There’s a pain that cuts deeper than any external circumstance could ever reach. It’s the ache that comes from looking in the mirror and realizing that your most significant obstacle isn’t the world around you; instead, it’s the person staring back at you.

I’m talking about self-sabotage.

At the heart of every act of self-sabotage is a disconnect between what God declares about us and what we choose to believe about ourselves. When we don’t truly grasp his truth about us, we start making decisions based on lies.

Perhaps it’s the opportunity you walked away from because that voice in your head whispered, “You’re not qualified for this.” Or maybe it’s the way you keep returning to destructive habits, even though you know they’re stealing your joy.

The enemy doesn’t always need to attack us directly. Sometimes, he needs to whisper subtle doubts about our identity in Christ, and we’ll do the rest of the damage ourselves. “You’re not really forgiven.” “God couldn’t possibly use someone like you.” “You don’t deserve good things.”

When we agree with these lies, we begin to live in ways that make them seem true.

Breaking free from self-sabotage requires more than positive thinking. It demands a fundamental shift in how we see ourselves. We cannot look through the lens of our failures, but we need to see ourselves through Christ’s finished work.

This means learning to take our thoughts captive, as Paul instructs in 2 Corinthians 10:5. When that familiar voice of condemnation starts whispering, we need to ask: “Is this thought consistent with what God says about me in His Word?”

The beautiful reality is that even our self-inflicted wounds are covered by the blood of Jesus. No pattern is so entrenched, no mistake so big that it places us beyond the reach of God’s redemptive love.

Stop fighting against the very grace that wants to set you free. Your healing begins the moment you decide to trust God’s heart toward you more than your own assessment of your worthiness.

Your children will be about one step further away from Jesus than you are while raising them.

Let that sink in.

If you go to Church twice a month, then your children will probably be attending once every couple of months. If you serve others in the name of Jesus once a month, they will probably serve a couple of times a year. If you do not read your Bible except on Sunday, they will not read it at all. If you are only generous to the people who give to you, your children will be selfish.

The best way to help your children be fully devoted followers of Jesus is to be one yourself. Their life will be a slightly distorted reflection of yours.

Last week, I went to my mother’s house and helped her celebrate her 90^th birthday. I was able to spend about three days with her, visiting and helping out around the house. She and I were able to clean up her yard, get her flower gardens planted and ready for the year, along with me getting her shower fixed up for her.

Why did I take my vacation to do all that? There are three reasons. One, I love my mother, and I want to bless her life as much as she has blessed mine through the years. Two, I want to obey the word of the Lord and honor my mother. Three, I want to leave a legacy for my boys.

Based on family history, there is a good chance that I am going to meet Jesus sometime before my wife. I want my four boys to all have a model to show them how to honor their mother. It is more than just throwing money at issues. It is about spending time with her, celebrating with her, and connecting on a personal level.

I may not have been the best son when I was young, but I am working hard to finish strong. And I want my boys to follow my lead when their mother is forced to face life without me. Usually, example is the best teacher, and I want my boys to see a son who cares for his mother when they look at me.

There’s a certain magic in retrospection. That moment when you pause amid life’s rush and glance over your shoulder at the winding path that brought you here.

One day, you will look back on these ordinary days and realize they weren’t ordinary at all. The morning coffee you barely tasted, the commute you wished away, the routine conversations with loved ones, and all these seemingly mundane moments are quietly weaving themselves into the tapestry of your life story.

Someday, you will look back on your struggles with a gentle smile of recognition. Not because the pain wasn’t real but because you’ll see how each challenge shaped you, strengthened you, and ultimately led you to new horizons you couldn’t have imagined.

Those decisions that keep you awake at night will one day appear as crucial turning points or necessary detours in a journey that somehow brought you exactly where you needed to be. Even the wrong turns will reveal their purpose.

Perhaps you’ll look back on the people who walked beside you, the conversations you rushed through, the hugs you gave without fully sinking into them, and the relationships you took for granted. And you will see the missed opportunities to connect and share during those ordinary moments.

So today, knowing that one day you will look back, perhaps you might pause. Notice the quality of the light through your window. Feel the full weight of a loved one’s hand in yours. Listen closely to the stories that are shared. Because this moment might be a memory worth treasuring.

This year, I spoke to the seniors at our Ministerial Alliance baccalaureate service.

My sermon was based on Luke 15:8-10 and the parable of the woman who had ten coins and lost one. As a parable, it reveals a truth about the kingdom of God. The picture he paints reveals a more profound truth about our walk of faith.

I pointed out two lessons from Jesus’ teaching for them to learn. First, Jesus spoke to the Pharisees about the value of every person, even tax collectors and sinners. Every person, including these seniors, needs to understand that all people have value and worth to God. Therefore, we should treat all people with dignity, respect, and love.

Second, Jesus spoke to the tax collectors and sinners who had gathered there. He was emphasizing that their lives had value and worth to God. Their mistakes and careers did not define them; their worth came from God, and nothing could take that away. Whenever we make mistakes in life, we need to understand that our value is not diminished in God’s sight.

I hope these seniors will carry these lessons into life as they succeed and fail in their chosen paths after graduation. I also hope they will shape the lives of every believer—even you.

In our most vulnerable moments of temptation, we rarely find ourselves actively engaged with Scripture. These pivotal moments often arise precisely when we’ve set aside our Bibles or closed our study apps.

This reality illuminates the profound wisdom in Psalm 119:11: “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.”

The psalmist understood a timeless truth: internalizing Scripture provides spiritual protection that transcends physical access to the text. When we commit God’s word to memory and allow it to shape our hearts, we carry its wisdom and strength wherever we go.

For believers, reading, memorizing, and meditating on Scripture isn’t merely academic; it’s spiritual preparation. By hiding God’s word in our hearts, we ensure that divine truth remains with us in moments of weakness, providing the spiritual clarity and strength needed to overcome temptation and resist evil’s influence in our lives.

It is graduation season, and my youngest son walked across the stage for the third and probably final time. As he waited to receive the hood that came with a master’s degree, around ninety other students crossed the stage ahead of him. Almost without exception, when the graduate’s name was called, a small group of two to twelve people cheered in the crowd. They would shout, take pictures, and savor the moment.

My family was no exception. I applauded, and one of the boys shouted while my wife took pictures. It was an exciting moment as years of study reached their culmination. But with each of the diplomas handed out, these little celebrations captured my attention.

Sure, they are expressions of pride, but it is more than family passively observing another’s success. There is a sense of togetherness. The graduate’s accomplishments are not their own. They belong to the family. Behind the student was a support network that helped make it happen. Success is something that is never achieved alone.

Whatever you produce with your life, always be keenly aware of the people who support you. Those people are the ones who celebrate for you and with you. Be sure to recognize their contribution and value their help. Anything is possible when you surround yourself with the right people. Graduation is just the beginning.

The phrase “paying your respects” originated as a 17th-century idiom, meaning a courteous visit to acknowledge someone’s skills, qualities, or achievements. Over time, the meaning shifted, and today it commonly refers to honoring someone at a funeral.

In modern contexts, we spend time with the bereaved family, sharing how much we respect and admire the person who passed away. It’s a way to show how deeply that individual impacted our lives.

However, there’s an issue with reserving this expression for after someone’s passing. If you truly admire or respect someone, why wait until they are gone to express it? While the family may appreciate hearing about their loved one, the person themselves would have cherished hearing it while they were still alive.

Perhaps today is the perfect time to “pay your respects” to someone who matters to you.

The article declared that if you have a messy office, then you are a person who prefers to defer decisions. While I was reading it, I looked around my office at the mess surrounding me. Then I thought, “That is not true, not even a little bit.”

My office is currently messy because May is a hectic month. With Easter falling later in April and all the activities that I am juggling, I have had little time to maintain my office.

This has me thinking about how we view people. Often, we see a snapshot of their life and begin to draw conclusions that are simply not true. In fact, they might actually indicate that something in their life is unstable at the moment.

As Christians, we need to be extremely careful about the labels we put on people, the conclusions we draw, and the way we view others based on limited experience. Sure, many people do fit into nice little categories, but others do not. You will only know when you spend time getting to know them. Then, you might see another side of that person you never knew existed.

Everyone you invite to Church for the first time has an excuse for not attending. They can give you at least one reason they do not want to go with you.

Since that is true, one of my goals as a Church leader is to try to eliminate excuses.

The place I park and where I encourage our staff and leaders to park is a way to open spaces for guests near the building.

The greeters by the door, the look of the inside of the building, and the coffee we offer are there to make people feel welcome.

The worship plan, songs picked, videos shared, and things said from the stage by the worship team will be encouraging without “insider” language.

The children’s program is fun and educational, and it helps parents relax as their children enter a secure and enjoyable environment.

The sermon I deliver will be adequately prepared, with illustrations and applications, to help people understand the Bible and what it means for their lives.

Everything our Church tries to do on Sunday morning is designed to help non-Christians eliminate excuses for not coming.

Now, does that mean they are guaranteed to return? Nope. I wish it did; I really wish it did.

All it does is open the door for them to hear the message of Jesus without any distractions. We can have great worship and an applicable sermon, and people may be turned off to Jesus by other things when they attend. I make it a goal to remove all those obstacles and excuses so that the word of God can do its work. People can accept it or reject it, but we do not do anything to stand in their way of hearing it.