It amazes me how inserting a simple word into a sentence can drastically alter its impact. Oh, how we wish the author, the Apostle Paul, crafted an out clause regarding our anger. If we were the writer of this passage, we'd change it completely. Our version would read something like this:

We do not need to pray or ask for opportunities to demonstrate love because they are always around us or in front of us. Rather, we just need to be willing to see them and step into them. May we be a people who demonstrate love more than we say it, and by doing so, give people a glimpse of a Savior who made the ultimate demonstration of love for us.

More often than not, we use this scripture to discourage foul language or, more specifically, saying certain four-letter words. But what if its intent goes much deeper?…

I always believe scripture is best understood with context. So, I want to zoom out a bit to better understand what was happening when Jesus spoke this command. John, the author of this book in the Bible, was a disciple of Jesus that fully believed Jesus was God’s son sent to the world as The Savior…

My youngest daughter loves the ocean. It's like something in her soul is drawn to the water. I remember the first time my wife and I took her to Wrightsville Beach when she was a toddler. As soon as her eyes locked on the waves, she ran towards them with reckless abandon. There was no fear, apprehension, or hesitation…

Our response to life's circumstances pushes us off course. We travel down unintended trails through slight missteps, justifications, or ignoring the warning signs of our hearts altogether. We get enticed by particular views, and our feet wander off the path that leads to humility and integrity. When we look up and assess our surroundings, we wonder how we got into this predicament.

Do you ever wish you were better at hosting, better at sitting with people when they are sad, maybe better at loving on kids, or meeting a middle school student where they are?

Carrying our own burdens can be so wearisome. Sharing those burdens with others feels like it may make things worse. This is because vulnerability implies risk. Nevertheless, we have this innate craving for intimate connection with others. This past Sunday, Pastor Mike said, “Human beings are made for connection, but we have settled for acceptance.”

It is true that God calls us to live others-centered lives. He calls us to lay down our lives for our friends (John 15:13) and count others as more important than ourselves (Philippians 2:3). But this doesn’t mean that God wants us to shame ourselves, neglect ourselves, or perpetually beat ourselves up internally. It doesn’t mean that God wants us to tolerate self-abuse or abuse from others. A sense of self-worth has a place in the Christian life.

For me, shopping is a mission. I want to be in and out in 10 minutes or less. For my wife and two girls, shopping is a day-long quest that involves numerous stores and at least one Starbucks break. So, on those unfortunate occasions when I tag along (or get dragged) to go shopping with them, I have one goal in mind: finding a comfy chair.

What was I born to do? Many of us may have wrestled with this question. All the possibilities can bring a heavy dose of stress and pressure. But as we go through life, we learn which pursuits we should consider and which ones we should cross off the list.

Over the years, our parents, family members, teachers, and coaches shared with us words of wisdom about life. Sometimes the advice came out of left field and didn’t make much sense. For example, how could one’s eyes be bigger than their stomach? Would our faces really get stuck that way if we didn’t stop with that smirk?

Our words can help as well as hurt. Unfortunately, there are times when we're producing the burn, and for that, we must confess to God and seek forgiveness, if possible, from those we have hurt. Counting our words teaches us to be conscious of them and their power to bless or curse those around us. \

I waved goodbye to my parents, ready to embark on my college experience. Before I could turn around, I watched in horror as their car came to a screeching halt. My mom hopped out and began heading toward me. "C'mon, mom...time to cut the cord," I muttered. Even though she wanted one last hug, that wasn't the main reason for her returning. She needed to tell me how a washer and dryer worked.

Authenticity has achieved buzzword status in our culture. Everywhere we look, people are clamoring for relationships, businesses, and organizations that are the "real deal." From the boardroom to the dining room, the drive to be authentic has seemingly risen to one of our top desires. This push for authenticity has even become a trendy part of church vernacular. We search for churches that allow us to "come as we are."

Words are a powerful tool that we can use for good and harm. The only thing words are incapable of doing is remaining neutral. Want to know what a person is like? Solomon suggests listening to the words that come out of their mouth. Jesus confirms this line of thinking in Matthew 12:34 when he says, "the mouth speaks what the heart is full of." And as we continue to explore the book of Titus, we see Paul urges us to be wise in the words that we speak.

We absorb more than we realize from the people we spend time with. Unless we are actively aware of what we are doing and what we are saying, we will slowly morph our behaviors and words towards those we are doing life with.

It was quite possibly the most laughable “college kid” thing I’ve done to date. About a month ago, I moved back to Chapel Hill to begin my senior year at the best university in the world (sorry, not sorry to my friends who back a different shade of blue). I was the first of my housemates to move in, so my kitchen was lacking quite a few tools. I had a hankering for sweet potatoes, but I failed to remember that my housemate wouldn’t be bringing our knife set for another week.

Distinctness. As believers in Christ, we must stand out and live differently. Our message of Christ's love gets lost amongst the crowd when we look like everyone else. We then forfeit and squander our influence.

We cannot influence the world around us in a meaningful way if we don't depend on His empowering grace. We can try our hardest to be kind, philanthropic, and brave—but apart from the Spirit of God, our acts of "goodness" can be self-motivated, shallow, and short-sighted.