Have you been in a spiritual slump lately? Can you not seem to get out of the funk of the slump?

I have had several seasons of life where I simply didn’t feel close to God. Obviously, as the old saying goes, “I moved, not God.” I’ve learned a few things about the process of getting out of a spiritual slump.

Here are 3 easy ways to jump start your spiritual life:

Spend time in the right places – No matter how flashy we get, we will never escape the power of the Bible. Church serves a purpose in our spiritual growth. Prayer happens when we get alone with God. Some people encourage us in our walk with Christ and some don’t. Don’t expect to jump start your spiritual life until you are hanging out in the right places.

Discipline yourself – Supposedly if you do something continually for 21 days a habit forms that you can maintain. Years ago I was going through a difficult time, which led to a spiritual slump. Someone gave me some great advice. He said, “Read your Bible every day whether you feel like it or not.” I did. It worked. At first it was awkward, even mechanical seemingly, but over time, I fell in love again with God’s Word and my God..

Find accountability – Find one or two people you trust who will hold you accountable to this task. Give them freedom to ask if you have read your Bible, attended church, spent time alone with God, etc. Being accountable is always helpful, but especially during slump periods.

Did you want the process to be more difficult? It’s not…

Ready to start? Just Do It!

Be honest: Are you in a spiritual slump these days?

We are nearing the end of our look at what’s been called The Roman Road, a handy tool of verses helpful in explaining salvation to someone. I hope you are keeping up with each of these. It will give you a good purview of the book of Romans. If you missed any of these, see THIS POST for last week’s verse and trace back from there.

Here is this week’s memory verse:

Be honest: Have you ever completed the promise of this verse? Do you know for certain you are “saved”?

About once a month, someone shares a story with me that’s big. I get stories all the time, but I’m talking about the kind of story that makes your jaw flop open when you hear it…that kind of big story.

I’ve quit being surprised when it happens, but I’m usually surprised that it’s happening to the person telling me the story. Usually this type of story starts with a phrase such as “I hope you’ll still be my friend after I tell you this...” or “Please don’t give up on me when I tell you this…”

Someone made a huge error…they messed up…they sinned…

What surprises me most, however, is that no matter how much I preach with grace, in spite of the fact that “grace” is in our church’s name, even though I’m not bashful about saying I’ve had tremendous failures in my own life…

People still worry how I will respond to them.

Guilt does that too a person…and struggling with the emotions after a moral failure is often one of the hardest consequences…

Let me make one thing perfectly clear, however…

Your story isn’t too big for me to…

• Extend you grace…
• Call you my friend…
• Still love you…
• Want the best for you…
• Introduce you to my Savior…

You see, it’s not because I’m especially graceful, but because I serve a BIG GOD…

And He’s extended me much grace…So I know…

My Jesus isn’t scared away by the size or the messiness of your story…

The seemingly impossible situation you’ve found yourself in hasn’t startled Him either…

Go ahead…share your story with me…watch and see…

By the way, the longer you try to protect your story or the longer you pretend it isn’t your story…

The longer you may be delaying receiving forgiveness and grace…

Have you ever felt your story was “too big” to share?

Do you have one person in your life with whom you can share anything and know he or she will still love you?

Do you need to confess your darkest pain to someone today?

One of my favorite stories of Jesus’ miracles is the calming of the storm found in Mark 4. This Summer we are walking through the book of Mark with Grace Community Church in a series called Defiance.

Recently I was able to preach on this familiar and powerful passage. Do you need some encouragement in your faith these days? I hope this helps.

What is your favorite miracle story of Jesus?

We continue looking at what’s been called “The Roman Road”, a walk through the book of Romans that helps explain the essence of salvation; what it means to be a follower of Christ.

Here is this week’s memory verse:

We’re almost half way through the year! You can catch up simply by typing “Scripture Memorization” in the search bar on this blog‘s home page.

I’d love to hear this isn’t a wasted effort each week. Are you still following along?

I grew in my faith with Henry Blackaby’s “Experiencing God” study. Did you? It came at the right time in my spiritual development and over the course of several years I led dozens of men and women through that workbook. I still recommend it and refer back to it often.

If Henry Blackaby writes a book about spiritual leadership…I want to read it. Introducing Henry and Richard Blackaby’s “Spiritual Leadership: Moving People on to God’s Agenda” The Amazon description reads, “Drawing upon their own extensive leadership experience as well as their ministry to leaders in all walks of life, Henry and Richard Blackaby offer insightful counsel into the ways God develops, guides, and empowers spiritual leaders. Clear guidance is given on how leaders can make a positive impact on the people and organizations they are currently leading.”

I’d love to give you a copy…but I only have 3 to give away. Here’s how you can have a chance at one of these 3:

• RT this post or Share it on Facebook
• Comment on this post with your name and/or Twitter name

(Please make sure you do both to qualify)

I’ll choose three (3) random winners Monday.

Bonus (optional) question: Did you ever do the “Experiencing God” study?

It seems every time I Tweet, preach or write a blogpost about forgiveness it stirs people. Most of us must struggle with this issue at some point in our life.

With that in mind, here are my top posts about forgiveness:

8 Reminders for Granting True Forgiveness

7 Things Forgiveness is Not…

7 Things Forgiveness Is…

3 Benefits of Forgiveness

Gayle Haggard on Grace and Forgiveness

7 Ways to Offer True Forgiveness

The Blessing of Offering Forgiveness

I Am Sorry…Asking Forgiveness…Receiving Grace

Is it easy for you to forgive? Has it gotten easier?

Will this be my last post ever? It will be according to a recent prediction. It’s been the buzz all week, so perhaps you heard it.

Christian radio host Harold Camping states that the Rapture (the taking up into heaven of God’s elect people) will take place on May 21, 2011 at 6 p.m. local time.  The rapture will sweep the globe time zone by time zone) and that the end of the world as we know it will take place five months later on October 21, 2011. (This according to a Wikipedia article.)

It’s been the subject of jokes, and teasing, and possibly some concern. What if it were the end?

I’m not jumping on a bandwagon of people making fun of Camping, nor am I going to assume no one is impacted by Camping’s prediction. The issue of End Times is serious business. It’s a sobering subject for some, as the subject should be.

I’m reminded of the concern of Jesus’ disciples following the resurrection. Consider Jesus’ answer in this passage from Acts 1:6-8:

So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him, “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?” He replied, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

For the believer, this should never be a time of stress. I’m leery of anyone claiming to know a date, but Jesus said it would be soon and we would know the signs. He also reminded us, however, that we should not be afraid, that we could cast all our burdens on Him, and that He was with us to the ends of the earth. I’m not stressed today, not because I don’t believe Camping, even though I don’t, but because I have a faith in the person of Jesus Christ, who raised from the dead!

If you are not a believer; a follower of Christ, let this moment soon to pass cause you to question where you stand with your Creator. Eternity is not a laughing matter. Call on God now and ask Him to save you. Place your faith in the risen Christ! I would refer you to another verse in Acts 2:21: “But everyone who calls on the name of the Lordwill be saved.”

If you serve a risen Savior, let me hear a hearty AMEN!

I see a growing interest in encouragement to sacrifice everything for the sake of the Gospel. I love that kind of passion. We see so many examples of it in Scripture and many are listed in the chronicles of faith in Hebrews Chapter 11. There have been a few times in my life where I’ve sensed a specific call to do something so drastic, so seemingly bizarre, so faith-stretching, that even thinking about those decisions today seems scary.

I wonder, however, if that expectation is unrealistic when applied to all of us at all times. Is it okay, should God allow it, to live a “normal” faith at times…to not feel like everything is on the line…but rather feel like you’re in a safe place…depending on a regular paycheck, in a steady job, with a healthy church…for example?  Would that be considered okay and still be considered radical in your faith?

Just asking…

Recently I was reading John 7:1, which says, “Jesus didn’t go where He knew there was immediate danger. There would be a time for this, but this was not the time.”

Of course, you should read it in the context….not just that context, but the entire context of Jesus’ story. There’s no mistaking, however, that at this particular moment…Jesus played it safe. He didn’t jeopardize His life for the mission…in fact He did the opposite. There would be a time when He would sacrifice everything…willingly…for the sake of the call, but this was a time to be wise rather than risky.

Here’s a bottom line where I’ve landed. I see lots of well-meaning people encouraging a radical, sold-out faith…and I’m totally for that. I think all of us should live that way, but my point is that will look different for all of us.

Living by faith may not require you to:

• Sacrifice your family for the ministry…
• Forgo earning an income to follow a call…
• Risk your life to share the Gospel…
• Surrender to full-time vocational ministry…
• Sell everything and move to Africa…
• Quit your current church…
• Plant a church…
• Ignore your safety to complete a mission…

There may be times God calls you to take tremendous risks of faith. He may ask you to sacrifice everything some day…or certainly be willing to…He may send you into dangerous moments…even be a martyr for your faith…

If that’s God call on your life…my best advice is to obey quickly!

But walking in faith doesn’t always require such extremes. The key is that you are willing to follow wherever He leads.

What do you think? Reflect on what I’ve written and give me your feedback. Help me think through this thought process.