Looking better than the usual scary because of a couple of unexpected gifts this year, but I’m always unsure at the end of November, about finishing the year in the black.  Over the past dozen years I’ve lost some monthly supporters.  I’m a coward when it comes to individually asking believers to consider supporting this…

Jesus using suffering/harrrd to grow me more dependent on Himself.  Humble.  Instead of pseudo-humble – where I’m skilled at appearing humble to others and to myself, living in denial of my self-absorption/independence/pride.  If I’m not freshly undone, contrite, the Jesus in me will not be contagious to others, especially pre-believers.   I won’t be reproducing seed…

I stole this from a friend who lives and works in London.  Joel Hylton.  This was part of his prayer update Thursday.   Thank You, Jesus, for this exciting answer to prayer!   �� Yesterday, I changed a young woman’s tire.  As she drove home from her work at Heathrow, she felt something wrong but decided not…

for this follower of Jesus.  Because it nurtures the false sense of confidence in me, that I know what’s thankable and what’s not.  The sin of confidence/independence has been a huge blind spot for me these many years as a believer.  Confidence that I know what’s best for me and others.  It would have been…

Following Jesus is impossible.  Fear of God is impossible.  Except when the Spirit of Jesus freshly convicts me of my sin.  And it doesn’t last long.  I get no credit/glory for any obedience, any humility, any patience with jerks, any unconditional love for my enemies.  All credit/glory to Jesus. But the people around me give…

to set people straight, to correct wrongheaded things people say, for example on Facebook, about politics or theology?  Why is it hard for me to keep silent?  Actually, I usually don’t comment, but I almost always feel compelled to.  Why is that?  It seems like a noble thing to set people straight, to mention something…

Jesus gave me for dealing with my critical-judgmental spirit, competitive/superiority addiction, is asking Him to show me ways I’m just like the person I’m looking down upon, maybe not on the surface, but deep down — how what drives them, drives me too.  OUCH.  Out of the answered prayer comes a compassion for the person…

because I’ve done it for so many years, that I no longer struggle to believe Jesus loves me, just as I am.   It was so helpful in building a wide, deep, foundation of grace in my life, to keep me from being so introspection-avoidant – fearful of looking inside to see my motives for all…

clueless, and LOVES feeling confident.  HATES being childlike, and LOVES feeling adultlike.  Being clueless is so humiliating, so lowly, so unEvangelical, so unAmerican.  And being confident is so unlike Jesus, who did NOTHing on His own, but only what His Father told Him to do.  Jesus, the first dependent human since The Fall.  And the…

I hate that he’s so critical-judgmental of others, so competitive that he’s always searching for weaknesses in others so he feels better about himself.  I hate that ShepherdDave is shameless in people-watching so he can observe the bad taste of others, or their homeliness, or peculiarities, so he feels superior.  I hate that he’s always…