MAKE SURE YOU PUT CUSTOMERSERVICE@IDENTITYNETWORK.NET INTO YOUR ADDRESSES IN YOUR EMAIL SERVER. IF NOT, YOUR EMAILS FROM US WILL GO TO YOUR SPAM FOLDER.
Waiting has been the hardest spiritual growth skill for me. Impatient and energetic by nature, I like things to move fast. But, if there's anything I've learned about God in recent years, it's this: God is never in a hurry, and He is often VERY…SLOW. God uses delay to sharpen His instruments and set the stage for His glory and purpose. Just this past week, I was reading in 1 Samuel 13 how King Saul grew impatient waiting for Samuel to come and offer burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. Because he felt impatient and frustrated, he went ahead and did it himself. But God was not pleased and punished Saul!
I want you to begin looking at your life differently. Dominion has generally been interpreted as the authority to rule. That definition is not entirely wrong, but it is incomplete. Kingdom dominion is not about controlling people or pursuing power for its own sake. It is entrusted responsibility backed by divine authority. God gives you authority because He has given you an assignment. He has placed something within your care and empowered you to move it toward His intended outcome. God was effectively saying, "I am placing this within your care. Cause it to become what I intended." That is the heart of dominion.
When you think about God, what comes to mind? The answer is very important. Hopefully, you can say with David, "How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!" (Psalm 139:17) as you think about His protection, presence, purpose, penalty, and purity. Psalm 139, composed by David for the choirmaster, emphatically declares that the Lord will both fulfill His purpose for His people and protect His people. Filled with personal pronouns, the psalm invites the individual to sing, but also the covenant community, especially those in exile who need to be reminded of God's person and works.
Barbara Brown Taylor once wrote something that has stayed with me: "The only clear line I draw these days is this: when my religion tries to come between me and my neighbor, I will choose my neighbor... Jesus never commanded me to love my religion." That last sentence will probably make some religious people uncomfortable. Maybe it should. Because Jesus said a great deal about love. Love God. Love your neighbor. Love your enemies. Love one another. Care for the hungry. Welcome the stranger. Visit the prisoner. Show mercy. Forgive. But love your religion? I can't find that one.
There is a word we have all been raised to honor. From the time we are small we are told to be nice. Be nice to your brother. Be nice to the guest who has come to the house. We learn very early that niceness is the currency of belonging, the thing that keeps us safe, approved, and welcome in the rooms we wish to remain in. For most of my life I prided myself on being a nice man. What I did not see for a long time is that my niceness was rarely about the person in front of me. It was about me. It was about being liked. It was about avoiding conflict and managing how others felt so that I could remain comfortable in their company. My niceness wore the costume of love, and underneath it was quietly serving myself.
We need to make sure the enemy doesn't have any legal right to harass the body of Christ. This is an area many might neglect checking to see if the door is closed here. "To the woman He said: 'I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children; your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.'" Genesis 3:16. I've been meditating on Genesis 3:16 this week. One Bible translation interpreted it as Eve's desire to dominate Adam, while others saw it as her desire for her husband. I read a commentary that scholars debate whether the verse means to dominate or simply to desire. After the Fall, [fall of man] we came under a curse that caused many to follow their lust and pride instead of God. I felt the verse meant Eve desired to dominate Adam. Adam became frustrated and wanted to rule over Eve.
Would you like your daily Bible study time to truly come alive, no matter how long you've been walking with the Lord? These 7 practical Bible study tips—drawn from my personal journey and shared with countless believers—have helped people at every stage of faith deepen their understanding of Scripture, gain confidence in hearing God's voice, strengthen their relationship with Him, and discover greater purpose and meaning in life. Whether you're seeking fresh insights after years of study or simply wanting to renew your quiet time, these simple habits invite you into a more intimate, Spirit-led encounter with God's Word. They're easy, accessible, and powerful for anyone ready to grow closer to God through consistent, heartfelt engagement.
Have you ever sat in a church service, heard a powerful message, and walked away feeling like the truth was poured directly into your mind — but somehow, a week later, it had not quite reached your heart? You are not alone, and more importantly, Jesus understood this problem perfectly. His response was to stop giving information and start telling stories. When the disciples noticed this, they were genuinely puzzled. They asked Him directly, 'Why do you speak to the people in parables?' His answer is one of the most revealing statements about communication and the Kingdom that exists in Scripture.
What does God's Word say to us about being redeemed from our enemy? According to the word of the Lord found in Psalm 107:2 we've been redeemed from the hand of the enemy. "Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy," Psalm 107:2. Do we believe it? Or do we still underestimate the power of the Lord within us? At first many will respond with a reassuring response, "Yes, I believe!". But when difficulties designed by the enemy come our way to steal, to kill, and to destroy us, many of God's people cave into the attack of the enemy, and often without any form of resistance. This response to Satan's tactics is not right. We are to believe what God says about His redemptive hand upon us. And what does He say about our redemption from our enemy?
One of the great quests in the history of philosophy is investigation into the meaning and purpose of life. Philosophy seeks the purpose not only of human existence but also of animal existence, of flower existence, of the existence of rocks and of everything else. Philosophy is profoundly interested in questions of purpose and meaning. But when we consider adverse events, this is the question that burns in everyone's mind. Why did this happen? Particularly if one is a theist and especially a Christian theist, we ask the "why" question. "How could God allow this to happen?" or "Why, God, did this happen?"
This page does not exist.