Category: With Christ in the Wilderness

“With Christ in the Wilderness” is based on a Spiritual Disciplines class I taught many years ago. Because Christ modeled these things, Christians consider them important practices. Although I really, really did not want to write about Humility, Christ modeled it and the Bible teaches it, so it must be foundational to developing as Jesus-followers….

As your spiritual teacher I give this piece of advice to each one of you. Don’t cherish exaggerated ideas of yourself or your importance, but try to have a sane estimate of your capabilities by the light of the faith that God has given to you all. Romans 12:3 J.B. Phillips New Testament Humility and…

Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble,    but he keeps his distance from the proud. Psalm 138:6 NLT “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” James 4:6 NLT Pride leads to disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom. Proverbs 11:2 NLT You rescue the humble, but your eyes watch the proud and humiliate them. 2 Samuel…

You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.Though he was God,    he did not think of equality with God    as something to cling to.Instead, he gave up his divine privileges;    he took the humble position of a slave    and was born as a human being.When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God    and…

Jesus was in the wilderness for 40 days and nights. We are not quite half-way through the 40 days of Lent, and it already feels like it’s been forever. Of course, Jesus didn’t live in the urgent, anxious world we do. He didn’t have a to-do list, or commitments to juggle. He didn’t have constant…

Confession is the act of inviting God to walk the acreage of our heart. “There is a rock of greed over here, Father. I can’t budge it. And that tree of guilt near the fence? Its roots are long and deep. And may I show you some dry soil, too crusty for seed?” God’s seed…

Imagine that you have a beautiful crystal vase. When you put it in a sunny window, the light streams through, breaking into dancing rainbows. What delight! But as time passes, you notice that the rainbows are faint, or disappearing altogether. Your vase is getting dirty. It needs cleaning so the rainbows can dance again. The…

“The average person looks without seeing, listens without hearing, touches without feeling, eats without tasting, moves without physical awareness and talks without thinking.” Leonardo da Vinci Author Joan Chittister tells the following story of a conversation between a wise one and their disciple: “Where shall I look for enlightenment?” the disciple asked.“Here,” the wise one…

“Chronos (croh’-nohs) is sequential time. The Bible speaks to Chronos when it says, Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom. Psalm 90:12 NIV We are hyper-aware of Chronos. We hear, “Don’t waste time”, “Time waits for no one”, “Time is of the essence”, and “Time is money,” and…

************ As the Sunday feast approaches, let’s think about rest. On the 6th day, God created human beings:So God created human beings in his own image.    In the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good!And evening passed…