Category Archives: Posts

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WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF?

Being Afraid Happens To Everyone But You Don’t Have To Live With Fear

dark road

In the summer of 1989, I said, very positively, “I’m not afraid; I’m trusting God.” I had taught many times on not being afraid, had counseled countless people about trusting God and not being afraid. And now it was my turn to face fear.

It’s actually very easy to say, “I’m not afraid,” isn’t it?  It’s easy to just say the words and act “positive.” But just saying, “I’m not afraid,” doesn’t mean you’re not allowing fear to direct your life.

Sure, it’s easy peasy to trust God when everything’s going well.

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WHAT IF THERE WERE NO RULES?

interference

When I was young, several of us would go to a park or playground and play some football. When we played no one was there to “throw a flag,” to point out an infraction of the rules of football. Instead, there was usually some boisterous arguing.

In the NFL, when a referee sees an infraction, he throws a yellow flag on the field, and the sports broadcaster says, “There’s a flag on the field.”  But can you imagine a football game, or any other sport, where there were no rules? Our playground games had some rules, but no rules?  No standard? That would be utter chaos.

Not just sports, but in

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THROW YOUR BIBLE AWAY?

Your Opinion Of Rich People Might Mean You Don’t Need Your Bible Anymore!

money
I’ve spent time with very poor people, very rich people, and everybody in between.  Most of the wealthy people I’ve encountered personally do not fit the general description or common opinions.

How many times do we hear phrases like, “dirty rich people,” filthy rich,” greedy rich,”  etc.?  There are many who think if someone has wealth, they obtained their riches dishonestly, and they are evil, sinful people.  But is that also true of all the wealthy people in the Bible?

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PROVERBS THREE IS LOADED!

What I Saw In Proverbs 3

proverbs 3 phone
I thought it was a good plan since I had not read the whole book of Proverbs in quite awhile.  But reading a chapter a day did not work. It came to an abrupt halt at Chapter 3.

Day One, Chapter One: I enjoyed reading from the KJV, the NIV, and RSV.  My mobile Bible app makes it very easy to read other versions. On day two, I read Chapter Two: very enjoyable. But then, on Day Three, I had to put the brakes on; I had to stop my plan because of what I saw!

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WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

Gravy is gravy and truth is truth

brooklyn lI remember my first day after moving to Brooklyn, New York asking someone for directions.  They said, “Go three blocks and turn left at the “L” and…” I interrupted, “L Street?”  “No, turn left at the “L.”  “The “L?” I asked, very puzzled.

His irritated response was, “Where are you from?”  No, I wasn’t a native and had no idea what the “L” was.  However, I learned quickly that, “L,” actually meant

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Re-Launching

Confidence And Joy is back online!

Finally, after weeks of repairs, alterations, renovations, remodeling, and implementing a brand new theme, this blog is back online!

light-switchWhat do you think?

Is the free eBook offer too inconspicuous? Just kidding.  Sign up today and get your free eBook, and you’ll get email notifications for each new post. (Already a subscriber? You’ll need to sign up to reconfirm and you’ll get the eBook too!)

Take some time to look around at the new format and leave a comment and let me know what you think.  Leave a comment on this post, or any other post.  You can easily share any post you like with others as well.

There are still a few minor adjustments going on in the background, but we are off and sailing forward, providing practical Christian living.

It feels good to be back!

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WARNINGS AND PROMISES

What does the Bible really say about money?

coinsAn honest look into any topic in the Scriptures requires one to search out and investigate every scripture pertaining to that topic. Since the scriptures are God’s Word, there can be no contradictions; all verses on the topic need to fit together. Those that seem to be difficult to understand and may appear to be contradictory must be understood in light of the clearer ones and not vice versa.

The problem so many times is that most people do not want to put forth the effort required to examine every verse on a particular topic. When it comes to money, wealth, riches and prosperity, the Bible has a lot to say. There are literally hundreds of verses one should consider.

What Does The Bible Really Say?

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I Can Turn Lemons into Lemonade

[Coming soon! A new look for Confidence And Joy! If you receive each new post via email or RSS, you’ll need to subscribe again. Watch for
details.]

lemon tree
You’ve probably heard the old phrase, “God can turn lemons into lemonade.” It basically means you can trust God for His help during difficult times. Lemons are sour, but lemonade is sweet; God can bring you out of a sour situation into sweet deliverance.

But I must admit, I’ve never really liked that phrase. Not that I don’t believe God can help in lousy situations. He certainly has for me on many occasions. But the analogy for me has always been weak because,

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Should Christians Speak Up Or Not?

listen you

Recently, I saw a phrase by C.S Lewis: “Omnipotent moral busybodies.” That sounds a lot like some of the religious people in Jesus Christ’s day. And still today, there are plenty of omnipotent moral busybodies.

”Of all tyrannies a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies…” – C.S. Lewis

The other extreme today in Christianity are Christians who are

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What About The Truth?

trueUntitled

We decided not to tell our children there was a Santa Claus. That was our choice and I certainly don’t judge other parents who decide to go along with the whole Santa thing. It may sound silly to some and even ridiculous to others for us to take that position, but for us, we just didn’t want to have to someday tell them we lied about it.

I do remember one time talking to my daughter, when she was around five, who, because signs and talk of Santa were everywhere, was starting to wonder if Santa was real. I talked truthfully to her and asked her