Set Your Mind Above

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We started reading the kids the Chronicles of Narnia, starting off with book 2 - the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. Reading is so important in our household, and a lost art in many families. We want our kids to learn and read the timeless classics. 

However, while that is a good thing to do, it's not a necessity. What is necessary is opening up Scripture with our children. That is of eternal value, and we must ensure that all of us in our homes are practicing that holy habit of t...

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My son lost two teeth in two days, and received $5 for each tooth. He decided all on his own he didn't need both $5 bills, he wanted to give one of them to God. So he did, and yet right after doing so, was given another $5 from someone else. 

God is a generous God, and he wants his people to be generous too. But here is the kicker - those who are will be the ones that God blesses. God loves a cheerful giver, and he will continue to bless those who w...

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My daughter Ava joins us again today for a guest episode to discuss our need for direction, discipline, and ulitmately the Lord! 

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I'm an old soul, and I've passed that on to my children. Recently I introduced them to the movie staring Danny Kaye, Hans Christian Andersen. They loved it. Who doesn't love a good storyteller? 

The greatest storyteller was that of Jesus - as he taught us through parables. But they were not just to inspire, but to instruct us. We must sit at the foot of the teacher, and learn to teach the same way that he did too. 

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We capped off a very busy week with a big thunderstorm, which my son is afraid of. He came out and I picked him up, reminding him that I'm always here and that it's going to be okay. God is powerful, but he is good. 

As children, we cry out to God when we are afraid as well. And as a loving Father, he holds us in his hands and reminds us that one day it's all going to be okay. He's a good Father, and he loves us, and he i...

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We have had quite the week. The dryer broke. The car needed replaced. The carpet is being ripped up. All of these things were not worth trying to patch and fix - we needed something new. 

Our spiritual journey right now is the same. We are stained and destroyed on account of sin. Jesus didn't come simply to patch us up - he came to rip out the old and make us new in him. 

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My three year old was trying to sneak a fast one on me and get a snack when I told her no. When she asked how I knew, I told her I had eyes in the back of my head. She lifted up her hair and asked if she had the same LOL! I told her maybe one day when she's a mommy she will. 

Our kids can try to sneak stuff past us, but we can never hope for the same as children of God. He is omniscient, and as s...

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I have been trying to use the Alexa all week, but it never answers me anymore. I figured it was broken. That was until my wife informed me there is a reason it won't answer my calls anymore - the kids changed it's name. I've been calling out the wrong name. 

Whose name are you calling on? If we call on any other name than the Lord, we will receive no reply, like that of the prophets of Baal. Idols, be they ancient or modern, cannot deliver. There is o...

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I have terrible vision, and I have had the worst luck over the years with glasses and contacts. All that is about to change, howeveer, as I have qualified and have a consultation for LASIK eye surgery this next week. Hopefully, in the next few weeks, I will permanently fix my vision. 

We can be prone to spiritual blindness in our lives, and we are in desperate need of having the Lord correct our vision. Paul prays that we have the eyes of our hearts enlightened. It his prayer for us, a...

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My kiddos now have a six-foot inflatable cow sprinkler in the back yard, but they use it for just about everything other than a sprinkler. To punch & kick, to jump on, anything other than its intended purpose. 

Sometimes we can do the same as people with the gifts God has given to us. We reimagine God's designs, and destroy things like marriage, the church, or truth. We cannot "repurpose" the things from the mind of God to our own liking. 

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Welcome back after an extended break! We had a wonderful and wonder filled past three weeks. 

There are so many lessons I want to share wih you from our trip to California...but there is one in particular that you absolutely need to hear. It comes in the form of a note from a front desk of a hotel, and it reminds us that anyone who loves God and loves others can make a profound impact on this world. 

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I wripped my hand good at the gym yesterday. I have callouses that have formed on my hands from the barbells etc. - and one of them tore open deep yesterday. It's painful, but in time it will heal. 

Sometimes we can form callouses over our hearts, but God's Word has the power to cut us deep and expose that which is within. However, in doing so, God can bring us the healing that we desperately need. 

PSA: We are taking a three week break for our family to tr...

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My everyday bible of seven years has fallen apart, and was in need of being rebound and brought back to life. So I sent it off to Orion Bibles, and they have done a complete transformation to it! I'm so thankful for its condition, and that I can use it once again. 

One day we are all looking forward to our own transformation. Over the years our bodies fall apart, but in the resurrection we will be changed and made new. That which is corruptible will put on immortality. That day c...

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As Finley, my three year old, and I were walking back up the driveway Wednesday night, we looked up to admire the stars. At that exact moment, a shooting star streaked across the night sky. It was a magical moment full of wonder. 

We are like shooting stars. Ever breif, shinning through the darkness, and making a profound impact on those who see the light of Christ shinning in us. 

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Chuck Norris is a legend larger than life. As the jokes would tell it, nothing could defeat him - except for death. Chuck Norris passed away today. Even someone as strong, healthy, and celebrated as he was cannot escape the fate of every man. 

This is the simply reality - we're all gonna die. We don't know when, but it's going to happen to all of us. There is only one who has ever defeated death - and that is Jesus Christ. Becuase of his victory over death, we can share i...

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My son turns six tomorrow, and I cannot beleive it. Where has time gone? We think that we have more time than we do with our children, but the fact is we don't. 

Don't take your children for granted. Be present. Teach them. Enjoy every fleeting minute. You'll never get this wonderful time back. 

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We are planning a trip out west next month, and the highlight will be two very special national parks with 2000 year old trees we are showing the kids. How have they survived this long? Because of how their roots grow and interlock with one another, they never stand alone but stand strong together. 

How are we to survive life's storms and the challenges to our faith? Not only must we be rooted in our faith in Christ, but we must remember that we don't stand alone. We stand stronger together, interwoven t...

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We have a new local celebrity here in Danville: a stuffed Elmo. He had been abandoned in a parking lot by accident, but some local resident has picked him up, cleaned him up, and started posting his great many new adventures. It's so wholesome and so fun. 

Elmo's story is a lot like Israel's story and our story: abandoned, broken, forgotten, and lost. That is until God stepped in and did something. 

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When we have an emergency, we call 911 here in America. Sometimes so many people can call that the dispatch centers can get overwhelmed in something called a call surge. That's when everyone is calling about the same event all at once. 

We are called to flood heaven with a prayer surge. But the thing is God is never overwhelmed, he listens and acts, and the prayer of a righteous person is very powerful in it's effect! Calling on the Lord is the most important call we can make. 

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We all love a good fail video - it's innocent fun and when no one gets hurt, it can be quite comedic. We even laugh at our own expense, like I did when my neighbor caught me in 4k falling on my tush on the ice this past week. 

However, while that's innocent, in this world sometimes people can take pleasure in the actual failure and fall of others. This is not a quality of God's people. We are to weep with those who weep, bless those who curse you, and p...

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We didn't get the snow we had hoped for, not as much at least. Instead, we got a lot of ice. Ice is so hard to treat, and unless you have some salt to soften it up, you're going to be hard on luck to break it apart and clear a pathway. 

We need to ensure two things for ourselves. First, we need to ensure that in humility we can soften our hearts so as to receive the truth. Second, we must ensure to we season our words with salt, so a...

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As we prepare for an incredible winter storm of historic measure, I have been to the store a few times to prep. Well, so has everyone else. It's been slammed, and yet people have been kind, sharing, and helpful as this little community has banded together to help each other endure a harsh weekend. 

Preparation is not panic, in fact it's expected by God with many things. But so also is sharing and generosity, it's why God gives us the things that he does in the first place. But we also m...

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We started a challenge of writing out all of the New Testmanet + Psalms & Proverbs over this year with many of us here in Danville. It has proved to be so beneficial for my own growth as I slowly think about each word of Scripture. It's also led me to longer term goals to committ the Word to my memory. 

We are to let the Word dwell richly in us. But that does not just have to happen through reading. We can listen to it. Write it. Speak it. Sing it. No m...

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Welcome back to a brand new season of the Set Your Mind Above Podcast!

We got Ava a realistic baby doll for Christmas, the problem was it was damaged in shipping. We let her open it, but promised we could get her another one. She responded that she loved the doll just the way it was, because that's how God loves us - it doesnt matter how we look, all of us are special. 

Today I have a dear friend Will Gathro help me write some important lessons from t...

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I failed to reach many of my goals over this past year physically - and that was due to three reasons: setbacks, busyness, and lack of consistency. 

Oftentimes these same three reasons keep us from attaining our spiritual goals. We must not give up despite setbacks. We must never be too busy for God's work. And we must strive to be diligent to stay consistent in our efforts to grow. 

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One of my runs in a fantasy football league finally came to an end after 14 weeks. This is a "Chopped!" league - which means you win or you go home. If you lose even once by having the lowest score in the league, you're done for the season. No second chances. No next week. No chance for redemption. 

How blessed are we that we do not serve a "one and done" kind of a God? If we were "chopped" never to be given another chance at redemption when we failed, how f...

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Our kids recently started doing the Elf on the Shelf tradition with me, and it has completely changed their mornings. They don't think about anything else first except for that little mischevious elf. They can't wait to wake up and see what new thing he has gotten into. 

Their joy and excitement convicts me. What is my routine when I first wake up? Do I grab my phone? My coffee? Go back to sleep? Or are my first thoughts about God? Thanking him for this new day and asking him to d...

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Our newest dog, Rusty, has grown far bigger than we ever dreamed. He also loves to go outside and get filthy, so bringing him back inside is always a process. If one of the kids lets him in before we can clean him up, he will track dirt all through the house and destroy the place in a matter of minutes. 

The home is to be a sacred and safe place, according to Scripture. We must be careful not to go out into the world, and then come home and track d...

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Starbucks released a limited edition collectors item in a glass iced coffee bear cup. People went nuts over them, because each store only got a few each. But others saw this also as an opportunity to fool others, setting up fradulent sites to con others into purchasing what they thought was the real thing. 

We need to see the Kingdom and the Gospel in this way as well. We must search high and low and be willing to do anything to gain entrance into the Kingdom. Yet we also must be w...

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I'm teaching my oldest daughter to ride a bike, and it is a lot harder than she expected. She keeps forgetting to pedal, so she stops moving forward, and that's when she tips over and falls. 

As Christians, our walk with Christ is much harder than many anticipate. But with God, all things are possible - we just have to keep moving forward. When we stop growing is when we will fall - we've got to remember to keep pressing on. 

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I thought it was finally going to happen this year - the Mariners were only 9 outs from advancing to the World Series for the very first time. But in the end, they fell short once again. I guess I'll say what I've had to say ever year: there is always next season. 

But there is no next season with this life. We cannot fail to finish in our walk of faith. We must be faithful to the end to receive a crown of life. We must truly conquer, and to do s...

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We went on vacation to NC and took our two dogs with us. Our large puppy had never experienced stairs before, and I didn't realize that some dogs didn't know naturally how to go up and down them. He was terrified and I had to carry him before training him. It took a lot of patience and gentleness, but finally he figured it out over the course of the week. 

Those who are seasoned and mature Christians need to exercise the same patience and gentleness with new Christians. Things you're a s...

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We recently went to the Cincinatti zoo with some good friends, and one of the exhibits is for nocturnal animals. It was very dark, and at first the kids could not see a thing. Our friends reminded them to give it time, the longer they stayed in the dark the more comfortable their eyes would become. 

Unfortunately, we can become all to comfortable with darkness too. We can be like those Jeremiah warned about, who don't even know how to feel humiliation anymore. The longer you walk in darkness, the less i...

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I love chicken and tomatoes. I eat them every week, and they are in many of the meals that we make as a family. However, after getting allergy testing done, it turns out my love for them might be what has been fueling a lot of my health issues. I'm allergic to them both. 

Sin works that way in our lives too, doesn't it? Before we came to Christ, we participated in the flesh every day. Things we didn't know were wrong, things we didn't know were killing us spiritually. But w...

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This week has been full of bloodshed and tragedy in the US - from school schootings, merciless and senseless murders, and assasination - hearts are heavy. 

How does the Christian respond to this? 

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"You don't love me anymore" - these were the words of our soon to be 3 year old to her mother and me. Why? Because we told her that she had to eat her dinner. We had to laugh - kids can be so dramatic. The rules are there because we love you, kiddo. 

We're not all that different as the children of God. Sometimes we doubt God's love, because we don't get what we want, or because he restricts us in what we do. However, that is the very proof of G...

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Fantasy Football is back! To draft a good team, you have to remember several things. One, you can't overload on one position - you need to cover all your bases, because each position is important. Second, you need depth - have compitent back ups ready to go. Third, you need to keep your eye on the waiver wire and expand your team. 

The church is not all that different. You can't focus on one person - each role is important in the body. Second, we need depth in the church - t...

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Today is a special episode - my daughter Ava has been asking to help with the podcast for quite sometime. Today, she finally got that opportunity - and she even got to pick the topic. She wanted to discuss the dangers of vanity. 

Tune in to hear a discussion between my daughter and I about what we should pursue in this life, and remembering to hold things in their proper place so that they do not end up becoming vain. 

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We had an unexpected life event last week, as my wife ended up in the hospital for a period of four days. Over those four days, we received an outpouring of love and support from our local church family. We needed help, and they responded. 

This is how God designed the church. It's not like a family, it is a family. Serving one another is never a burden, nor is there ever a limit to this. We love, we serve, and we fullfil the law of Christ as each member as t...

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As my grass started growing back in after a fresh cut, I noticed a distinct pattern to how entire strips of grass were longer than the sections next to it. As I looked at my mower, I discovered that one tire was going flat, and therefore it was unbalanced. It left my yard looking like a terrible haircut. 

Imbalance in our lives can lead to all kinds of problems - at home, with our children, our jobs, our diets. But perhaps most importantly, we need balance in how we teach the w...