hope

Hymn Night 2026

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The main campus of my church hosted a hymn night. It was better than advertised and even better than I thought it would be going in. Of course, they sang all the classic hymns that I loved growing up and a few newer ones (including a couple that I wasn’t familiar with before tonight).

The highlight was when they brought out Bill Gaither to talk about one of the songs his wife had written back in the day. I have to say he’s very spry for a 90-year old. I hope I’m doing half as well as he is when I get to be that age (unless Jesus comes back, then it won’t matter).

Throw in the Gaither Vocal Band and Larry Gatlin for a couple of songs, and calling it a great night would be something of an understatement. But the best part of the night for me was still those old hymns that still speak even though the writers have long since graduated to heaven.

One song that struck me forcibly with the power of the lyrics was called “I Then Shall Live.” It felt like an old hymn, but apparently isn’t since Gloria Gaither co-wrote the lyrics:

“I then shall live as one who’s been forgiven.
I’ll walk with joy to know my debts are paid.
I know my name is clear before my Father; 
I am His child and I am not afraid.
So, greatly pardoned, I’ll forgive my brother;
The law of love I gladly will obey.

I then shall live as one who’s learned compassion.
I’ve been so loved, that I’ll risk loving too.
I know how fear builds walls instead of bridges;
I’ll dare to see another’s point of view.
And when relationships demand commitment,
Then I’ll be there to care and follow through.

Your Kingdom come around and through and in me;
Your power and glory, let them shine through me.
Your Hallowed Name, O may I bear with honor,
And may Your living Kingdom come in me.
The Bread of Life, O may I share with honor,
And may You feed a hungry world through me.

Amen, Amen, Amen” (David Phelps / Dp / Gloria L Gaither)

Watch Your Thoughts

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“Watch your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become character.
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.” (Frank Outlaw)

The problem with a lot of modern Christianity, particularly the American variety, is that most people think that you automatically drift toward holiness aside from any intentionality or effort. True, you don’t work for your salvation, but the Bible commands us to work out our salvation. Holiness takes discipline and effort; that’s why there are so many professing Christians and so few disciples.

I’m guilty for thinking that I will become holier the longer I’m saved simply because I’m saved. I think a lot of us are. We forget that for every godly saint, there are 10 older believers who are just as immature in their faith as they were on day one of their salvation. A lot of people who call themselves believers know very little about what they believe and even less about the Bible.

But we (me included) are called to a higher standard. If we truly live out what we believe and strive for biblical holiness, three things will happen: 1) People will call us extreme and radical, even those inside the Church who are comfortable in their lukewarmness. 2) Many will hate us as they hated Jesus for speaking the trust and not compromising with sin. 3) Some will be drawn to the real holiness they see instead of the pretend piety they see most of the time that actually puts people off from the faith.

Lord, help us to love You more than we love anything else in the world. Help us to follow You instead of following the world’s idea of faith. Remind us how Your disciples rejoiced when they were counted worthy of suffering for Your name because that means that people are paying attention. Help us to be lights to a dark world and salt to a decaying culture. Amen.

What We Become

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“What we become is more important than where we’re from” (seen on a church sign).

People can get so caught up in their past and become a prisoner to it. So many lives are defined by regret and bitterness. So many can’t move forward because they’re still stuck in the same place where they received their wounds that won’t heal. So many have been the victim for so long that they don’t know how to be anything else.

But God is telling a different story.

As I’ve mentioned before, God can take the worst moment of your life that you swore you’d never tell anyone about and make it the opening line of your testimony (with much love and thanks to Uncle Mikey for that one). With God, your past with all its mistakes and carnage now serves a purpose instead of serving shame.

At one point, the Bible gives a long laundry list of sins and says that the people who based their identity on these sins won’t inherit the Kingdom of God. Then comes one of the best lines in the Bible: AND SUCH WERE SOME OF YOU.

In other words, that’s who you were but not who you are now. That’s no longer what defines you or gives your life meaning. For those in Christ, you are no longer an alcoholic or an adulterer or a homosexual or a thief or any of those things. You are now a son of God or a daughter of God.

Now who you are becoming is more important than where you’re from. God in Jesus is making you into His image, taking away your heart of stone and giving you a heart of flesh. He’s taking away your sinful desires and giving you a passion for pleasing Christ in all you do. He’s making you into the person He created you to be and you are finally becoming your truest self rather than a carbon copy of everyone else or a slave to your addictions and desires.

So remember that. What we become is more important than where we’re from. The story ain’t over, folks. It’s about to get really good.

Saturday Randomness

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It’s been a little while since I did a random post of random thoughts and such. I couldn’t think of anything better, so here we are with a little stream of consciousness.

I’m dog sitting currently for my sister and her family. Well, technically I’m dog sitting, rabbit sitting, fish sitting, and chinchilla sitting. So basically I’m pet sitting. But I like all the critters, so it’s all good.

I had to get a tire patched earlier today. I don’t know why, but I seem to be really good lately at picking up nails in my tires. It’s probably my new spiritual gift. I don’t even have to try. They just automatically gravitate toward my vehicle and latch on.

Also, I’m looking for some speakers to go with my sorta new turntable. The old one is probably DOA, so I’m trying to make the not quite so new one work. If you or someone you know has any idea of a good place to find some for a relatively good price, I’m all eyes and ears.

Also, I’m thankful. The older I get, the more thankful I am. I realize that most of those things I used to take for granted are really the best things in life. Faith, family, friends, food (kidding but not kidding), and so many other things. I’ve learned to quit worrying about what’s missing and start appreciating all that I already have, which is more than enough.

So far, I think I’ve nailed the random part. This one is all over the place, but hopefully in a good way. Plus, I am super tired and in need of a good night’s rest, so hopefully tomorrow will be back to your normally scheduled blog posts and maybe slightly less random.

Thank you for reading. You rock.

Letting Love Grow

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“‘Do you remember, Grace and Glory, when you looked into your heart beside the pool, and found that my kind of love was not there at all– only the plant of Longing-to-be-loved?’

She nodded wonderingly.

‘That was the natural human love which I tore out from your heart when the time was ripe and it was loose enough to be uprooted so that the real Love could grow there alone and fill your whole heart'” (Hinds Feet on High Places, Hannah Hurnard).

“You see, true love germinates in the soil of sacrifice, sprouts in the garden of surrender and matures in a matrimony of servanthood.  Love isn’t love until it has cost you something to give it away” (Josh Hopwood).

Sometimes, it takes a long time for true love to germinate and grow in someone’s heart. We call a lot of things love that are closer to lust or to selfish longing, but God’s kind of love always involves sacrifice. That is, the love God wants for us isn’t known for taking but for giving. And forgiving, as well.

God in Jesus doesn’t love us for what we can do for us. He knows we bring nothing to the table and have no gifts or talents apart from Him that we can give. Everything we give to God is something God gave us in the first place. When we love others in that way, it’s not about expecting something in return but giving sacrificially because that’s the way God has loved us.

Lord, give us the love for others that never seeks to profit but only seeks to be like David who said that He would not offer to the Lord that which cost him nothing. May we always seek to give and not expect anything in return because we know that our reward is ultimately and only from You in the end. Amen.

Not My Will

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“Lord, I give up all my own plans and purposes, all my own desires and hopes, and accept Thy will for my life. I give myself, my life, my all, utterly to Thee to be Thine forever. Fill me and seal me with Thy Holy Spirit. Use me as Thou wilt. Send me where Thou wilt. Work out Thy whole will in my life at any cost, now and forever. Amen” (Betty Scott Stam).

This is another good prayer to pray. I mean, I have nothing against prayers about God blessing us and giving us the desires of our hearts, but the prayer that God will always honor is one that says, “God, Your will be done.”

I’ve learned over the years that I’m not the best at choosing what’s good for me. Sometimes, I feel what’s best instead of thinking it. Sometimes, I want something because I see that someone else has it. My motives are a mixed bag at best.

But when I leave the choice with God, I can rest assured that God will always choose the best. He will pick what brings Him the most glory, which in turn is what is always for my greatest good.

If God gives me something other than what I asked for, He is still good. If God doesn’t give me what I ask for, He is still good. If God gave me nothing else from this point on, He would still be good. No matter what, through feast or famine, through garden or desert, He is still good.

Lord, have Your way in me. I lay down every one of my desires at Your feet to do with as You will. Whether or not You ever give me any of them or not, You are and will always be good. Amen.

I Have Decided to Follow Jesus

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I recently heard the story of how the hymn I Have Decided to Follow Jesus originated. I don’t think I’ll ever hear those words the same way again. I know so many hymns have amazing backstories, but this one might just be my new favorite.

A man from the Garo tribe in Assam, India (modern day Meghalaya) during the 19th century converted to Christianity. He then led his family to follow Jesus as well. Eventually, he was confronted by the tribal leader along with the rest of the community. They wanted him not only to stop evangelizing but to recant his faith. He refused.

He said in essence, “I have decide to follow Jesus. No turning back.”

Then they proceeded to murder his children in front of him and his wife, followed by killing his wife. He still refused to recant.

He said, “Though none go with me, still I will follow.”

Even after they threatened him with his own death, he would not and could not deny the Christ who had miraculously delivered him and saved him.

He said, “The world behind me, the cross before me. No turning back, no turning back.”

After witnessing how the man was able to endure the loss of his own family and even his own life for the sake of the gospel, the tribal leader eventually placed his faith in Christ, along with many others from the village. That village became a sending place for missionaries.

These days, it’s becoming more and more dangerous to follow Jesus, especially in certain parts of Africa and the Middle East. In places, professing Christ can be tantamount to a death sentence. Even in America, we’re frowned upon for holding to our biblical convictions and for preaching Jesus as the only way to salvation. Perhaps one day soon we’ll see Christians forced to deny Christ or lose their lives even in this country.

So I think we have to decide if following Christ is worth it. My prayer is that everyone reading these words will be able to sing the old hymn with complete conviction and sincerity: “I have decided to follow Jesus. No turning back, no turning back.”

More About Humility

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“Humility is to expect nothing, to wonder at nothing done to us, to feel nothing against us. It is to be at rest when nobody praises us and when we are blamed and despised. It is to have a blessed home in the Lord where we can go in and shut the door and kneel to our Father in secret, and be at peace when all around is trouble” (Andrew Murray).

I still think a lot about a book I read a couple of years ago called Unoffendable by Brant Hansen. It completely blew me away and forever changed my perspective on believers and anger. Basically, we should be the least offendable people on the planet because we know what grace looks like and what we were without it. We know that apart from grace, there is nothing too base for us to fall into.

Again, humility isn’t thinking less of yourself but thinking about yourself less. It’s to take all the frustration and anger to the Lord in secet and leave it there, knowing that ultimate vengeance is in God’s hands not mine. It’s to be at peace and not get caught up in the perpetual turmoil and anxiety that marks the waking life of most of the world’s population.

Humility is to see ourselves the way God sees us through the lens of seeing God as He is. Once we understand that the world does not in fact revolve around us, we see that God’s plans are so much bigger than us as individuals. We can then gladly serve wherever God calls us out of the overflow of His love to the multitudes on stages or to the few in secret. Either way, the joy of the Lord will be our strength.

Lord, I know this is a dangerous prayer, but make us humble. Keep us from the pride of thinking we can achieve Your will and Your ways through our own means instead of us relying 100% on You for everything at every moment of every single day. Amen.

A Perfect Track Record

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Yes, I do. I worry way too much for someone whose God has a perfect track record. He has never failed once. He has never done less than the very best for any of His children even once. He has never not kept a promise.

So why do I worry? Why do I find myself in a state of anxiety over and over again, living like all the answers are up to me to figure out. Why do I try to carry the weight of the world’s problems on my shoulders?

It’s almost as if worry is my default setting. I don’t have to try to worry when life gets hard. I just automatically switch to worry mode the way my radio tunes to the last station I was listening to the day before. Anxiety comes way too natural for me.

But I find the more I spend time with Jesus, the more I sit at the feet of the Prince of Peace, the more I find myself at peace instead of overwrought with anxiety. The more I find that there’s a calmness at the center of my inner storms and turmoil.

I can’t remember if it was Dwight Moody or Charles Spurgeon who first said it, but I’m casting my anchor on the Prince of Peace tonight. I am deliberately and intentionally choosing trust over fear, hope over anxiety by the power of the indwelling Spirit within me.

Lord, give peace to Your children in the midst of a chaotic and ever-changing world that seems to drift from storm to storm. You alone are the port of peace, and I’d rather be dashed up against the Rock of Ages and know the peace that passes understanding than remain afraid in the harbor because I’m too afraid to risk anything or venture out of my comfort zone. Lord, give Your people joy to do Your will, boldness to set out on the journey You have laid out for us, and the steady assurance that You will be with us every step of the way until we reach our final destination of peace. Amen.

I’m So Proud of My Humility

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“Humility is not a character trait to develop, it’s the natural by-product of being with Jesus” (Louie Giglio).

Humility is an odd character trait to me. It seems that inevitable it’s the one thing that once you’re aware of having it, you lose it. At least for me. I almost always become prideful of how humble I am. It never fails.

But true humility is one of those things you don’t notice about yourself. It’s something you notice about others and hopefully they can see it in you. After all, it’s generally never wise to go around bragging about how humble you are.

But what Louie Giglio said makes sense. If you spend time with Jesus, His life starts to flow into you. The next thing, you’re exhibiting Christlike characteristics without even being aware of it. I remember an old married couple who had been together for so long that they even started to look alike. They’d even finish each others’ sentences because they knew the other so well as to know what that person would most likely say next.

Jesus is the only truly humble person ever. The rest of us show humility from time to time, but the vast majority of us still struggle with pride in one form or another. We either think too highly of ourselves or we go around with a false modesty that shames anyone who tries to give us compliments.

But the more I attune my ear to the voice of Jesus and set aside time for Him to speak to me, the more I find that I will live like He lived and be more and more like Him. At the same time, I may or may not be aware of all these changes. Hopefully, I will be too focused on Jesus to notice.

Lord, instead of me asking for humility, I’m asking that you’d draw me nearer to You. Let Your life so seep into mine that Your words flow out of my mouth and Your actions proceed from my hands and feet. As I wander, gently lead me back to my first love and keep my eyes fixed on You so that I can learn Your ways and Your heart. Amen.