Why does God allow such hard trials? What if trials lead to experiencing the great consolation prize of Jesus Christ in all His love and comfort? The Apostle Peter makes this precise case in 1 Peter 1:6-9. He compares the…
I used to hate feeling weak and out of control, but since my Stage IV cancer battle, I realized God shows up best when I’m weak as then He becomes strong in me. Consider four responses to being weak and…
In the beginning, I thought: It wasn’t long before I admitted, “I absolutely don’t got this.” Stage IV metastatic melanoma was bigger than me. I was overwhelmed, scared, hurting, self-pitying. More than anything – I was disappointed … with myself.…
Humans are made to appreciate value, to be impressed and awed. This enables us to be inspired and thankful, things which add true riches to life. Of course, with the God-shaped vacuum within, the healthiest object of our awe is…
Religion cannot achieve it; earthly pleasures cannot match it; psychology fails to reproduce it – let alone explain it; oppression can’t squash it, and confusion can’t overcome it. There’s no comparison to this incredible “gift of God” which Jesus offers.…
I bought a pair of night-vision binoculars during this year’s Black Friday weekend. There’s something about seeing in the dark that really draws me, especially when walking through Texas woods at night! I started thinking of the spiritual analogy of…
Humans are intrigued by super-powers. The Greeks and Romans had their god-human heroes and we have our super-humans. There’s a long list of super-charged comic characters who’ve become mainstays in our movie houses. While it might be nice to take…
During my intense battle with Stage IV metastatic melanoma, I had plenty of time to surf TV stations. I often heard preachers encouraging people to speak to obstacles and command them to go away, and if they believed and didn’t…
There is a difference between powerlessness and hopelessness. We can confuse the two, making our trials so much harder, just as I did during my battle with Stage IV metastatic melanoma cancer back in 2002-2004. Powerlessness is not our enemy,…
During my battle with Stage IV melanoma, one of the deadliest and hardest to treat cancers, I found myself so weak I could barely cope. In a five month period in 2002-2003, I had three cancer removal surgeries; several rounds…