Council Fire

“My sheep listen to My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; and I give them eternal life, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.” John 10:27-30 (NASB) Growing up, it was just my mom and me. Of course, it takes a vill...

“Sin is crouching at the door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.” Genesis 4:7 (NIV) One afternoon I was giving announcements at my workplace. All of a sudden, it felt like my air supply had been completely cut off. My heart was racing, everything started to spin, and I couldn’t breathe! This began an unexpected health journey for me. It took nearly a year to discover the root caus...

“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” Romans 12:2 (NLT) The apostle Paul was very clear, writing to brothers and sisters in Christ, to not follow the ways of how the world thinks and acts. Romans 12:1 mentions that we are...

“My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings.” Proverbs 4:20 (NKJV) I always did like to read, especially since I became a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. Before that, while in residential school, the only reading I did outside of class was comic books and boxing magazines. Needless to say, they were not of much profit. Reading is one of the three main ways that we learn....

“Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.” 1 Corinthians 11:1 (ESV) The apostle Paul’s advice to the Corinthian church is better than any self-help book you’ll ever find. Our goal as believers is to become Christ-like. Have you ever heard someone say, “I just want to love like Jesus loved”? How do you do that exactly? Well, my friend, it begins when the believer is willing to venture from the church...

“Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made t hat has been made.” John 1:3 (NIV) If the Bible is true, and if Jesus is who He says He is, then Jesus is our Creator, and He made it all. Think about what that all includes. Look around you; even look at yourself. Go back through your memory files to find favorite activities, foods, friends and loved ones. He made every single atom...

“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renew al of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:2 (ESV) It just sits there. There’s an old 1964 Mercury “Shorty” school bus behind my dad’s place that’s been sitting there since 1976 when one of my brothers blew the motor on it. It’s a sweet little three...

“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” Ephesians 4: 30 (NIV) It seems that pain has a way of drawing us closer to God. God knew all about pain and grief. He watched His Son die on the cross for our miserable sins. I remember one time when I was pinning a diaper on my daughter (back before Pampers). I caught her skin on the pin. My poor girl...

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1 (NIV) In my past I was a musician. I played guitar in a band. We played in bars, halls, conferences, and even the Toronto Skydome (I believe now called Rogers Centre where the Blue Jays play). We even met various rock stars along the way. But I paid a h...

“Oh, how abundant is your goodness.” Psalm 31:19 (ESV) I love flowers. God could have given us just one flower, and only three flowers are mentioned by name in the Bible — the Rose of Sharon, the Rose, and the Lily of the Valley. But there are over 400,000 kinds of flowers in the world! All colors, all kinds, some so small you can barely notice them. Others are huge, some have wonderful fragrances...

“When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.” Isaiah 43:2 (NLT) There are times in life when it feels so overwhelming that we just want to give up. Whether it’s our job, our finances, family problems . . . I’m sure we can a...

“Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.” Genesis 22:4 (KJV) In Genesis 22, God commanded Abraham to offer his only son Isaac as a sacrifice. Undoubtedly, it was the hardest day of Abraham’s life. Isaac was precious to Abraham and his wife, Sarah. Isaac was a miracle child, conceived in their old age, a gift from God. Certainly, God’s command troubled Abraham...

“Even though the fi g trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty, yet I will rejoice in the LORD! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!” Habakkuk 3:17-18 (NLT) It is not easy to rejoice when things are not going well. When we see...

“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable — if anything is excellent or praiseworthy — think about such things.” Philippians 4:8 (NIV) This morning, I got an email from a friend who’s had some real major losses in the past year. He recounted the deaths of some significant family members and ta...

“For as the days of a tree, so will be the days of my people; my chosen ones will long enjoy the work of their hands. They will not labor in vain, nor will they bear children doomed to misfortune; for they will be a people blessed by the Lord, they and their descendants with them.” Isaiah 65:22b-23 (NIV) Into my adult years, my relationship with my mom struggled. She had been to residential school...

“We love because He first loved us. Whoever claims to love God yet hates his brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And He has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.” 1 John 4:19-21 (NIV) After I asked my mom and dad for forgiveness for hating them,...

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV) At 32 years-old, I was doing a study with two other men. The Bible based book we were studying was called Stop Using Your Past as an Excuse...

“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10 (NIV) I like my comfort zone! I like things that are familiar, predictable, and not ambiguous. When I know where I’m going, then I’m relaxed. That’s just me! I tend to shy away from situations where I am unsure of myself or the...

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” 2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV) Our lives today and for eternity depend on knowing whether the Bible is true or not. If it is not true, then it does not matter if we read it or obey what it says. If it is true, then we must k...

“The Lord is my light and my salvation — whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life — of whom shall I be afraid?” Psalm 27:1 (NIV) We all need light in order to walk. That’s why I am thankful that the Lord is my Light, and He helps me to “see” as I walk through this life. He is also my salvation — Jesus Christ has forgiven my sins, which I am very well aware of. I am also aware of my...

“We must quickly carry out the tasks assigned us by the one who sent us. The night is coming, and then no one can work.” John 9:4 (NLT) I remember sitting with my songwriter friend and talking about the song that he and I wanted to write. We laughed, tuned, strummed, picked, drank coffee, and started writing, but only got about half a verse done before getting sidetracked by someone dropping in to...

“Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the fi eld which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, ‘Has God indeed said, “You shall not eat of every tree of the garden”?’” Genesis 3:1 (NKJV) Have you ever wondered how the world might be different today if Eve did not listen to the serpent in the garden? What if Eve had walked away, instead of conversing with him? Did Eve conside...

“I waited patiently for the Lord; and He inclined to me, and heard my cry. He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my steps. He has put a new song in my mouth — Praise to our God; many will see it and fear, and will trust in the Lord.” Psalm 40:1–3 (NKJV) Do you remember a time when you or someone you knew got stuck in the mud...

“Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation of things. For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” 2 Peter 1:20,21 (NIV) I was with some First Nations young people who believed that the white man wrote the Bible. So, in a gentle manner...

“But as soon as the feet of the priests who were carrying the Ark touched the water at the river’s edge, the water above that point began backing up a great distance away . . . And the water below that point flowed into the Dead Sea until the riverbed was dry. Then all the people crossed over near the town of Jericho.” Joshua 3:15b-16 (NLT) In 2015, I started attending a missionary training school...