Forged By Faith

Psalm 41:9 NIV We've been talking about friendship and how rare it actually is in our world. It's truly sad that we've forgotten what a friend ought to be and how we should treat those that are a part of our lives. We take it all for granted and don't understand just how much we should appreciate the folks that are there for us and who are set on trying to make us better. As we discussed yesterday, too many people are only living for themselves and focused on what others can offer them. This entitled and self-serving mindset is ruining more things than we can imagine! Unfortunately, those that we call our friends aren't always deserving of that title. Sometimes they're simply people that we spend time around without ever building a true connection or the solid foundation that a friendship really needs to have. They're just acquaintances that we pick up for a time along this journey and at some point they jump off our bandwagon when we're not what they

Proverbs 27:17 NIV Learning, growth, improvement, and maturity. Those are all things that we should be seeking in our lives and in the lives of those that God has placed around us along this journey. We're not here to just coast through life until we run out of heartbeats. We're not just taking up air and waiting for the clock to run out. Each of us have a purpose and God put us here to fulfill it. All of us have a story to share, an opportunity to help others, the chance to tell this place about Christ and to live lives that reflect His light into a darkening world. It's a calling, a duty, a battle that we can't afford to ignore or take lightly. We've been talking a bit about friendship and how important it is to get it right. Surrounding ourselves with the kind of people who want the best for us and won't let us stop half way there. Finding people that we can rely on to be open and honest because the truth is the only thing that can ever help us improve. Avoid

1 Corinthians 15:33 NIV Whether we realize it or not, the people that we’re surrounded by are having a bigger impact than we could ever begin to imagine. We may think that we’re the most independent, resilient, and grounded person alive, but that doesn’t make us immune to the influences of those around us. It doesn’t mean that we don’t pick up little habits, learn some questionable things, and start drifting in a direction other than the one that we thought we were going. So we better make absolutely sure that the people we associate with, the people that we call our friends are really making us better. If not, it’s probably time to cut and run. The problem that we run into is that we want that companionship. We want people to like us. That social approval and validation makes it easier for us to feel good about ourselves. This society is all about the number of friends you have, not necessarily how good those friends are. So we have learned to place this higher importance on having a

Proverbs 17:17 NIV Don't know about you, but I just love how our God works! This past week or so has been one of reflection and learning for me personally. I've been looking back over the mistakes that I've made, the lessons to be gleaned, and the excitement of the chance to do better going forward. There has been this really interesting blend of regret and opportunity that is unlike anything I've felt recently. There is always something to learn and improve if we're just willing to look for it. And it really is amazing to be able to learn lessons that we didn't even realize we need to learn. Much of what I've been thinking about this past week is friendship. That's something that has always meant a lot to me. It's one of those things that I've always tried to do my best with and thought I did a good job of taking seriously. Alas, as with pretty much every other aspect of life, I can honestly say that I've made more mistakes than I ever reali

1 Timothy 4:12 NIV Have you ever had someone say something so nice that it just wrecked you? A compliment or something good about you that they've noticed or something about you that they're thankful for. Well, I had that happen to me the other day and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it ever since. An old friend of mine told me something that I never expected to hear, and it's one of the most encouraging and yet painful things that I've ever heard about myself. It feels incredible to know that someone has fond memories of me, but also horrible to realize that I could have done so much better by them. As I've shared a bit here recently, a long time ago when I was just a kid I started veering off course. It's one of those hindsight things. We look back at the things we've done and the choices we've made and realize how much different things could have been had we done something differently. We are able to see all the mistakes so much more cl

Proverbs 28:13 NIV "Men need a long life to know that they ain't right." If there's a line or lyric or quote that better fits what I've been feeling lately than that one I can't think of it! I think just about all of us manage to find our way to this place where we think we're perfect. We develop this amazing ability to convince ourselves that everything we do is okay and that we couldn't possibly get anything wrong. It takes a lot of time to grow past that arrogant stage where we think we're flawless and never mess anything up. And in reality, the kind of humility that it takes to realize just how wrong we've been is something that I don't think some can ever find. I've been thinking back over the paths that I've taken and the choices that I've made in my life up to this point. And as much as it stings to admit it, I don't think I've gotten much right. To be honest, I don't know that I've really gotten anything

Genesis 3:10 NIV Not lost, just buried. That's an idea that's been on my mind for a couple of days now. I talked a while back about this feeling that I had lost something. I lost my happiness. I feel like I've lost these little bits and pieces of hope, joy, and peace. But then the Lord's been helping me see past those lies. It really is incredible how God and His timing work. Just when we're starting to wonder what's gone wrong, He steps in and reminds us that there is still hope and that not everything has been lost. So maybe I haven't lost my joy, maybe it's just been buried underneath other things. The other night I has this random memory that came out of nowhere. Silly and almost one of those things that I don't know why I still remember, but now I see the reason behind it. Then out of the blue the other day I got this friend request from someone that I haven't talked to in probably 15 years or more. And yesterday I got to spend a little time

Philippians 1:6 NIV Like we talked about yesterday, the best is still ahead. Not because life is going to suddenly smooth out. Not because everyone will stop being mean and nasty to one another. Not because peace is likely to be found in this world. No, the best is still ahead because God is still at work. That's another one of those facts that is all too easy to forget when we're focused on the state of the world around us. We see so much bad all the time that we can start wondering where God is in all of it. But He's there. He's still working in the hearts and souls of those who are willing to follow Him rather than the ways of this place. He's still guiding His people to the plans and promises that He has for them. He is still working miracles and healing those who are lost and suffering. He is still unfolding His will every single day. The problem is that it often gets lost behind other things. It gets overshadowed by the downfall. We get used to hearing and see

Colossians 3:4 NIV The best is yet to come! That's the promise that we have in Christ. We step into a brand new life when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior and devote our lives to following Him and growing in our faith. The old lives that we once lived according to the world's priorities are dead and gone. He carried them to the cross and then to the grave where He left them behind. In doing so He set us free from everything we once did, everything we once knew, everything we once feared. There's a kind of total freedom in Christ that is truly unlike anything else! We've been talking about how jacked up this world is and all of the frightening things that we're seeing unfold around us. Pandemics. Humanitarian crises. Continued hatred and division. Wickedness in countless forms. There seems to be an almost endless list of bad things in this place. And as we've discussed, it weighs on us. It's impossible to not notice what's happening and it's impos

John 11:35 NIV Two words. Such a short statement that carries such a profound message. It can often feel like we're all alone in what we're going through or how we feel. Life can be a lonely and rather painful journey sometimes. And throughout all the things we experience we easily become disconnected or disheartened to life altogether. I think we can fall into this way of seeing God as some distant being that is simply watching everything unfold. We can start wondering if He does know how we're feeling. Does He really understand what we're going through or how it makes us feel? Yes, He does! He's not only sees it but He understands it. He not only understands it but He's felt it. He has felt the pain caused by people turning away. He's felt the sting of pain caused by loss. He's experienced the harsh treatment that this world often dishes out on people. He has walked this earth and He has seen everything that it done down here. So yes, He understands th

1 John 5:4 NIV This right here is one amazing truth and truly powerful reminder that we all need right now. We see so much going on and it wears on us. It starts to consume our thoughts. It starts to drudge up those old worries and fears that we thought were behind us. We start wondering how bad things will become, how close to home will the chaos hit, and if we're ready for what may come next. All of the unrest and unraveling around us is bound to have an impact. But this verse helps us remember just where that impact should end! It ends when it meets our faith. The things going on around us are big. They're troublesome. They're rattling. They're eye-opening. They're sad. They're scary. They're a reminder that our world is so messed up that there may not be much that can be done to fix it. But even in the midst of all that gloom we can still find peace. Even when things are falling apart around us we can still find rest for our minds and our souls. We have

Psalm 16:8 NIV The times they are a changin' my friends. FAST! Seems like every dawn brings us some new problem or calamity. Endless outrage, vile rhetoric, familiarized hatred, and the perpetual downward spiral of our different societies caused by different viewpoints and different priorities. It's getting weirder by the day, and as much as we can try to keep our heads above it, we're still likely to struggle from time to time. There's so much negativity around us and it's only piling higher. It can definitely become hard to see over, around, under, or through all the chaos and madness. But that makes it even more crucial to keep our eyes fixed on God! We can't afford to let this world and its discourse steal our attention, our joy, or our peace. We can't let what's happening around us shake us to the point that we lose sight of the hope that we have in Christ. Yes, things are bad. But yes, He's still good. With as crazy as this place seems to be ge

Isaiah 30:21 NIV So I've had this realization hit me recently, and I think it's one of those truths that might hit home for a lot other people as well. What hit me is that I don't know what I'm doing. It seems like no matter what I do or how hard I try I just can't seem to get out of my own way. I can't seem to stop doing dumb stuff. I can't figure out how to wise up and move on from the bad habits and poor choices that I've made. It just seems like I keep messing up, getting distracted, and losing sight of who I'm trying to be. Thankfully, we don't have to figure it out on our own. Look, we all trip up. We all struggle with sin and temptation. We all tend to veer back toward what we've known. We find comfort and simplicity in the ruts and valleys that we've carved out in life. It's easier to keep doing what we've always done. It's easier to keep going the direction that we've been heading. But maybe the direction we'v

1 Peter 4:10 NIV I think we've become to accustomed to this world of division that we've created. It's always been this way, but maybe it shouldn't be. Maybe we shouldn't spend our time dividing ourselves up. Maybe we shouldn't spend our time and energy fighting over petty nonsense that doesn't matter. Maybe we would be better off if we sought ways to work together for a common good rather than squaring off to our corners looking for a fight. There will always be differences. There will always be unique perspectives and talents and ideas. But that can be a good thing. It's all in what we use those special talents and viewpoints to accomplish. Can you imagine what this place would be like if everyone used their specific skills and abilities to point to Christ? If we all worked together, doing whatever each of us had the ability to do, to make a positive impact in the world. What if the majority of people were all focused on one common goal: to know Christ

1 Corinthians 13:1 NIV A clanging cymbal. A noise maker. A sound without meaning or purpose. That's pretty much a spot-on description of much of what we're surrounded with anymore. People talking without saying anything. Folks making noise just to feel like they're doing something. Groups and movements screaming and yelling about all kinds of different things without accomplishing much if anything good. The problem is that so many of our motives are all wrong. Our reasons for doing and saying things are based on some pretty selfish and even hurtful foundations. And when that's the case, there's going to be some big problems because of it. The whole law and every commandment is summed up in loving God and loving others. Christ tells us that very plainly in Matthew 22:40. It's about love. Kindness. Compassion. Understanding. Humility. Selflessness. Servanthood. But I'm just going to be honest, you're facing an uphill battle trying to convince me that most

Philippians 2:3 NIV We're so used to this idea of putting ourselves first that we don't even realize that it's not really doing anything for us. A selfish life seems like it's exactly what we want. After all, when we're the ones calling the shots and setting the priorities we can line things up just how we want them. But if we're being honest, what does a life focused on ourselves accomplish? What difference does it make? If all we ever do are things that benefit us then we're the only ones that get anything out of it. And while that may sound amazing, in the end we're going to be surrounded with everything we've ever wanted but no sense of joy or fulfillment. I really do think that selfishness is the new drug of the masses. We get all excited thinking about what we want and who we want to be. We find this thrill in chasing after things that make us feel important or check off the next box on the list of must-haves that we've come up with. It all

Proverbs 15:1 NIV I've been thinking a lot this past week about being more joyful. And we've talked about it a bit in a post or two recently. But it seems like being happy is getting harder and harder to do. It's like we're surrounded by this cloud of negativity and it can feel almost impossible to find our way out of it. It makes matters even worse when we become distracted by all the nonsense around us and allow it to slink in and start bringing us down. There is this great divide in our world. And it's growing wider and deeper all the time. I know you've seen it. We all see it. It's this idea that we have to let the world know our opinions about everything so that we can show we're on what has been deemed the right side of whatever foolish argument we're caught up in. We can't just stay quiet. We can't keep it to ourselves. We see something that we don't agree with and head straight to the nearest internet equipped device to start our

Leviticus 19:18 NIV It's amazing what you can notice when you pay attention, and what you can learn from it if you're willing to listen. We were getting some stuff done yesterday, and my mom and sister had their facemasks on because that's what we've been doing to help during this pandemic. But as we sat at a stoplight, I noticed this younger guy next to us. As the light turned, he looked over, saw their masks, and shook his head in disgust and disapproval. And that really stuck out at me. Our world has a really big problem and I don't know that there's much hope of fixing it. But for anyone who's willing to try, well, now's the time. For that moment that young fella chose to be angry. He chose to look at someone else and judge them for something that doesn't really have any harmful or negative impact on him. I think it hit me so hard because it's this microcosm of how our world has chosen to behave. We have chosen to glorify our own opinions rat