God’s heart is for the world. Ever since the beginning, when Adam and Eve first rebelled by giving into the passion to be like God, God has been wooing the world back to himself. God’s passion for us is so great, that he has gone to the ends of the earth for us–defeating death itself. It is because of God’s great passion that we can experience true life. John 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life....
Dec 03, 2018•9 min
Jesus says that we will be his witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:1-11). As with service, carrying the message of Jesus and his kingdom to the world is an integral part of being a Jesus-follower. The most effective way of introducing others to Jesus and fanning into flame a passion for God within them is through relationships. As we focus our passion on God and invest in relationships that are built on loving others as God loves us, we place ourselves in a position to be a mentor. We men...
Nov 30, 2018•10 min
The scriptures describe the movement of God throughout history as he is on mission to redeem humanity. The climax of this movement is the death and resurrection of his son Jesus. But the movement and mission does not stop there. Jesus reminds us that no servant is greater than their master. Jesus served to further the mission of God and bring glory to the kingdom. He expects the same from you. Service is not an option to exercise when you feel like it or have time. It is an intricate part of who...
Nov 29, 2018•9 min
Individual growth. God expects that our results will be in line with the gifts he has given. Notice in Jesus’ parable the owner did not dictate how each of the servants was to invest their talents. However, he definitely expected that they would invest their talents and produce results. God does not just expect that we will accept who we have been created to be, he also expects that we will live it. You will not be judged on anyone else’s scale of talents, but you will answer for your own. What ...
Nov 28, 2018•11 min
Jesus tells us that the way the world will know that we are his is by our passionate love. Our interactions with our spouse or children will reflect the heart of God. Our attitudes and words towards our co-workers will reflect the passion of God. The time we take for neighbors and strangers alike will show the passion that has been placed in us by God. Our relationships make all the difference in the world as we strive to change the world for Jesus. Acts 2; John 13:34-35; Matthew 25:31-46...
Nov 27, 2018•10 min
Passion for God. This is the fuel of our life. It is what gives you energy for each new day. It affects your attitudes and your actions. It is the path through which we find the “life to the fullest” which Jesus promised us. There is an exchange that takes place in Mark 12:28-34. Jesus is discussing with a teacher of the law concerning which commandment is the most important. In today’s episode, we listen in on this interaction and see what Jesus says about what is important in our life. Join us...
Nov 26, 2018•9 min
I pray that you have had a wonderful Thanksgiving. This week we have been journeying together through a special series of Thanksgiving episodes on the Living Unleashed Podcast. Today is the fifth and final episode in the series and we are giving thanks for hope. As we are reminded of the wondrous hope we have in Jesus, let us give thanks to the God of hope who fills us with joy and peace. Keep on living unleashed! Romans 15:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in h...
Nov 23, 2018•7 min
Happy Thanksgiving from all of us here at the Living Unleashed Podcast! I pray that you will have a wonderfully blessed day of celebration with your family and friends. This week we are doing a special series of Thanksgiving episodes on the Living Unleashed Podcast. Today is the fourth episode in that series and we are giving thanks for family. As you celebrate together today, give thanks to God for one another and keep on living unleashed! Psalm 127:3-5 Children are a heritage from the Lord, of...
Nov 22, 2018•6 min
This week is Thanksgiving, so we are going to have a special series of Thanksgiving episodes on the Living Unleashed Podcast. Today is the third episode in that series and we are giving thanks for God’s blessing and provision. Scripture tells us that God is faithful to provide for our needs and that when we seek him we will “lack no good thing”. How has the Lord blessed you as he has provided for you? Join us on the journey in today’s episode as we give God thanks for his blessing and provision....
Nov 21, 2018•6 min
This week is Thanksgiving, so we are going to have a special series of Thanksgiving episodes on the Living Unleashed Podcast. Today is the second episode in that series and we are giving thanks for God’s call on our life and the purpose for which he created us. In Ephesians 2:10, we discover that we are God’s handiwork and that he created us to do the good works that he prepared in advance for us to do. God has a purpose for your life to be used for good! Are you living into that calling and pur...
Nov 20, 2018•7 min
Welcome back to another week of the journey here at Living Unleashed. This week is Thanksgiving, so we are going to have a special series of Thanksgiving episodes on the Living Unleashed Podcast. Today, we are giving thanks for the new life we have in Jesus. Lamentations 3 tells us that God’s mercies are new each morning. He is passionate about us and offers us his love and mercy anew each and every morning. Everyday I can live powerfully in the new life that I have in Christ Jesus. Join us as w...
Nov 19, 2018•7 min
What is discipleship? Discipleship is making decisions every day to intentionally follow Jesus. Another way to say it is discipleship is following Jesus on purpose. Now, to do this we must take Jesus and his words seriously. Dallas Willard writes of Jesus and his words, “They are essentially subversive of established arrangements and ways of thinking. … He himself described his words as ‘spirit and life’ (John 6:63). They invade our ‘real’ world with a reality even more real than it is.” To unde...
Nov 16, 2018•9 min
Who is controlling your story? As we hear God’s story, we find our identity within it. We now belong to Jesus. “It is no longer I who lives, but Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). I give up all attempts to find my identity in my own good deeds, my accomplishments, or possessions. There can only be one master story-teller speaking over my life—and that is Jesus. In today’s podcast episode we consider the account of the rich young man that is found in the Gospels (Matthew 19:16-30; Mark 10:...
Nov 15, 2018•9 min
What do I most want for my children? What do I want to pass on to them? I love how Eugene Peterson translates Deuteronomy 6:6-9 . It draws out the importance to have Jesus inside of us before we can get him inside of our children. If I am not living in the power Christ, how can I teach my children to live in his power? I want my children to live a life filled with joy, hope, peace, and strength. These are qualities that God gives us as we live our lives in Jesus. This makes it all the more urgen...
Nov 14, 2018•9 min
Pray continually. Whatever is true, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Seek first his kingdom. Seek him with your whole heart. Love him with all you are—heart, soul, mind, and strength. Should our thoughts not always be on the Lord and on his kingdom? In today’s podcast episode, we look a story about my youngest son and a set of keys as we explore focusing on Jesus. Keep on living unleashed!
Nov 13, 2018•8 min
Join me today on the Living Unleashed Podcast as we take a look at how to get our hearts attuned to the heart of God. Through prayer, we become more attuned to the heart of God. Instead of telling God what he should be doing, we listen for what he wants and desires of us. We even ask him what it is that he would have us to pray. As we fall deeper in love with God and come to better understand his heart, we are prepared to come before God boldly with our requests, because our longings and desires...
Nov 12, 2018•9 min
Today’s podcast is filled to the brim! I didn’t quite stay within the 10-minute boundary, but I was close. I found that when we are talking about the freedom we have in Christ that there is just so much good stuff to talk about. We covered a couple of points, but we will definitely be swinging our journey through this topic again soon to pick up on and refine some points we missed. Thanks for joining me on the journey this week. I hope you enjoy today’s podcast and I will see you again next week...
Nov 09, 2018•11 min
I am an extrovert. I love to be where the action is. But every now and then, I need some peace and quiet to be able to think and process information and ideas. I have to remove myself from my environment and circumstances to find a peaceful location where I can be by myself to think. Unfortunately, this strategy doesn’t work when we are looking for peace in the midst of troubling life situations. It is difficult, if not impossible, to remove ourselves from the middle of our own lives so that we ...
Nov 08, 2018•10 min
This is the 50th episode of the Living Unleashed Podcast! I just want to thank each of you for joining me on this journey and helping Living Unleashed to reach this milestone. I am so pumped! I think it is fitting that today we are talking about joy. I have been producing the Podcast for five days per week for almost two months now, and reaching this marker on the journey brings me an immense amount of joy, accomplishment, and a sense of achievement. However, I can tell you that producing this p...
Nov 07, 2018•10 min
Hope. What is hope? If we defined hope based on how we use the word in everyday conversation, we would say that hope is merely another word for “wishful thinking.” We say things like “I hope to get to go to the game on Friday night.” or “I hope they have spaghetti at the new restaurant we are going to for supper.” We are communicating what we want the desired outcome to be, but are uncertain as to whether or not that will be the actual case. Our scriptural hope is not wishful thinking, but a har...
Nov 06, 2018•10 min
This week, on the Living Unleashed Podcast, we are working through the purpose of Living Unleashed. On today’s episode, we discuss what it means to be awakened to a passionate life. I invite you to pray the following prayer each day this week as you listen to each day’s podcast. O Jesus, Awaken me to my real life in You. A passionate life. A life that is defined by hope, filled with joy, marked by peace, and walks in freedom. In Christ, I am living unleashed. In the powerful name of Jesus, I pra...
Nov 05, 2018•9 min
God is good. Have you experienced his goodness? The Psalmist invites us to “Taste and see that the Lord is good.” (Psalm 34:8). This is some odd imagery. The act of tasting the Lord seems rather curious. How do you go about doing this? Listen to today’s podcast to find out. Keep on living unleashed!
Nov 02, 2018•10 min
Each and every one of us have times in our lives where we have to make decisions that will significantly impact the rest of our lives. Some of these decisions, we make with confidence as we press into our future. Other decisions can leave us paralyzed and unsure of which direction to go. These are the moments we seem to become most interested in knowing the will of God. Today, we will look at a prayer in the Psalms that will help us to live unleashed as we follow God in our decision making....
Nov 01, 2018•9 min
Are you a user? Are you involved in an ongoing and authentic relationship with God? Do your requests to God flow from this covenant relationship or are you using God like some tool to be pulled out when the situation calls for it? Listen to today’s podcast episode to see how this kind of relationship can bring a life of living unleashed!
Oct 31, 2018•10 min
On yesterday’s episode, we looked at five reasons why you are awesome. On today’s episode, we see how those same reasons apply to your neighbor and affect how you should treat others. How are you going to encourage and build up the others in your life today? Listen to this episode to find out why you should and be encouraged to go out and do it. Keep on living unleashed!
Oct 30, 2018•10 min
On today’s episode of the Living Unleashed Podcast, I want you to know one thing. You are AWESOME! You were created in God’s image and are incalculably valuable to Him. So valuable are you, that He sent his only Son to die for you to redeem you and to reconcile you to Himself. You are fearfully and wonderfully made. Listen to today’s episode to find out how awesome you really are. Keep on living unleashed!
Oct 29, 2018•9 min
On today’s episode, we wrap up a three-part series giving reflecting on the work of Eugene Peterson who passed away earlier this week. Eugene Peterson is the author of more than 30 books, including The Message paraphrase of the Bible and “A Long Obedience in the Same Direction”. One of the unique things about him was that while he was a wonderful writer, he also remained a practitioner–serving the church he planted for around 30 years. Today, we take a look at Colossians 3 from The Message. Keep...
Oct 26, 2018•10 min
On today’s podcast, we continue our tribute to Eugene Peterson who passes away earlier this week at the age of 85. He had a tremendous impact on many lives through his writing and his Bible paraphrase, The Message. Today, we look at a passage from Galatians that helps us to flesh out our understanding of freedom in Christ. Live free! Keep on living unleashed!
Oct 25, 2018•10 min
Another voice was added to the “great cloud of witnesses” this past Monday, October 22, 2018. Eugene Peterson, best known for his paraphrase translation of the Bible called The Message, passed away. He was often called the Pastor of pastors. A life-long pastor himself, he authored more than 30 books over the course of his life. This three-part series of podcasts looks at a few of the passages of scripture from The Message Bible that have most impacted my journey and I hope they will have an impa...
Oct 24, 2018•9 min
Pay attention! As the trees around us are beginning to burst forth with the colors of fall, creation is crying out to us to pay attention and see what beauty God has made. Our reaction to creation’s beauty should be nothing more than worship that is filled with thanksgiving and gratitude. Are you paying attention? You don’t want to miss it. Let it move your heart to worship. Keep on living unleashed.
Oct 23, 2018•9 min
