How to Stop Expecting Perfection
Oh, I understand that our example is Christ…and that the standard is high…and that our motives are to be pure. But it needs to be repeated again and again and again: Christians are not perfect, just forgiven.

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Oh, I understand that our example is Christ…and that the standard is high…and that our motives are to be pure. But it needs to be repeated again and again and again: Christians are not perfect, just forgiven.
A mentor points out blind spots and reproves you when you need to be confronted about your pride. A mentor won’t back off. A mentor relentlessly presses for excellence. A mentor cares about your character.
I began journaling during my 16 months overseas. I saw my “thoughts disentangle themselves over the lips and through the fingertips,” a little saying I learned from a mentor who gave me my first journal.
Hidden in Scripture are vaults of priceless wisdom that can be hard to find if you're preoccupied or in a hurry. But godly truth is there, awaiting discovery.
Haven’t we all looked at our lives at times and thought, “Can anything be made of this mess?” On the outside, at least, life at times looks bleak and chaotic. It often looked that way to people in the Bible.
We must tell the truth...in love. Confronting is not the same as criticizing. Be careful of using the truth like a battering ram to force the pastor to change. You don’t want the confrontation to turn into a power struggle.
“How does a person get wisdom? I realize we are to be men and women of wisdom, but few people ever talk about how it’s acquired.” His answer was quick and to the point. “Pain.”
If you’re like me, sometimes it seems we barely keep steady on our spiritual tightrope…and then something—or someone—shakes the rope! Believe it or not, that someone shaking our rope is God. But why does He do that?
Want more joy in your day? Cultivate it! Joy springs from viewing the day’s events from eternity’s perspective. With this intentional focus, you’re sure to see today differently—with more joy and conviction that God is at work in your life.
Every Christian has experienced times when trials seem overwhelming. We naturally wonder: Where is God? Is God letting us down? Does He care? If God is good, then why is He allowing evil to triumph?