Word of the Week
Every few weeks, I’ll update this page with a quick challenge, either from myself or a guest contributor.
July 13, 2025
The word of the week is: generous
It’s so natural to our fleshly way of thinking to want to keep everything for ourselves. Yet, God calls his people to think in a completely new way. Jesus “did not come to be served, but to serve” (Matthew 20:28). In order to live this way, we must be willing to die to our normal way of thinking. Paul says of his Christian life, “I die every day” (1 Corinthians 15:31). Every single day, I’m killing my sinful desires. What my flesh wants, I destroy it. I wage war against the enemy of my soul. I die to myself, and I chose to stop keeping back all of my possessions for myself.
It’s so important to remember that God sees our sacrifices, even when no one else knows how hard it is for us to surrender. “Whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). God is an extravagant Rewarder, and He wants us to believe that.
Jesus said to “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). Let’s choose to put God first. Let’s choose to advance His kingdom, even at the expense of our earthly possessions.
Give generously, and He will give us more than we could ever imagine.
June 23, 2025 The word of the week is: grace "And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all." Acts 4:33 Great grace. The key to an effective testimony. The key to effectively helping people. The key to power in every single thing we do. We can’t help others in any lasting way without having grace ourselves. I love the way Romans 9 talks about followers of Jesus, referring to them as “vessels of mercy.” I want to view myself as a vessel into which God pours out mercy and grace. When I mess up, I receive grace that is lavishly being poured onto me. Then, when others mess up, I can then lavishly pour that same grace onto them. This is the way to live above bitterness; this is the way to not be petty; this is the key to so many areas of life - to view yourself as a vessel of mercy. To receive mercy and to pour out that same mercy to everyone around you. God, may great grace be upon us today.
May 18, 2025 The word of the week is: power God wants His chosen people to operate and function in power. And not just the great heroes of the faith who are written about in the Bible, but people who follow God today – in May 2025. Do you believe that? Or do you secretly think that mentality is a bit “out there” and borderline weird? While sitting a jail cell, the Apostle Paul wrote the book of Philippians. “I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead” (Philippians 3:10). So what does that look like? What does that mean, and how do we tap into this? God’s Spirit lives in those who have handed control of their lives over to God, repented of sins, and believed in Jesus for salvation from sin. There are countless outcomes of this, including the fact that we now actually have the ability and power to live in a way that honors God. So how do we operate in God’s Spirit? How do we “experience the mighty power”? Always remember His presence: Right before Jesus went to heaven after His ministry on earth, He said, “I’m with You always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). He’s with you. He’s in you. He’s helping you live holy, even when you don’t feel like it. Ask for God’s power: Ask God for practical help in specific moments of temptation. “Ask, and it will be given to you” (Matthew 7:7). Be confident that your God-honoring request will be answered: Even if I don’t feel like it, I believe God is currently giving me the ability to obey Him right now. Jesus said, “Whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours” (Mark 11:24). There are a million more things we could all say, but let's rely on God this week for the strength to live in a way that honors Him.
May 11, 2025 The word of the week is: humility Peter is my personal favorite of Jesus’s disciples. While he was learning from Jesus during Jesus’s earthly ministry, Peter was quick to take aggressive action and to stand up for what he believed was right. Peter was the one who cut off the soldier’s ear when the Romans were about to take Jesus off to be crucified. It’s cool to see how Peter matured and became more controlled over time as he came to know God even more. 1 Peter is a book of the Bible written by this man who was once overly aggressive and has since grown greatly in learning to actively rely on God. Peter in his older age tells us in 1 Peter 5:6-7, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God…casting all your anxieties on him” (1 Peter 5:6-7). Humility and not being anxious seem like two relatively unrelated things, but Peter is saying that there’s actually a huge connection between them. How do we walk in humility? By not taking on the heavy weight of all the problems that threaten to consume us. By releasing everything that generates anxiety within us to God and letting Him handle each challenge. By refusing to believe the lie that I’m in charge, and by gladly accepting the reality that God alone is in control. What am I trying to do in my own strength today that I should instead be handing off to Almighty God? This week let’s live our lives with humility. Let’s stop living like (and secretly believing) we’re in control.
May 2, 2025 The word of the week is: overcome Revelation 3:21 says, "To him who overcomes, I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, just as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne." The book of Revelation is a look into the future. If you could look into your future, what would you see? Did what you're coming up against today beat you? Or did you beat it? How are you handling the challenges God has allowed you to have today? When we look back on this time, let's look back and see that we overcame. We weren't defeated by this. By the Lord's strength, and for His glory - every time. May He grant us to sit with Him on His throne, which is far above everything else in the universe.
