When our daughter was little, she had a thing about hearing our instruction and finding the cutest way to circumvent it. We laughed, but we soon realized it did her heart no good to do a good thing instead of the right thing. I'm sure, like me, you have found yourself doing good things instead of the right things that God has called you to do. Two things. That's it. There are really only two things we really must do in life.
I received the following question that I answered in my monthly, “Ponderings of the Heart” column: Dear Ami, Philippians 2:3 tells us to “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.” Is the latter part of this really healthy? If you avoid looking at or considering your own value, aren’t you undermining your own emotional health? Signed, Confidently Humble
Having received the following question, I responded via my column in the His Favor Newsletter: Dear Ami, Do you have any insight on “knowing Jesus in His suffering”? Signed, Slightly Scared…. Well, the answer to this question could cause some waves! Are you ready for this one?
My Dad was working with me one evening when I was little to learn to ride a bike, holding onto the back of the seat as I tried to coordinate pedaling and steering. Suddenly, I noticed a football-sized boulder to the right of my path. It scared me though it wasn’t on my path, so I kept my eyes on it as we approached. But somehow, the more I stared at that rock, the more I diverged toward it! Finally, I hit the rock and fell. That’s when Dad said something that has always stayed with me...
I was a frilly little girl, and yet, I would stand for a whole match at my Grandpa’s elbow as he sat watching boxing on TV. The saddest thing to watch was a man up against the ropes, getting smacked relentlessly, his gloves at his face, bent, cringing from the blows. That image keeps coming to mind in this last couple of years. Many of you can relate. Read the full story at amiloper.com
"Dear Ami, Does the Bible explicitly prohibit sex before marriage? I believe that Biblical sexual purity means abstinence before marriage, but my cousin brought up this issue as a challenge, and he uses it to justify premarital sex. Signed, Perplexed"… Come see how I answered this intriguing question at amiloper.com
Everything in the process of developing and refining seems to take much more time and effort than I had bargained for. But my Abba Father, the Potter, knows what He is doing..... Read the full blog to learn about the essential journey of process and how we can trust the Potter in the midst of it.
Maybe you’re a flexible person. I’m not. I have gotten much better at rolling with it. But it has been a process. Relinquishing control is hard for some of us. Trusting is hard for some of us. I began learning of the destructiveness of control in my teen years. After all, if you want something done right, do it yourself, right? Wrong. My attempts at controlling life led to a life out of control.
Dear Ami: Recently I have been reading through Jeremiah. Chapter after chapter talk about the judgment coming to Israel. Then, it turns, and chapter after chapter predict the destruction of the nations around Israel. Why does it matter to hear about that when they aren’t God’s people. Signed, Curious {Come read my reply!}
What is unique about the towns of Santa Barbara, California and Solvang, California? Both are beautiful towns, singular in their style, but neither one started out that way. These two gems in central California were transformed into what they are today by surprising circumstances. Come read what transformed them and why the same things can also transform your life!
One cozy Fall day, I was snuggled in, watching “Persuasion,” a Jane Austen novel set to film. I was struck by a line in the movie that a young woman says to a young man. It goes something like this, “I’d rather be tossed in a ditch by the man I love than to go steadily along without him.” (Caveat: “tossed in a ditch,” was not referring to abuse, but rather living a thrillingly adventurous life alongside her husband.) It made me think of my own adventures with God.
Each of us has a nearly gravitational pull, urging us toward what can make us whole. And yet, we seek out less fulfilling sources that tantalize us with empty pledges of wholeness. But why would a loving Father create us with a hole in our hearts that causes such longings that we seek to fill it with painful things? How can this be considered loving?
What Was So Wrong About the Israelites' Complaints? We know that the common explanation is that He had done so many miracles for them along the way, they should have been more grateful and trusting. There is some merit in this theory, but I believe it only tells part of the story.
A couple years ago the Hubs bought me a telescope. Calibrating the “finderscope” that came with it, we had to make sure that what was a close distance away was perfectly in focus. Only then could we look into the depths of space. Very interesting and profound. Read the blog to hear how the Lord showed me the knowable things in life that made the unknown things clearer.
As is true for all of us, there was a war being waged over my childhood heart and mind: Whose words would I allow to shape and mold me in my formative years and even in my adulthood? I believed the words of others. I accepted the labels others plastered onto my identity. In the process, I betrayed myself, my true self.
Admittedly, there are dry areas in the Bible. But I’ve always figured, if God wrote a book with limited space, everything in it must be for my benefit. Having recently read through one of “those” sections, the Lord graciously showed me part of His purpose in these more challenging passages.
God calls us to be holy and perfect. How in the world are we supposed to do that?? If we know God doesn’t ask us to do the impossible, what exactly is He asking of us and how do we participate?
Jacob wrestled with God and God declared that Jacob prevailed. But wait! How did Jacob prevail? Isn’t he the one who walked away with a permanent limp? Wasn’t the wrestling match called on account of daylight? What made Jacob one who prevailed?
