When Joe White spoke at the Ignite Men's Conference, he carried a massive cross on stage. Then he invited all the men in attendance, in their vulnerability and brokenness, to write their shameful sins onto index cards and bring them to the altar to be nailed to the cross. Romans 8:15 declares that God offers forgiveness and enables them to cry out, "Abba, Father!"
A 1967 diving accident in the Chesapeake Bay left Joni Eareckson a quadriplegic. As she pondered her recovery in a hospital bed, Joni clung to John 5, which recounts how Jesus healed the paralytic. Like the man at the pool of Bethesda, Joni did not want her Savior to pass her by. However, she came to realize that her salvation was, first and foremost, for her justification. And secondly, Jesus wanted to sanctify her so she would become more like Him, even in her suffering.
Proverbs 17:22 says, "A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones." Christian comedian Chonda Pierce truly understands both the cheerful heart and the crushed spirit. She is one of the recording industry's best-selling female comedians. But she became clinically depressed after the death of her mother, along with the estrangement of her daughter and the alcoholism and death of her husband,all within three years.
Best-selling Christian novelist Karen Kingsbury considers herself to be an evangelist who happens to write stories. Some of her readers call it "life-changing fiction." In fact, she's following in the footsteps of our Savior. When Jesus needed to plant a seed in our hearts, He told a story, which Scripture refers to as a parable. Not only are Karen's stories capable of making us laugh or cry, but they also often bring conviction. You may finally feel the need to apologize, to make that overdue phone call, to create peace in a relationship.
If Jesus lived in your house, how would He bring your neighbors into the Kingdom of God? That's a question posed by Lee Strobel, atheist-turned-Christian author of the best-selling The Case for Christ. First, Strobel assures that Jesus wouldn't only share His faith, He would show His faith. Acts of service can help soften our neighbors' hearts to the gospel. Secondly, there would be an alignment between Christ's beliefs and His behavior. Likewise, your creed and your character must be consistent so that your neighbors only see integrity.
Lee Strobel, author of the best-selling The Case for Christ, describes several key considerations to keep in mind when sharing the gospel. Before Jesus spoke to His neighbors about their Heavenly Father, He would first lift them up in prayer. Therefore, prayer should be at the foundation of our efforts. Jesus was also always available for skeptics to ask tough questions about the faith. We should be equally open and welcoming to those who doubt.
When pediatrician Dr. Jerry Kartzinel puts autistic children on a dairy and gluten-free diet, 75% of them respond dramatically,like a fog has lifted! He analogizes that these kids are like computers with a malfunctioning hard drive. Only after the "hard drive" has been repaired can "software" like speech and other therapies that are introduced show dramatic results.
Mark and Jenny were concerned when their first-born child wouldn't make eye contact, walked on his tiptoes, and didn't talk. At the age of three, he was diagnosed with autism, which sent Mark into a deep depression.
If you were asked to identify yourself in one word, what would it be? Parent? Spouse? American? If you've accepted Christ as your Savior, then that one word should be "Christian." The late E.V. Hill, then-pastor of Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church in Los Angeles, preached a powerful sermon at a 1992 Promise Keepers event in Boulder, Colorado. In it, he reminds us of the truth of 1 Peter 2:9 which says, "We are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession." In other words, our identity is in Jesus Christ.
A key component of a healthy marriage is the ability to humbly apologize. Unfortunately, few of us are very good at that. Dr. Gary Chapman, author of The Five Languages of Apology, asked thousands of people, "When someone is apologizing to you, what do you want to hear them say or do?" Top answers included: express regret, accept responsibility, make restitution, genuinely repent, and request forgiveness. 2 Corinthians 7:10 says, "Godly sorrow brings repentance."
