“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn, and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and […]

Everywhere we look we see conflict. Political tension, civil unrest, and relational discord is commonplace. Many people experience conflict at work or at home, or both. How are your relationships? Relational pain can rank among the greatest pains in life. But God can — and wants to — help us. […]

James reminds us in chapter 3:1-12 how important our words are. They can bruise or build, wound or bless, discourage or encourage. I’ve listed multiple scriptures below that remind us that what we say matters. And not only what we say, but when, how, and why we say what we […]

What we say and how we say it matters. In James chapter 3, we are reminded about the power of our words. Our words and speech can build or bruise. We can strengthen others or destroy them by what we say and how we say it. It is important to […]

How does your faith impact your life? How does it inform your decisions? Guide your actions? Transform your behaviors? Adjust your attitudes? The intersection of faith and practice is a major message in Scripture. We are to “live out our faith” and not simply offer it lip service. James states […]

Napoleon Bonaparte once said, “A leader is a dealer in hope.” While it is interesting coming from him, I certainly agree that hope is crucial. We all want to have hope, follow leaders who have hope and be around people who deal in hope. We don’t want to be hopeless, […]

The Bible makes it clear that we can overcome and not be overrun by temptation. While nobody is perfect, we don’t have to make that an excuse to dance with disobedience. We can be people of character and not compromise — but we choose. In James 1:13-18, James gives us […]

Throughout scripture we read about godly men and women who are not overcome by their problems but who overcome their obstacles with the help of the Lord. Advancing “through” our adversities is possible in the strength of the Lord. James was the pioneering leader of the first Church and in […]

As followers of Jesus, we have multiple names. You can think of several right away, such as child, heir, follower, forgiven, disciple, and more. One of the names that see over and over in Scripture is “servant.” James 1:1 says, “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus […]

Galatians 2:20  is a constant encouragement to me: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” May […]