The great devotional writer Oswald Chambers said, “If God allows you to be stripped of the exterior portions of your life, He means for you to cultivate the interior.”  Cultivating the interior is the essence of devotion.  True devotion is knowing that you will never be able to repay Christ for Calvary, but giving it a daily attempt.  It is, as David MacIntyre puts it, the time in which we “discover the excellence of God’s character, and by beholding Him we also allow Him to transform the soul.”  If the soul needs “interior cultivation” then devotion is the soil in …

By now I am sure you have given some thought to the upcoming year.  You probably have some goals, aspirations, and resolutions in place to achieve those specific objectives.  We all want to be successful, but success doesn’t just happen.  The thin line that separates failure and success is drawn with the finger of intention.  We have to be deliberate when it comes to life.

No person in his right mind would take the next few weeks to order and coordinate his demise for the upcoming year; but sadly, it will happen.  For many people, life will get off track.  …

When it comes to the Word of God our biggest problem is not reading it, memorizing it, learning it, or even knowing it; our problem is with implementation.  Your knowledge of God’s Word only brings Him honor when it is applied.  You can train a parrot to repeat Bible verses, but it will never change the parrot.  Some people live their entire lives without really building upon the right foundation.  When the floods come, their spiritual structures crumble because they only hear and never heed.

The true test of our spiritual character is not how we receive the Bible; it …

Christ is the embodiment of servant leadership.  His incarnation not only authenticated His deity, it also accentuated the manner in which He would lead His disciples.  Christ was not a go-with-the-flow pushover who excused all and any activity from those around Him; but neither was He an in-your-face-tyrant who coerced His followers to make decisions for egotistical purposes.  Christ did not seek self-fulfillment or self-validation; more times than not He actually refused recognition and pointed men to the Father.

As spiritual leaders, we have a similar responsibility – we should cause men to bypass the titles, positions, and futile accolades …

“The next best thing to being wise oneself is to live in a circle of those who are” –C. S Lewis

“Sometimes dead people can be our best friends.” –Mel Lawrenz

“Teach your children and grandchildren the importance of wisdom, and you have fulfilled one of the most important duties you have.- Paul Chappell

“Knowledge and wisdom, far from being one, have oftentimes no connection.  Knowledge dwells in heads replete with the thoughts of other men: wisdom in minds attentive to their own.  Knowledge is proud that he has learned so much, Wisdom is humble, that he