LivethruJesus

The city of Jericho was devoted to the Lord. Some of it was devoted for destruction and some of it for holiness, but it was all devoted to the Lord. Evil must be destroyed or it will harm what is good. Only Rahab was saved because she placed her faith in God above all else. We are all devoted to destruction unless we place our faith in God to save us from it and devote us to holiness instead.

Before their first battle, the Lord commanded the Israelites to renew their commitment to Him through circumcision. This was a sign of God's covenant to give them the Promised Land and make them into a great nation, yet their father's had broken this covenant and failed to circumcise them. So, now that they are in the land and God will soon fulfill His covenant with them, they must do their part i...

We can say we believe in God, but we only fully believe if we have the faith to prove it. If we refuse to act on our belief, the we don’t truly believe. We have either too much doubt, fear, or pride keeping us from trusting Him enough to take that first step. God requires that we act on our belief to prove that what we say isn’t just lip service. The way the Lord brought His people into the Promis...

When God reveals Himself to us, do we see Him for who He is and follow Him, or do we resist? When the people of Jericho saw God's power revealed through Israel, everyone resisted Him but Rahab. Because she feared Israel's God more than the king of Jericho and since she placed her trust in Him over their armies, she was saved. She was a prostitute (a sinful woman) yet God saved her because she plac...

God prepares Joshua to take the people into the Promised Land by saying it will be a fight. But God will be with Him and He will be victorious in the end. He can only be defeated if He's too scared to fight. But if He is courageous enough to go into the land and do everything God tells Him to do, then He will take possession of it. We too, if we have the courage to not only make Jesus our Savior b...

First we will look back on the life of Moses, then we will reflect on our own. Life is short. In the day to day, sometimes it can feel long and hard, but if we let ourselves get caught up in the busy moments, we can easily lose sight of what's most important. The hard times don't last forever and neither do the good. When you look back on your time in school, it really was only a small portion of...

We are all presented with a choice. We can align ourselves with God or we can turn away from Him. When we align ourselves with the Almighty God, we have power on our side. If we choose to turn away and go our own way or align ourselves with something else, then we reject His power. Providing that there is no power greater than that of the Almighty God, we want Him for us and not against us. There...

God goes before us to the prepare the way and He is always with us. He wants us to spend time with Him, reading His Word, learning about Him and His ways, and talking to Him. His Word teaches and guides us and when we pray, His Spirit will show us the right way. We can trust Him. He also sends us godly mentors and leaders. So, look for them and follow them. Don't rebel against the Lord or your spi...

Sometimes God's laws can feel overwhelming or restrictive. He's given us Ten Commandments, things we have to do or things that we can't do. These laws can make us feel like a failure or maybe we feel accomplished. We might obey out of fear or self-righteousness instead of looking at His laws as they were intended. Jesus made it simple. The sum of the law is this: love God and love your neighbor. T...

Do not covet is the Tenth Commandment. The Bible says wanting what others have is self-idolatry. Instead of wishing for things we don't have, we are told to worship God because of the things we do have. We look at several Bible verses that talk about where our focus should be and why. It's a great reminder of where our true treasures lie

Has anyone every told a lie about you? Lies can hurt our feelings and our reputation and their are consequences for those lies, often to the one that is being lied about, but also to the one telling the lies. God cares about truth and justice. So, either the truth will be made known or God will have it eat you upside until you confess. Ultimately, those who lie associate themselves with Satan, who...

We learn as toddlers not to take things that don't belong to us. But stealing is much more than breaking into someone's house. The Bible says it is the same as stealing when we cheat other's out of the money, withhold someone's wages, charge interest, and when we don't give a portion of what He's given us back to Him. Yes, we can even steal from God.

Have you ever been in a really bad relationship? You know if you commit your life to this person it will destroy you, but you love them, or you feel trapped, or you think no one else would want you anyway, so you're torn. If you made it out, and you found someone that loves you and makes you feel safe, someone that's easy, and comfortable, and gives you great joy, then you know how tremendously th...

The sacred union of marriage & family were established by God in the beginning and were meant to be a blessing to us forever. The family is the foundation of society and it mirrors our relationship with God. Therefore, it is very important to Him that we honor marriage and our promises.

The 6th commandment says not to murder. We read that and we think 'checked that box. Good Job!' Then we keep reading and see that Jesus warns against even getting angry and we think 'Oh, maybe that's just the bear minimum. I might not doing so well after all.' Our self-righteousness fades away and humility takes its place. We are all lawbreakers and yet we have a Savior to free us and a Spirit to...

What does it look like to honor our parents throughout our lives? Learning to honor them when we are young, teaches us to honor employers, government, and leaders as we get older. But ultimately, honoring our parents teaches us how to honor God. Our relationship with them mirrors our relationship with Him.

Remember the Sabbath Day and keep it holy. On it you shall do no customary work. This may sound like a restriction, but it's not. It it our permission to rest. God knows we need rest to be at our best. With this special day built into our week, we can start the next rejuvenated and strong. This commandment was meant to be a blessing, not a burden.

Loser. Ugly. Bossy. Dramatic. Pathetic. Stubborn. Liar. Hypocrite. Lazy. Mean. Snob. Stingy. Greedy. Weak. Are these names that you want to be identified with? What about these? Beautiful. Kind. Helpful. Generous. Ambitious. Hard-working. Joyful. Peace-maker. Respectful. Strong. Dedicated. Faithful. Capable. Talented. Names matter, don't they? What people call you matters. We all want to have a go...

How would you feel if you had to listen to your spouse praise another? What if they bought gifts for this person? How would you feel if they spent time with them over you, talked to them more, seemed to have more affection for them, or acted if this person could give them something that you can not? You would certainly feel betrayed, cheated on, jilted. Now, do you think that you have ever made Go...

How do you feel about rules? Do you tend to be a rule follower or a rule breaker? Do rules make you feel comfortable and give you structure or do they feel burdensome or restrictive? Are you more apt to obey when you trust the person making the rules or you understand the reason behind them? Or, maybe you like making the rules but you don’t really like to follow them. Maybe you like to virtue sign...

As we enter a new year and you are thinking about your new years resolutions, think about your inheritance from the Lord and the legacy you want to leave. Make changes that will matter in the long run, things that will impact those around you for years to come. Adopt values and practices that you want your loved ones to inherit and work to leave a legacy that matters.

There is no spiritual neutrality. We are either with God or we are against Him. He has no use for someone that is lukewarm. We are of no use to anyone when we are straddling the fence. We all have to make a choice. If we play both sides, then no one knows where we stand.

Anything that pulls us away from God, weakens us. But when we partner with other believers, we are stronger. They can help us carry the burdens of life and when we are closely tied to that person, they keep us on the straight path. Also, if you are both being guided by God, then you will be going in the right direction. So, unite yourselves to other believers and let God guide you. Move in unison...

Can you be doing the right thing and it still be wrong? In this episode we talk about a man who did exactly what God told him to do, but God stood against him because he was doing it for the wrong reasons. He was trying to compromise with God. It was all for his own gain. God cares about our intentions otherwise He would have made us robots. He gave us hearts for a reason.

God reveals and proves Himself so we can be at peace when things are hard, so we will have the courage to keep going, and so we will place our faith in Him as we do. The more He reveals His ability and willingness to intervene on our behalf the better we can trust Him in the next battle we face.