Life Over Coffee

Let’s confront a popular but harmful idea: self-esteem. Our culture teaches that we need to esteem and think highly of ourselves. While it’s true that you should see yourself as a unique individual created in God’s image—what we call the Imago Dei, self-esteem, as the world defines it—putting yourself first—is a trap that elevates you while diminishes others. This way of thinking leads to internal frustration, external pride, and ongoing disappointment.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/day-4-teen-devotion-forget-about-self-esteem/

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Today’s topic might hit close to home: learning to accept that your parents aren’t perfect. It’s easy to agree that nobody’s perfect—until someone’s imperfections directly affect you. One of the most painful lessons I had to learn as a young adult was to accept my parents’ shortcomings. Our children are no different; they live with imperfect parents, which is not a justification but a fact of reality.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/day-3-teen-devotion-parents-arent-perfect/

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Shows Main Idea – In this episode, we explore the crucial distinction between biblical counseling and secular psychology. Rick Thomas joins us to unpack the historical roots of counseling and to highlight the sufficiency of Scripture in addressing life’s deepest struggles. Far more than behavior modification, biblical counseling offers true, gospel-centered transformation.

Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/podcast/ep-550-phil-sessa-interviews-rick-thomas-on-biblical-counseling/

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Phill Sessa Interviews Rick Thomas on Bibilcal Counseling by Rick Thomas

One of life’s most challenging truths is unfairness. You’ve heard someone say, “It’s not fair!” in response to a disappointment. Maybe you’ve said it yourself. This frustration is natural because fairness aligns with how we think things should work. However, the reality is that life hasn’t been fair since Adam disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 3:8-14). Adam’s fall unleashed sin and death into a world God originally designed to be perfect (Genesis 2:7-9). Ever since unfairness has been woven into the fabric of life (Romans 5:12).

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/day-2-teen-devotion-life-fair/

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The rest of your life does not come with summers off. In school, you get days off—snow days, holiday breaks, and long summer vacations. Many kids complain the summers need to be longer and school is too hard. But once they step into adulthood, the rhythm changes. There are no built-in summers off, and life becomes a long, steady mundane journey—one that ends only when you drop dead and step into eternity. This perspective might not sound very encouraging, but it’s actually an opportunity to rethink your mindset about work, rest, and the purpose of your life.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/day-10-teen-devotion-you-dont-get-time-off/

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As you embark on this 31-day journey, consider six essential truths about life, God, and yourself. These truths are not just ideas to ponder but steps toward a more Christ-centered life. Pick the one that seems most challenging and make a plan to change. I share these with you in no particular order.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/day-1-teen-devotion-lets-begin-the-journey/

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Living a life honoring God requires a person to rest well. If you rest well, you will work well, and the other parts of your life will be satisfying, too. I suspect that most people in first-world countries do not have good rest habits and are unaware or unconcerned about the adverse effects of not resting well. So important is rest that without a sound theology and practice of rest, your work diminishes, and your relationships suffer. What is your theology of rest? How do work and rest intersect symmetrically, making you whole?

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/you-have-to-work-to-rest-if-you-ever-want-to-enjoy-this-gift/

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Prayer is every believer’s desire and opportunity, but many Christians struggle to have a consistent and dynamic prayer life. That’s why I want to share eight practical tips to help and guide you as you think about one of the most crucial things we can do regarding our relationship with God. These thoughts are what I told a friend many years ago when he asked about praying well. Here is his original question.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/eight-ways-make-prayer-life-better/

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The dynamic of an insecure husband and a critical wife is one of the most common and deeply embedded relational patterns in marriage counseling. It’s a dynamic that doesn’t usually appear overnight, and it’s rarely the result of one major failure. Instead, it’s the slow erosion of trust, affection, communication, and humility over time. This kind of marriage dysfunction typically forms from a combination of personal insecurity, unresolved sin, habitual selfishness, and immature gospel application. And yet, as with all biblical counseling situations, this relational spiral is not beyond hope. The gospel is robust enough, the Spirit powerful enough, and the church necessary enough to bring healing.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/mind-mapping-insecure-husband-and-critical-wife/

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