Life Over Coffee

Our behaviors reveal our hearts. “By their fruit, you shall know them.” If you get a discerning handle on a person’s actions, you will begin to unearth clues to what may be going on in their heart. The more biblical clarity you have, the better position you will be to care for them like Jesus would. For example, this theology of sanctification applies to many things that most folks might not consider. Let’s consider marriage. How do behaviors like laughability, tender care, and one-flesh body language form clues to help you understand the couple?

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/mind-mapping-a-marriage-from-bad-to-good/

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Many Christians mistakenly assume that as they learn to trust and obey God, a perfect marriage will naturally follow. The thinking often sounds like, “Isn’t a happy marriage one of the blessings of following Christ?” While the desire reflects a positive ideal, the assumption overlooks the realities of living in a fallen world. In nearly every case, the ideal isn’t the starting point; it’s a destination that requires a broader, more realistic understanding of what it truly takes to build a strong, Christ-centered marriage. Only when a couple widens their lens can they begin to grasp the effort and grace required for a genuinely fabulous marriage.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/mind-mapping-the-best-marriage-help-youll-ever-find/

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This chapter is a response to a friend who is working on his thesis requirement for his MA in Biblical Counseling. He asked my opinion on the necessity of a biblical counseling strategy for a local church. As I was thinking about how to respond, I thought it would be instructive to build out a mind map to show him visually what I wanted to say in written form, hoping to make a solid case for biblical counseling and the local church.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/episode-19-should-you-have-a-biblical-counseling-strategy-for-your-church/

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Shows Main Idea – Bridge Ministries of Laredo, Texas, recently hosted Rick and Lucia Thomas for an in-depth and encouraging interview that spotlighted the heart and mission of Life Over Coffee. In this rich conversation, Rick and Lucia share the journey that led them to establish Life Over Coffee, a global discipleship ministry designed to equip Christians with practical tools for addressing life’s real and messy challenges with the timeless truths of Scripture.

Listen to the Podcast: https://lifeovercoffee.com/podcast/ep-548-bridge-ministries-interviews-rick-and-lucia-thomas/

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When you consider spiritual disciplines, where does fasting rank? Most Christians pray, read, and study their Bibles regularly. Praise God! Many engage in fellowship, discipleship, and evangelism. Yet, fasting often falls lower on the list of our practiced disciplines. Why is this? I propose fasting is among the most powerful spiritual disciplines a believer can adopt, impacting their lives in ways that prayer, Bible study, and fellowship alone cannot achieve. I also propose that the significance of fasting as a means of grace in the Christian life will challenge common misconceptions and encourage us to consider its place in our pursuit of holiness.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/how-the-gift-of-fasting-can-change-your-life/

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Shows Main Idea – In this compelling interview, Dr. Daniel Berger joins Rick Thomas to unpack the whirlwind of response—both praise and pushback—that followed the release of his provocative book, The Schizophrenic Unicorn: Understanding the Diagnosis of Schizophrenia, The Centrality of Sleep, the Biopsychosocial Diagnostic Model of Mental and Considering a Practical and Proven Alternative Approach. Dr. Berger candidly addresses critics and reflects on how his work has been a breath of fresh air for many who feel stuck in the traditional mental health paradigm.

Watch or Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/podcast/ep-549-daniel-berger-the-schizophrenic-unicorn-2-0/

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I have struggled with insomnia—intermittently—since 2003. It has been so long that I rarely talk about it unless someone asks. I resigned myself to insomnia as a way of life. My insomnia is like an unwanted friend who periodically shows up late at night. He makes his visits without warning. I can go for weeks with relatively good sleep, though I have probably not had a sound sleep the way a child enjoys sleep since I was a child.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/insomnia-causes-and-cures/

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The interplay between our physical and spiritual selves needs responsible engagement within the Christian community, especially how a conflict between two people can lead to diminishing health. I have counseled many spouses with declining health that often paralleled the sinful relationships with their spouses. In nearly every case, their spouses had corrupting speech patterns: demanding, angry, manipulative, controlling, and other forms of selfish anger, including relational passivity and neglect (Ephesians 4:29).

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/how-does-the-ongoing-sin-of-others-impact-our-physical-health/

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Rose was a member of my small group. One night, she asked me what I thought about smoking cigarettes. I said, “It’s not what’s between your fingers that is a problem; it’s what is in your heart.” At that moment, the Lord did the miraculous. Over the next few months, her heart changed. I was oblivious to all these things. Months later, she shared with me what happened. Please enjoy her confession and praise to God.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/confession-of-a-former-cigarette-smoker/

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All external, behavioral idols have the same insidious root cause—unbelief, or its synonym, self-reliance. The self-reliant spirit is not trusting God. If you don’t deal with this universal heart problem, you could easily stop one sin while jumping to a different idol. Have you ever played “whack-a-mole” at an amusement center? It’s one of those games where plastic moles randomly pop up while you try to whack them with a rubber mallet before they retreat into their holes. You never know when or where one will pop up. As soon as you knock one down, another one jumps up.

Read, Watch, Listen: https://lifeovercoffee.com/idol-swapping-i-stopped-looking-at-porn-but-gained-30-pounds/

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