Forgiveness is a difficult subject. We enjoy holding onto our grudges. When we're hurt anew, we prefer to remember the old hurts and lump them together as an ever growing indictment against those who hurt us. When there's no real relationship (i.e., those who hurt us are not friends or family), the only harm done is to ourselves in our refusal to forgive. When it's a friend or family member we refuse to forgive, though, not only do we rot from the inside, but we also destroy our relationship with that friend or family member. » read more »

It's a bit of a tautology: Do you live your values? Of course you do. Everybody does. The more interesting question is: Do you live your stated values? On this one, the vast majority of believers fail the test.

[What follows is not about salvation or damnation. It's about holiness. It's about obedience to the One Whom you claim is your Master when you say you're a Christian.] » read more »

David asks:

"How are we all going to be in heaven someday and not screw it up?"
...
In heaven, we will choose to worship God, among other things, while retaining our individual personalities, memories and free will. But isn’t free will what got the world into this broken mess in the first place? Does free will go away? If not, what changes us there so deeply that all the friction of existence evaporates?
... » read more »

I have numerous Christian acquaintances who insist upon having a calling to put their children in government schooling. Might they be right about this calling? If not, why not? » read more »

All believers are ethicists. We must test all things against the Word of God, the Word being an unchanging standard of ethics.

Is it better to be seen as humble even if it means being perceived wrongly as unsure about the Word of God? Or is it better to be confident in the Word, even if it means being perceived wrongly as proud and arrogant? » read more »

What percentage of men have an issue with lust? It's often joked that it's 100%. I suspect the real number isn't quite that high--probably closer to 99.999999%. Why is lust such a prevalent sin among men? What can Godly men do about it? » read more »

How do you wake another person up from his slumber of stupidity? How do you get another to begin questioning his purpose in life? How do you encourage someone to seek the Lord, to submit his life to Him, and to walk in Godly obedience forevermore? These are important parts of evangelism or witnessing. Many people are in bad situations and are not handling them well. The Lord can help them, but He allows us the freedom to choose. This means it may take some appropriate nudges to get him to seek the Lord's way. » read more »

Doug Apple gives good advice to young women and teen girls. Doug talks about how dressing to attract men's attention really only gets them interested in a woman's body parts, not the woman herself. Surely, this is not the kind of attention she really wants. To be more frank than Doug: Ladies, don't dress like whores unless you want to be treated like whores. » read more »

What is the mark of spiritual maturity? Here I'll attempt to qualify and quantify crudely the same. (This is still a work in progress. I thought it may be helpful in charting spiritual growth. Needless to say--or is it?--this is not a vacuous checklist. Each trait must be an integral part of one's being; i.e., sincere.) » read more »

Moby shared this:

A few years ago a group of salesmen went to a regional sales convention in Chicago. They had assured their wives that they would be home in plenty of time for Friday night's dinner. In their rush, with tickets and briefcases, one of these salesmen inadvertently kicked over a table which held a display of apples. Apples flew everywhere. Without stopping or looking back, they all managed to reach the plane in time for their nearly missed boarding. » read more »