Month: February 2019

Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of hosts. Zechariah 4:6 I’ve previously mentioned that I’m a bit obsessed with how we change. I need to know. Does God change me, or do I change myself? Personally, I can say that I’ve erred in two extremes in answering this question.…
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“Remove the filthy garments from him.” And to him he said, “Behold, I have taken your iniquity away from you, and I will clothe you with pure vestments.” Zechariah 3:4 Those of us who have been enslaved by our destructive behaviors have come to know the futile but tempting fantasy of wishing for a new start.…
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Return to me, says the Lord of hosts, and I will return to you. Zechariah 1:3 I don’t remember a time when I didn’t believe in God. My faith though, has waxed and waned according to my life choices. In my addiction, though I still believed, I followed me above all. If faith is keeping my…
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Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes? Yet now be strong . . . all you people of the land, declares the Lord. Work, for I am with you . . . Haggai 2:3-4 When I…
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Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it . . . Haggai 1:8 I’m a sensation seeker (google it to learn more). I want to feel. I need to experience. Aimed in the wrong direction, this can be catastrophic. Sensation seekers often turn to high-risk behavior (e.g.…
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You eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill. Haggai 1:6 The recurrent pattern for the addict is compulsive drug use to get high, followed by letdown and withdrawal. Then, in his misery, the addict’s only solution is to repeat the process over again, never quite returning to the good…
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On that day you shall not be put to shame because of the deeds by which you have rebelled against me; for then I will remove from your midst . . .Zephaniah 3:11 The addict spends a tremendous amount of time wallowing in his own shame. He hides his destructive behavior and when he’s around…
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The Lord within her is righteous; he does no injustice; every morning he shows forth his justice; each dawn he does not fail . . . Zephaniah 3:5 For the addict, waking up every day to the same wretched reality, simply becomes routine. What was once voluntary and pleasurable, has now, like a cancer, consumed all…
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Her prophets are fickle, treacherous men; her priests profane what is holy; they do violence to the law. Zephaniah 3:4 I heard this line the other day. God put this desire in my heart. I won’t go into details, but I was pretty sure this desire came, not from God, but from this individual’s fallen nature.…
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Woe to her who is rebellious and defiled, the oppressing city! She listens to no voice; she accepts no correction . . . Zephaniah 3:1-2 On a recent winter hike in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, I found myself in unfamiliar territory, underdressed, contending with a recent snow. The trail was well-marked though, and…
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