Recently, I was awoken before three in the morning and I couldn’t sleep. (My body still thought it was in Greece where we led a “Steps of Paul” pilgrimage!) I thought, I need more sleep! But then I realized, Even more I need the Lord. This is an opportunity for me to meditate on his words to me.…
On the cross Jesus let go of everything and abandoned all outcomes to the Father. To help him do this, he prayed a line from Psalm 31:5 to his Abba: “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit” (Luke 23:46). This is a prayer of submission to God that expresses how Jesus lived everyday of…
As a psychologist, my job is to get inside people’s heads and understand what it’s like to live in there. I can tell you that for many people it’s very stressful inside their minds! Understanding the way we think and what we really believe is important work because, as Dallas Willard teaches, “We live at…
A few months ago David, my 19-year old son, asked me to run a triathlon with him, which is a race in which you swim, bike, and run in that order. I immediately said yes because I wanted to share this experience with him and because I like exercise. I was in good shape from…
I’ve heard it said: “I pray when I’m in trouble… I pray all the time!” I relate! I’m in trouble all the time! Realizing this is the secret to a great prayer life. When our circumstances are pleasant, it’s easy to forget that we’re in trouble: the world is vain, demons are near, temptations abound,…
For most people I talk to, peace is elusive. What do you do to be at peace? Do you walk on eggshells to avoid upsetting someone? Have a couple of drinks to relax? Veg out for hours in front of the television? Try to solve your problems with more money? Escape into a novel? I’ve…
Distracting thoughts are great enemies of prayer. They can be like buzzing bees that drive us crazy! Today I enjoyed Sabbath time with Jesus. With My Psalms Prayer Book in hand and candles lit at the altar in my prayer room I kneeled and prayed from Psalm 118. The Word of God helped inflame the…
What makes for a “good day”? For me it starts with prayer. This morning I awoke early. My thoughts started down the path of planning all I had to do and I started to feel anxious… How easy it is for me at that point to get out of bed and go to work! Instead,…
The other day I was tempted to become worried and fearful. My income is way down this year and, with a son in college, our family expenses are way up. We’ve had to dip into savings to keep our heads above water. (Thank God for savings!) Most of my life in this situation I’ve gone…
One day in the fall of 2007 when I was meeting with Dallas Willard at his USC office he asked me, “If you had one word to describe Jesus what would it be?” How would you answer that question? If you could only use one word to describe Jesus what would it be? You might pause to consider that…