This was a phrase used in a commercial from long ago about a product I can’t remember, but has stuck with me. The point was that if you tried the product, you’d like it.
They might have been reading Scripture for all we know as Jesus said the exact same thing. He told His disciples, “Try practicing what I’ve been teaching you. When you do, you’ll definitely like the life I’ve been telling you about and you’ll be free from all the negative consequences of your bad choices” (John 8:31-32).
Jesus is asking you to trust Him and His Word. But, if you never do, you’ll never know. What step of faith has the Spirit been asking you to take? Try it. You’ll like it. What truth has He been asking you to focus on? Try it. You’ll like it.
Understand this: you’ll always discover more than you thought when you take a walk with Jesus. You will like the results, but you it’s up to you to try it.
S“E”t Free Nowww

If a picture paints a thousand words, what does the following paint? I was reading the great theological and philosophical discussions of our time this morning – the comics. The first frame of one comic pictures a teenage girl going crazy when she sees her friend with her in arm in a sling. In the second frame, she’s asking how her friend’s doing. The final frame reveals how it happened – way too many selfies. Her friend has “selfie elbow.” Her boyfriend then responds in typical teenager denial, “You never think it’s going to happen to someone you know.”
This comic would be funny, though I had to chuckle at the irony in it, if it weren’t such a sad commentary on our society that continues to glorify its main problem – ego, narcissism, self! Selfies might make us feel good in the moment, but taking them can reinforce one of the three big challenges that must be overcome if we want victory over our drugs of choice – the “I-problem” (self-justification/rationalizations and defense mechanisms being the other two – see 2 Cor. 10:3-6).
Creating memories is a good thing. Reinforcing self is not. More of Jesus and less of us is the only way to experience what we’re looking for in life, like peace and joy. The next time you want to take a selfie do it when you can catch yourself responding to life as Jesus would; and then, burn that picture into your memory. It will be a thousand words worth repeating.
S“E”t Free Nowww

Though I wish no one ever hurt or made a bad decision; I know the reality we live in – both happen. There are even times when the best form of help I can give is to let people hurt. Rescuing them from the consequences of their choices, though it hurts to watch, is actually quite hurtful.
I used to solve my problems by eating king-sized candy bars. If God were a God of love, wouldn’t He take away the calories every time I ate one? Nope, He let my pants get tighter. Wouldn’t He rescue Me from the consequences of eating all those candy bars? Nope, He let me get larger shirts to hide the weight. Helping by taking away the consequences of my choices would actually have hurt me. By taking away the calories, I would have never gotten over 200 pounds, which alerted me to the fact that I had a problem. Taking away the consequences of tight pants and larger shirts, would have kept me from looking at why I ate those candy bars in the first place and from discovering the truths that help me turn and stay close to Jesus today.
Helping today can be hurtful tomorrow. Do we give up on them? Certainly not! Jesus never gives up on us, nor should we give up on others or ourselves. Yet at times, the best thing we can do is pray for the person to realize that their choices are actually hurting them. Prayer is not a cliché, but a powerful tool in helping those who are hurting themselves. It is the best form of rescue ever created. Pray the Spirit breaks through before the consequences really hurt.
Set Free “N”owww

Are you sure? See you if you can follow the following scenario.
Person A was mad at Person B for hurting Person C. Yet person B made a decision that protected Persons D-H, but still caused Person C to feel terrible, though if Person C knew why Person B made the decision they made, they would be extremely proud of Person B and Person A would have nothing to say at all. But Person B couldn’t tell anybody the reason for their decision because Person Z would hurt Persons D-H if Person C knew why Person B did what they did. Got it?
Sometimes we react negatively to situations because we think we’re sure of what we know, but are we really sure of the information we have? We not might be seeing or hearing the full story. This is why judging others can cause so much damage. We think we know what’s going on in a person’s head or life when in reality we’re not even close; and, would be extremely embarrassed if we really knew.
This is why we need to practice biblical love: It protects. It trusts. It hopes and it holds on. Let’s learn how to love as we continue to learn how to be sure of what we know.
S“E”t Free Nowww

I cringed inside as I watched the following scenario take place. There was a group of people having dinner in a restaurant. One person in the party was obviously drunk, which was getting under the skin big-time of the person satting across the table from them. This person was trying get the drunken person to stop drinking. It obviously wasn’t working as the person kept downing one drink after drink to the point of flaunting in the face of the one trying to get them to stop. What made this situation even worse was that the intoxicated person was behaving very inappropriately to those sitting next to them.
As the drinks kept coming, the sober person’s anger kept rising. You could see the unhappiness all over their face. There were times, they got up and walked outside, only to return even more upset. They were clearly letting the drunken person inside their head.
Could they control the intoxicated person? No. Could they get that person to stop drinking? No. What could they have done? Entertain this truth: You can only control you, not others. They were letting the intoxicated person get inside their head; and thus, ruining their evening with their group. They were repeatedly got up and left the restaurant, while the intoxicated person stayed and had a good old time.
Because of what Jesus has done for and in the believer, we can totally control what’s going on inside our head; and thus, we can own our reaction to any given situation. We can filter what we’re seeing and hearing through the truths of Scripture. In the Spirit’s power, we can choose to act on those truths and thereby control our reactions. We can have peace during some very uncomfortable situations by choosing to not let others get under our skin as we choose to not let them into our heads.
You choose who will be in your head – others, yourself or Jesus. Jesus is the only One who can bring peace in stressful situations (Is. 26:3).
Set “FREE” Nowww