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Last week I wrote about Joseph and how he was proven in the fire through betrayal, false accusation, put in prison and then was elevated to the palace. This week I want to share the story about Daniel because many of you are not just in a pit season, you are in a Babylon season. You are faithful in a foreign land, because as a believer, you are in this world but not of it. You are surrounded by people who don't honor or serve your God. Daniel came from royalty but was taken captive to Babylon as a young man, just like Joseph was taken to Egypt as a young man. He had to be proven in Babylon.
Do you feel like God is stretching you right now? You're praying for answers to challenging problems, but the silence feels deafening. The tension—maybe in your heart, in your relationships, or in your daily walk. Feeling stretched by God can make you wonder – "Why do I feel this way in this season? I've been there before. As a former coach and health teacher passionate about longevity (body, mind, emotions, spirit, relationships), I know stretching rarely feels comfortable at first. But when God is stretching you this season, it's not to break you—it's to make room for more of His goodness, freedom, and purpose in your life.
Recently, as I was preparing to speak at Capps Chapel, the Holy Spirit prompted me that there was someone listening who had been attacked by a spirit of fear and that I should minister to them. It was a very strong impression, so I asked that person to respond. God wanted them delivered! Fear is not from God! No one responded, so I prayed a general prayer. Later, I discovered that someone was present who was gripped by fear but did not respond! Fear prevented this person from responding.
But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship Him. John 4:23 ESV In a dream last night, I saw the body of Christ as a huge orchestra. Dressed in concert attire and seated on two sides of a massive room, many were positioned to take part. Not all had instruments ready, but they were poised and waiting for their cue. But there was no primary leader. Not even a podium or stage. They were all simply dressed, seated in place, and ready to make music.
This week I want to tell you about a strange pattern I noticed during my years of coaching on the WTA tour. I would sit with a player after a match she had just won and ask her what she saw. She had hit forty winners. She had served brilliantly under pressure. She had solved opportunity after opportunity for two hours in front of thousands of people. When she answered me, she spoke about none of it. Instead, she spoke about the three backhands she missed in the second set. This was not one player. This was nearly all of them. Some of the most gifted human beings I have ever stood next to could look directly at their own brilliance and see only the cracks in it. Over time I realized this pattern was not a tennis problem. It is a human one. In fact, it may be the most universal habit I have ever encountered in my work, and the one that is quietly shaping more lives than almost anything else I know.
When you're scheduled as a guest on a podcast, it's typical for the host to send you a questionnaire ahead of time. It helps establish expectations and gives the conversation a framework to work from. Recently, I received one that asked how I would teach Fortune 500 leaders the systems and processes that everyone could use to produce better results. Ultimately, I declined the interview, but the question stayed with me because I think it highlights something we need to pay attention to. We love systems. And for good reason. Systems, processes, and protocols are important. They create consistency. They help us govern what we've learned. They let us repeat what works and help others benefit from what we've discovered.
"For when I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Cor. 12:10). Paul's statement here seems to make no sense—or, worse, appears to be a contradiction. After all, weakness and strength are opposites. Whether it's our physical bodies, our cognitive abilities, our emotional health, or our socioeconomic position, we understand that strength in these areas is good and that weakness is bad. But as with many other things in the kingdom of God, what seems to be a contradiction is actually a paradox in God's redemptive plan (see, for example, the Beatitudes in Matt. 5:1–12). What does 2 Corinthians 12:9–10 teach about how God views weakness and strength, and how can its truths be manifested in our own lives to His glory and our good?
Do you believe in the power of faith to receive miracles? Or does your human reasoning resist God's supernatural ways? Do you readily surrender to His Spirit? Or do you lock arms against Him? There are many Christians today that believe in Jesus, but they don't believe Him. They believe just enough to receive eternal life in Heaven but shun abundant life while on this earth. And then they wonder where God in their time of need is. For a large sector of God's people, it is more comfortable for them to say this sickness or disease comes from God, then to trust in His word and declare, "By His stripes we are healed." Many would rather live a precarious spiritual life, then abide in the safety of the Almighty. But when calamity comes, and it does come on this fallen earth they shake their fist at God and ask, "Why?"
If someone asked you to name the most anointed, Spirit-filled individual in the entire Old Testament, who would come to mind? Abraham, the father of faith? Moses, the deliverer of Israel? David, the man after God's own heart? Those are all remarkable answers. But what if I told you that the first person in all of Scripture to be explicitly described as filled with the Spirit of God was an artist? His name was Bezalel — and his story carries a revelation for every creative person, every minister, and every believer who has ever wondered whether God truly cares about beauty, craftsmanship, and the arts.
In the last few years, I believe that G-D has been spiritually refocusing my heart. I am just as committed to Yeshua and to serving in G-D's Kingdom as I have ever been. I have not changed my core beliefs in Yeshua being the Messiah or in the absoluteness of G-D's Word. But as the world seems to spiral into greater moral chaos, and as more and more people twist G-D's Word to fit their heart's desires instead of turning their hearts toward G-D's desires, I have concluded that, in many ways, we, the body of believers, have been much less effective than we could have been. I believe this is the result of a misdirection of our focus, efforts, and energies.
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