Paul exposed a kind of service that appears to be spiritual but is really just a put-on, a show, an act to get attention. He called it “eyeservice”14 — serving in order to impress people with how spiritual we are. This was a sin of the Pharisees. They turned helping others, giving, and even prayer into a performance for others. Jesus hated this att

Fortunately he doesn’t leave us to struggle on our own. “God has given us his Spirit. That’s why we don’t think the same way that the people of this world think.”

How can we resist the Devil? Paul tells us, “Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the…

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Another reason we avoid personal application is that it can be difficult or even painful. The truth will set you free, but first it may make you miserable! God’s Word exposes our motives, points out our faults, rebukes our sin, and expects us to change. It’s human nature to resist change, so applying God’s Word is hard work. This is why it is so im

What are you doing personally to make your church family more warm and loving?

Don’t try to figure out your gifts before volunteering to serve somewhere.

Novelist Aldous Huxley said, “Experience is not what happens to you. It is what you do with what happens to you.”

Shift from self-centered thinking to other-centered thinking. The Bible says, “My friends, stop thinking like children. Think like mature people.”

A weakness, or “thorn” as Paul called it,4 is not a sin or a vice or a character defect that you can change, such as overeating or impatience.