front door left unlocked. (The girl…
An Arrow Prayer to Help you Listen
Listen! God is speaking. Sunshine after rain. It reminds me that when we slow down and look up to God, his bright thoughts can enter…
Speaking the Truth in Love
Conflict. It’s inevitable in marriage and our other close relationships. When you love someone you’ll have misunderstandings, disagreements, and hurt feelings in that relationship. This…
The Lord is my Portion
It’s ironic that the more we long for Jesus — to know him intimately and love him fully — the more we are deeply satisfied.…
I Do What I Don’t Want to Do
Jess was in church on Sunday. He was singing praises to God, earnestly seeking to apply God’s word to his life, and friendly with people…
Abruptly Break into Prayer
“Abruptly Jesus broke into prayer: ‘Thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth. You’ve concealed your ways from sophisticates and know-it-alls, but spelled them out…
Be a Leader — Sit Down!
God says to us, “Sit down,” but a lot of us have trouble doing this! It’s especially difficult for those of us who are leaders,…
