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I grew up on 90s Saturday Night Live. The 90s SNL casts were absolutely loaded with talent. There were so many amazing recurring sketches in the 90s, and Al Franken had a very popular one with his character, Stuart Smalley. Stuart Smalley would appear in a sketch as a talk show host of the show "Daily Affirmations." (WATCH HERE) In the sketch, Smalley was relentless in the way he would talk positively about himself. Now matter how the show went, Stuart Smalley found ways to frame it positively. He would say things like, "That's not my best show, and that's okay." The character is probably best known for the way he would end the sketch, by stopping, staring into a mirror, and saying to himself, "I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me."  Stuart Smalley was practicing self-affirmation and positive self-talk. In psychology circles, there is more and more research coming out on the benefits of positive self-talk...

Do you know anyone named Lazarus? I certainly don't. I couldn't even find anyone in the Twin Cities on Facebook named Lazarus. There are many names in the Bible that people still use today - consider even Lazarus' sisters, Mary and Martha. Why is nobody named Lazarus? The dude was raised from the dead! Isn't it kind of a cool name? (SIDE NOTE: There is a guy on Facebook named Barry Lazarus, which sounds like the name of an awesome alto-sax jazz musician from the 60s) We are all familiar with the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead by calling him out of the tomb. I was reading the story again today in John 11. What struck me most of all today, is that when Jesus found out that Lazarus was dead, he waited two days to go heal him! All in all, by the time Jesus got to the tomb, Lazarus had been inside for four days! (John 11: [5] Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. [6] So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in th...

In part 1 of "Your Kingdom Come," we tapped into the reasons why we pray the words "Your Kingdom Come." We saw that Jesus Christ is the King of God's Kingdom, having been exalted by God to the right hand of the throne to rule, because of his victory over sin and death on the cross. We saw that Jesus is the worthy King, and worthy of all authority because of his perfect obedience to God's will. Jesus is the Messiah King whom God has promised throughout all the Bible and now he is at work ruling and reigning over the universe. In Part 2, we want to look at why we pray for the fulfillment of God's mission in Jesus Christ: A major part of God's mission in Jesus Christ to "make royal subjects." These "royal subjects" are devoted disciples, born of the Holy Spirit, who seek to live and love like Christ as they proclaim the good news of the gospel. Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. T...

On my drive in to work today, I started thinking, "What does God say about me today?" "How does God define me today?"  Meditating on my identity in Christ really put the wind in my sails today, and I hope it does the same for you! Christian, this is what God says about you today: In Jesus, our sin is forgiven forever .  In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight (Ephesians 1:7-8 ESV) For there is no distinction: for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, (Romans 3:22b-24 ESV) As the hymn "It is Well" says, My sin not in part, but the whole is nailed to the cross,  and I bear it no more, praise the Lord, praise the Lord O my soul! I don't think I will ever hear that enough - Jesus has paid the debt I...

I have this weird idea about life statistics. For example, I wonder how many miles I've run in my life. Or how many calories I've eaten. How many times have I sneezed? What are the total number of times my heart has beaten? I'd love to know all of my various life statistics. I know I've prayed the Our Father or the Lord's Prayer many times. How many? I prayed it a lot in my childhood, and I love to use it these days. I wonder how many times I've actually prayed the Lord's Prayer. I also want to better understand what it means. “And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then like this: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also h...

When it comes to music, I'm a singer-alonger. If I'm driving in the car - and honestly it doesn't matter if I'm alone - I'll normally have the music loud and I'll be singing gleefully along with it. I can't help it. When I listen to music I get this feeling of joy and excitement. It feels like this energy coursing throughout my entire body and eventually I just can't take it anymore...out of jubilation I have to sing along! In this same way, as the love of God fills the heart of the follower of Christ, it overflows as if a glass of water. The love of God spills out from us into our love for the church, other people, and even our enemies. In his letter to the Romans, the Apostle Paul gives us a list of suggestive instructions for that should be the hallmarks of Christ's love pouring out of our hearts. Romans 12:9-21 9) Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good.  Genuine love is the foundation for all of the follo...

In May of 2016 I ran The Bayshore Marathon in Traverse City, Michigan. I did not train for this marathon. In fact, I decided to run the full 26.2 miles only one week beforehand. I can honestly say that running a marathon without training is a mistake. I do not recommend it. Not surprisingly, the race was extremely challenging. Many times during the back end of the race I lamented my decision. My body and mind grew weary and I couldn't wait for the finish line. I wasn't sure if the pain was ever going to end, but eventually the finish line came into view. Despite my lack of preparation, I was able to complete the marathon. Exhausted, I fell to the ground. I was not prepared to run a marathon. My body was not ready for the physical and mental toll of running over 26 miles. In many ways the Christian life calls us to be prepared for the challenges and trials that come with living out our faith. Jesus himself explains the cost of discipleship: "Or what king, g...