Pathways Press.com

Written by Richard Foster, a contemporary theologian and author.

 Prayer draws us into trust… The life of trust which comes through prayer frees us from our greed. Remember the words of James, ​“What causes wars, and what causes fighting among you? Is it not your passions that are at war in your members? You desire and do not have; so you kill. And you covet and cannot obtain; so you fight and wage war.” That is the way of the world in which we live. That is the spirit of the flesh. James goes on to describe another way, a more excellent way, the way of the kingdom of God. ​“You do not have because you do not ask.” The way of prayer brings us into the life of trust which sets us free from our greed… Many of us, as we are moving into this life of holy obedience, have not yet had the spirit of greed removed and been able to enter into this life of trust. But as we go along, we’re set free from the need to desire things that do not please God and are not consistent with his way. As we grow and enter into holy obedience and its essential partner, trust, there are many things we simply do not need. For what we do need, we can ask, and we will receive. No longer is there the need to watch out for number one. We live in trust. Trust defeats the spirit of climb, push, and shove. In trust we are set free from the spirit of fear: fear that we won’t have enough, fear that we will be left out in the cold, fear that inflation will impoverish us, fear that the communists will overtake us, fear, fear, fear. In the ministry of prayer we are freed from fear.

When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. [James 4:3]

Read Full Post »

Written by the Lead Like Jesus team, an organization founded by Ken Blanchard and Phil Hodges that promotes a transformational leadership model based on following Jesus.

Paul repeatedly emphasized the Christian virtues of faith, hope, and love in his writings. In his opening words to the Thessalonians, he shows us why they are so important. Faith, hope, and love are not simply abstract principles or idealized virtues. They have life-giving force. In the midst of obstacles, fatigue, and discouragement, faith, hope, and love bring energy and endurance to run the race set before us.

We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. [1 Thessalonians 1:3].

Read Full Post »

Written by Mark D. Roberts, a contemporary author.

Gracious God, thank you for being our Lord and King, our Savior and Rescuer. Thank you for all the ways in which you bless us. Thank you for the light that guides our paths. Thank you for the joy we feel in your presence. Thank you also for the righteousness we receive by your grace through Christ. Thank you for the joyful privilege of being rightly related to you, to others, and to our world.  Help me, I pray, to experience the joy that comes from knowing you. And as I rejoice in you, may I share this joy with others. Amen. 

Light dawns for the righteous, and joy for the upright in heart. Rejoice in the LORD, O you righteous, and give thanks to his holy name! [Psalm 97:11-12]

Read Full Post »

Written by John Michalak, a contemporary pastor, author, and speaker. This is an excerpt from his book “365 Devotions to Embrace What Matters Most.”

The Source of all things is also the Owner of all things. There’s a pleasure in giving what you have to someone in need that is unlike the pleasure of ownership. You place your money in the Salvation Amy tin. You volunteer to serve dinner to the homeless. You see the look in a poor child’s eyes when you hand them a box covered in colorful wrapping. But your whole life is actually a gift. God gave you life and you are His. God so loved that He gave. Whether it’s your money, your talents, or your time, the more you walk in gratitude for what’s been given to you and the more you realize that what you have was never really yours in the first place, the more you’ll offer everything you have to those in need. God has provided you with the means to give. And it’s in the giving that you’ll receive.

Give generously to them and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. [Deuteronomy 15:10]

Read Full Post »

Written by Eugene Peterson (1932-2018), an American minister, scholar, professor, theologian, author, and poet. This is an excerpt from his book “The Jesus Way.”

Jesus as the truth gets far more attention than Jesus as the way. Jesus as the way is the most frequently evaded metaphor among the Christians with whom I have worked for fifty years as a North American pastor. We cannot skip the way of Jesus in our hurry to get the truth of Jesus as he is worshiped and proclaimed. The way of Jesus is the way that we practice and come to understand the truth of Jesus, living Jesus in our homes and workplaces, with our friends and family…Jesus’ metaphor, kingdom of God, defines the world in which we live. We live in a world where Christ is king. If Christ is king, every thing, quite literally, every thing and every one, has to be re-imagined, re-configured, re-oriented to a way of life that consists in an obedient following of Jesus. A total renovation of our imagination, our way of looking at things — what Jesus commanded in his no-nonsense imperative, ​“Repent!” — is required. We can — we must! — take responsibility for the way we live and work in our homes and neighborhoods, workplaces and public squares. We can refuse to permit the culture to dictate the way we go about our lives. Ways and means that are removed or abstracted from Jesus and the Scriptures that give witness to him amount sooner or later to a betrayal of Jesus. In this kingdom-of-God world, the person that we follow is the primary shaping influence on the person that we become. Christians follow Jesus.

Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.  [John 14:6]

Read Full Post »

Written by Chuck Mueller, Jr., a contemporary pastor and author.

The Epiphany story (Matthew 2:6-10) teaches Christians at least three things:  we can’t get to Jesus without God’s light leading us – we can’t make sense of where He’s leading us to without Scripture – and we can’t follow the star without moving our feet. Some didn’t see it.  Israel’s King Herod and his assembled “chief priest and teachers of the law” found fear instead of faith.  They cowered at home, afraid for their future and blind to what was in plain sight:  the star and the prophecy.  Meanwhile, the Wise Men moved, motivated by God’s graceful gift of the star and directed in His Word to Bethlehem. Do you stand with the Wise Men or Jerusalem’s “not-so-wise-guys”? Slow down today and listen to the Spirit’s urging.  Read God’s Word and seek His will for your life in it.  Jesus calls those who do “blessed” (Luke 11:28).  And remember, like the Wise Men, God urges you to step out in faith and follow where He leads. Start with these three things and see what God does through them: 1) Live as a “child of the light” (Ephesians 5:1-20) and “worthy of your calling” (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12). 2) Pray for someone in need (James 5:13-20). 3) Write an encouraging note to someone (Saint Paul did that a lot) or make someone’s day with a caring phone call. In doing so you fulfill Jesus’ description of you as “the light of the world.”

You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. [Matthew 5:14]

Read Full Post »

Written by Uli Chi, a contemporary professor, businessman, and church leader.

Biblical hope disrupts our modern view that everything depends on us. As someone who has led a new business venture, I know what it’s like to feel that everything depends on me. Those of you who have built your own businesses or non-profits or planted new churches probably know what I mean. Unfortunately, because we live in a broader culture that reinforces that view, it is easy to adopt the same posture even when we know better.  Biblical hope emphasizes that all our work is meant to be a divine-human partnership. Our role in the partnership begins with putting our trust and hope in God and not in ourselves. That’s surprisingly difficult. It would be easier if we were mere spectators. But God created us to be active partners in God’s work. To make it even more difficult, our work usually demands so much of our attention that it is easy to lose sight of God’s role. 

To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; do not let me be put to shame; do not let my enemies exult over me. [Psalm 25:1-2]

Read Full Post »

Written by Mary Amendolia Gardner, a contemporary author and ministry leader. This is an excerpt from her work “Five Ways to Start Gospel Conversations.”

Not many of us may have the gift of evangelism, but evangelism is a vital part of our own discipleship and spiritual formation. Just because we don’t have the supernatural gift of evangelism doesn’t mean we get a pass at sharing and defending our faith. And I would venture to say we will not mature in our faith until we do so. God doesn’t require results from us. Our responsibility is to plant seeds of the gospel. Perhaps the parable of the sower will be helpful here. One plants, another waters, and still another harvests. Every Christian is called to — and all of us can — sow seeds of the gospel. Our role is to be faithful witnesses and to share with others how our relationship with Jesus affects our day-to-day life. We are not alone. We are with God, and God has placed us in this world with others to whom we must listen — and to whom we have the privilege of sharing the Good News of Christ Jesus.

In your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. [1 Peter 3:15-16]

Read Full Post »

Written by Mark Roberts, a contemporary author.

Gracious God, I would confess to you that I can get caught up in our culture’s obsession with appearance. I can envy those who look so good. And I can fret about ways that my appearance doesn’t measure up. I can also worry about impressing people with my accomplishments. The lure of “outward appearance” is real for me. So I ask you, Lord, for the grace to value the condition of my heart most of all. Help me to see myself as you see me. May the fruit of the Spirit abound in me. And may I have a heart that seeks you most of all.  Amen.

The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart. [1 Samuel 16:7]

Read Full Post »

Written by Max Lucado, a contemporary pastor, author, and speaker. This is an excerpt from his work “God’s Story, Your Story.”

You are in the hands of a living, loving God. Random collection of disconnected short stories? Far from it. Your life is a crafted narrative written by a good God, who is working toward your supreme good. God is not slipshod or haphazard. He planned creation according to a calendar. He determined the details of salvation “before the foundation of the world” (1 Peter 1:20). The death of Jesus was not an afterthought, nor was it Plan B or an emergency operation. Jesus died “when the set time had fully come” (Galatians 4:4) according to God’s “deliberate plan and foreknowledge” (Acts 2:23). God isn’t making up a plan as he goes along. Nor did he wind up the clock and walk away. “The Most High God rules the kingdom of mankind and sets over it whom he will” (Daniel 5:21). He “executes judgment, putting down one and lifting up another” (Psalm 75:7). “The Lord will not turn back until he has executed and accomplished the intentions of his mind” (Jeremiah 30:24). Look at those verbs: God rules, sets, executes, accomplished. These terms confirm the existence of heavenly blueprints and plans. Those plans include you. “In him we were also chosen, . . . according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will” (Ephesians 1:11). This discovery changes everything!

But the Lord is with me like a mighty warrior; so my persecutors will stumble and not prevail.
They will fail and be thoroughly disgraced; their dishonor will never be forgotten. [Jeremiah 20:11]

Read Full Post »