The Up Devotional

A few years ago, I came across this prayer from Thomas Watson: “Perfume us with holiness and make our hearts a map of heaven.”* To be holy is to be set apart (i.e. distinct) for God’s special purposes. He calls us to reflect his character in the world. In this sense, holiness is heaven’s map […]

Something we all have in common is that we’re surrounded by people, and that our lives are embedded in relationships.  If we’re being honest, some people drive us crazy.  These are people at school or work, at church, out there in the community at large, or even in our own families or friend circles. So […]

When you’re young, certain ideas seem big, bad or burdensome. One of them is “responsibility.” It probably made you think about cutting grandma’s lawn or doing chores when you didn’t want to. Over time, however, you realize there’s more to it than that. It’s “response-ability.” God has given us certain abilities, and when we respond […]

Faith is more than feelings. And that’s actually very good news. Let me explain. Our feelings are important. They tell us things about what we are experiencing. The risk is when we falsely equate certain feelings with the presence of God, or with a “spiritual” idea that we think is God-given.  For example, if I’m […]

Affliction can be an accelerant which refines you to bless others in your future with greater integrity, wisdom or power. Let’s unpack that sentence a few ideas at a time.  First, affliction. It’s one of those things that isn’t nice, but can serve a greater purpose over the long haul. Consider what God’s people were […]

In 1 Peter 1, the apostle is encouraging his readers to persevere and to have hope, even when they are experiencing hardship and affliction.  In verses 8-9, he says: “Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of […]

When we open the Bible, it’s not just about what we’re learning, but who we’re learning it from.  Take, for example, the letter of 1 Peter. It was written by Peter the apostle (of course), who walked and talked with Jesus.  But let’s notice six details about his life. He was passionate, imperfect, rebellious, reconciled, […]

Diamonds.  People love them. They’re valuable, obviously. But did you know that diamonds don’t start as diamonds. They start as simple carbon. So, how are they transformed? Through pressure. The same principle sometimes applies to humans. Difficulty and affliction—“pressure”—can often refine us into someone who is more faithful, humble, wise and strong. The apostle Peter […]

There is a lot of battle and warfare language in the New Testament.  For example, we are to “take up the whole armour of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm” (Ephesians 6:13). In Romans 13:12 we are told to put on the […]

“…make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness…” (2 Peter 1:5-8). In the past few devotionals, we’ve been talking about spiritual disciplines, and what to do when you feel as if you’re in a bit of a rut. […]

In the previous devotional, we talked about spiritual disciplines. These are deliberate, repetitive, biblical practices the Holy Spirit uses to make us more like Christ. Even still, there are times when we can feel stuck.  When that happens, one suggestion is to shake things up. Here are some examples. I know people who have moved […]

I recently presented a workshop on spiritual disciplines. These are deliberate, repetitive, biblical practices the Holy Spirit uses to make us more like Christ. Some of the most well-known practices that fit into this category are prayer, Bible-reading, fasting, worship, serving others, etc. There are others, but those are some of the most popular. Over […]

“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12). When I was in university one of my professors told our class that during our discussions, we weren’t allowed to use the word “interesting.” Why not? Since it was a word that people over-used, it had lost it’s meaning. […]

Jesus said: “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…” (Matthew 5:44) Do you have enemies? Perhaps you do, perhaps you don’t.  If you don’t, perhaps you still have people who you feel are somehow “against” you. They always seem to say the wrong thing at the right time. They foil your plans, […]

Victor Frankl recalls an experience he had in a concentration camp. He was serving as a kind of medical assistant, caring for fellow prisoners who were sick or elderly. He would use whatever supplies he could get his hands on to help them. One day, he was approached by some fellow prisoners. They had made […]

“Life is tough. Heaven is great. I guess we just need to wait it out.” Unfortunately, we can often get caught in this mode of thinking. Having said that, it’s true that life is often difficult. And yes, heaven is also going to be amazing. I appreciate that life includes a lot of waiting—including waiting […]

Over the past several months we have been spending some time with Daniel.  When he was captured, he was most likely around 15-years-old. At the end of the book, he was in his late 80’s or early 90’s. After the Babylonian captivity had formally ended, many of his people were allowed to return to their […]

1 Corinthians 10:31 is well-known. That’s where Paul writes: “whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” Several years ago, I was discussing this verse with a group of high school students. One of the students asked: ‘Why does God want us to focus on him so much? Isn’t that kind of […]

The phrase “born again” gets thrown around a lot. But what does it actually mean?  The original context was John 3 when Jesus was speaking with Nicodemus: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3).* Nicodemus struggled to understand. How can a person […]

In 1 John 3:23 the apostle writes: “And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another…” Catherine of Siena was a well-known Christian from the 1300’s. She lived in Italy. She became known for her extreme devotion to God and her unyielding love for […]

[Request in footnotes] ~ In these devotionals not only have we been spending time with Daniel, but we have been spending time thinking about the big picture hope we have as the people of God. The Bible tells us the large-scale narrative arc of human history. Although there are many problems in the world, and […]

[Request in footnotes] ~ Hope is the underrated weapon of our faith. Even if it’s not underrated, it’s certainly underappreciated.  Since the Bible is the very word of God, we know how human history is going to unfold and turn out since various biblical passages speak about it. For example, we know that Jesus will […]

When you know the end of the story it can change your experience as you live through the middle of the story. Let me provide a small analogy from the world of baseball.  I cheer for the Toronto Blue Jays, but I don’t watch all the games. They play most days, and a lot of […]

Recently, my wife Laura heard something on the radio. She shared it with me, and now I’d like to share it with you.  It was about Chris Tomlin, the well-known singer of songs like How Great is our God, Glorious Day, and Whom Shall I Fear?  When he was young, he got mononucleosis. As a […]

This week we have been thinking about Daniel 11:32. In the second century B.C., Antiochus IV was working mayhem. He was a cunning man of violence. He desecrated the Jerusalem temple and persecuted the people of God. Some people gave in. Others didn’t. There were resisters. Verse 32 provides this detail: “the people who know […]