Borrowing Trouble From Tomorrow Scripture (ESV) “Casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” — 1 Peter 5:7 Anxiety does something strange with time. It takes something that might happen tomorrow and makes you carry it today. Nothing has actually changed yet, but your mind is already living inside the conversation, the…
When Their Blessing Bothers You Scripture (ESV) “A tranquil heart gives life to the flesh, but envy makes the bones rot.” — Proverbs 14:30 Comparison looks sideways. Envy gets angry about what it sees. That difference matters. You can notice that somebody has something you would like and not resent them for it. Envy goes…
Your Life Didn’t Change. You Looked Sideways. Scripture (ESV) “But let each one test his own work… and not his neighbor.” — Galatians 6:4 Comparison can change how you feel about your life in a matter of minutes without changing anything about your actual life. You were fine with what you had until you saw…
What Happens When You Might Lose It? “Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” — 1 John 5:21 Idolatry sounds like something from another world until something important gets threatened. That’s when you start finding out what has been carrying more weight than you realized. Success can do that. So can reputation, money, a relationship, or…
Deception Usually Changes the Name First Scripture (ESV) “Take care lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God.” — Hebrews 3:12 Most of us would reject a lie if it showed up honestly. Deception works differently. It changes the language just enough that…
Temptation Usually Knows What You Want Scripture (ESV) “Each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.” — James 1:14 James says something about temptation that we can easily miss. He starts with desire. That means temptation isn’t simply some bad thing floating around outside us waiting to attack. It…
When Capability Becomes the Problem Scripture (ESV) “Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God.” — 2 Corinthians 3:5 One of the strange things about self-reliance is that it can grow out of something good. You become capable. People trust you. You’ve been…
Control Wants a Guarantee Scripture (ESV) “Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand.” — Proverbs 19:21 I make plans for a living. Most leaders do. You look ahead, think through consequences, and try to make good decisions with the information you…
When Fear Starts Making the Decision Scripture (ESV) “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” — 2 Timothy 1:7 Fear is part of being human. I don’t think the goal is to become the kind of person who never feels it. That sounds spiritual, but it…
Pride Wants to Be the Source Scripture (ESV) “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” — James 4:6 Pride is easy to caricature. We picture somebody arrogant, loud, full of themselves. Sure, that’s pride. But I’m not convinced that’s the version most of us actually need to worry about. I think pride…
