Monthly Archives: April 2026

Wants Over Needs

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We have had Arnold the cat for almost ten years now and lately he has gotten worse in scratching the furniture. So Teri bought some cat treats for training. He loves those treats (understatement). She gives him treats when he scratches on his scratching post instead of the furniture. The problem is he has become obsessed with the treats. Now we are dealing with that problem far more than the furniture scratching. 

Isn’t that the way it can be with the children too? It might be food or something fun that becomes a fixation that the child’s life revolves around. Sigh. They aren’t happy without it, and they share that lack of happiness with us. Hmmm. Thinking about it, are we any different? In one sense yes. We know better regarding a temptation, but we still give in. So isn’t it then worse for us because we know better. 

Our minds are to rule our bodies for the good of our bodies and God’s glory. Sadly the flesh can scream loudly to get what it wants. But God has given us His Spirit to direct our lives. 

“For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace” (Romans 8:5-6).

“This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16).

Low or High View

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There would be quite the excitement in a town if President Trump was going to visit. You and I know that people would dress up if they were going to be part of any meetings with him. When in the company of someone we want to honor, we dress up to show our respect for who they are. 

I just engaged a man at the gas station. He was wearing a suit. I asked him if he was just at a funeral. He had been. We dress up to show our respect for the dead. 

Can you imagine being in the presence of almighty God, the One Who died to pay for our sins? What respect is due to our God compared to the President of our country or a loved one who has died? Lightyears more I think. If we have a high view, a respectful, honoring view of our God, we honor Him when we come to worship Him, including how we dress. Isn’t it horribly sad then when those coming to worship the God Who saved them aren’t willing to show respect in how they dress? 

It doesn’t take long once you have visited a church to establish a thought on whether the church has a low or high view of God. Is He a “good ole boy, the man upstairs” or the most holy, righteous God of the universe?

“Exalt the LORD our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the LORD our God is holy” (Psalms 99:9).

Can You Let Go?

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I can’t help but wonder if one of the greatest hindrances to us having peaceful and joyful hearts is our feelings of need to control. We may be strong in our desire to follow Jesus and be obedient to Him. However, in that zeal, the emotions surrounding our actions say that ultimately we feel the need to control outcomes. We emotionally respond as if we own the responsibility for the outcomes rather than trusting them to our Lord. I don’t believe we would say that is what we do, but our thoughts and emotions prove otherwise. 

One way I propose for you to evaluate this is to see if your life is characterized by the fruit of the Spirit, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23a). Or are you more often experiencing feelings of fear, worry, anxiety, irritability, anger, impatience, frustration, and harshness? 

When we try to control our lives, our children’s lives, and our husband’s lives – for a good reason of course, godly outcomes for all, we take on responsibility that isn’t ours. The resulting pressure is simply not what the Lord intends for us. He gives us responsibility for doing what He has called us to do – obedience. However, He hasn’t given us responsibility for the outcomes. We trust Him for those. That reminds me of a song most of us probably know, “Trust and Obey.” That’s what faith is all about – obeying the Lord and trusting Him through it. That is where we are to be whether the outcomes are what we want them to be or not. When this is the case, we don’t have to be upset, frustrated, or angry. Did God not say?

The king’s heart is in the hand of the LORD, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will. Proverbs 21:1

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28

Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Proverbs 3:5-6

When you have those negative emotions, consider their roots. Then think through if you truly trusted God in the situation, what would the emotions be that were associated with the situation. Would they be negative or positive? I can’t help but wonder if for most they would be positive – that fruit of the Spirit. 

So then, the antidote to an attitude of control is faith – one that not only acknowledges God’s sovereignty intellectually but lives that way. It is praying when something happens that isn’t the way we wanted it to be, rather than crying or yelling. It is speaking the truth in our hearts that our trust is in God, not ourselves. It is responding to a situation over and over in a godly way without falling apart when it isn’t changing. It is casting our cares on the Lord and letting go of the continual anxiety created by a burden to control. “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you” (1 Peter 5:7).

I believe when we evaluate our feelings of needing to control things and people around us, we will find that the Lord desires our faith and trust in Him as we obey His Word. May I encourage you to be faithful in fulfilling the responsibilities the Lord has given you. But in that process, let go of trying to control outcomes. In faith, leave them to the Lord. 

Psalms

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Several years ago the Lord convicted me that even though I read the Psalms each Bible read-through, I needed even greater familiarity with them. So I began an aggressive Psalms reading plan in addition to my normal, daily Bible reading. I have come to LOVE the Psalms and how it affirms the Old and New Testament truths in a beautiful personal, poetic style. 

One brief example was from reading Psalm 106 last week. Recently, I highlighted in Seriously how God commanded Israel against mingling with the nations because it would cost them their children. I did not use this verse, but when I read it after that Seriously I saw how it affirmed what happened when Israel ignored God’s command to destroy nations.

“They did not destroy the nations, concerning whom the LORD commanded them: But were mingled among the heathen, and learned their works. And they served their idols: which were a snare unto them. Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils, And shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood. Thus were they defiled with their own works, and went a whoring with their own inventions. Therefore was the wrath of the LORD kindled against his people, insomuch that he abhorred his own inheritance” (Psalms 106:34-40).

Did you notice the progression? Mingled, learned, served = cost them their children. 

Each time I read in Psalm 106, it breaks my heart to think of the Christian families who are following a similar path to Israel. God’s people are the same through the ages. He said be separate otherwise you will become like them. What about you and your family? Are you separate from the world, or do you fill your eyes and minds with what entertains the world? Are you on that destructive path?

Spring is Here

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Spring is here mostly. In Kansas it will vary one day to the next, but things are beginning to bud out. If you are like me, you are tackling yard maintenance while it is cool and before it gets out of hand. One thing I’m installing because it is greatly needed, is edging to separate mulch from grass. Without a barrier, keeping the grass out of the mulch and the mulch out of the grass is extremely difficult (at best). Last year I tried to weed eat the grass back, and I either scalped the grass or shot mulch everywhere. (I understand some of you are better weed eaters than me.) Barriers to provide separation are a very good thing.  

That is true spiritually as well. I’m grieved by many who imply they aren’t tempted by the weeds of the world. They think they can keep the weeds back from crossing into their lives. But from simple observation, it ain’t working too well for them. The spiritual slide is slow, and seems to be unnoticed by them, or they might make some drastic changes. 

In Deut. 7, God gave instructions for what Israel was to do when it went into the land the Lord was giving them. They were to remove all the people and everything that would draw their hearts away from God and to the wickedness of the world. “But thus shall ye deal with them; ye shall destroy their altars, and break down their images, and cut down their groves, and burn their graven images with fire” (Deuteronomy 7:5). The God Who created us knows our nature and how easily we are drawn to wickedness. Think about it. Here was a people who witnessed firsthand God’s power and holiness. If anyone could have stood strong, resisted evil, and been steadfast in love and devotion to God, it would have been them. But no. God said they weren’t to allow the influences around them or it would pull them away from Him. 

Then how can we, my brothers, think we are strong enough to resist the pull of the world, if we don’t have a clear separation between us and it. Oh the addicting affect of the world on not only us but on our children. The worst of the worst is then losing our children to the world.