Richard Ellis Talks

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, an estimated 21.5 million adults in America struggle with substance abuse or addiction. Others are addicted to gambling, pornography, or stealing. Still others may experience addictions that seem harmless on the surface, but have negative consequences when not managed: addictions to eating, shopping, exercise, and more. The only way for any of us to be freed from our addictions is not to just get sober -- but also to get clean. Jesus is the only One who can truly clean a person's life up, and so He waits for each of us patiently, asking, "Do you want to be made well?"

Sometimes we find ourselves wrecked, either because of our own choices or because we've faced trials and tragedies even in the midst of faithfulness. But God can use any situation to work His miracles. No matter how we end up in the "storms" of life, trusting God through them instead of complaining about them is the greatest way we can demonstrate to the world that our hope lies in Christ alone.

 

Marriage can be a beautiful experience -- but it isn't all roses and rainbows for everyone. Sometimes, marriage turns out to be a source of great suffering for those who are married to "difficult" spouses who are unwilling to change. Even in the difficulty of the relationship, God can work wonders when we go to Him continually in prayer. We begin to see the other person through eyes of mercy -- and with that comes a newfound hope that God will work miracles in the situation and heal hurting hearts.

The Bible teaches us to love, pray for, and even bless those who've hurt us, the same way that God first loved and gave His Son for us even when we didn't deserve it. When we accept the greatest gift of love and forgiveness that's ever been demonstrated in human history -- the gift of salvation through Jesus' death and resurrection -- we're called to become vessels of that same kind of love and forgiveness to others.

Sooner or later, all marriages hit those ruts in the road where "feelings" of love seem to have been lost in the monotony of day-to-day reality. But love isn't a feeling, it's a decision, and when it seems like the feelings are gone, it's more important than ever to remember what worked in the beginning when it was all fresh and new -- and then to do those things again. In the same way, when our relationship with the Lord feels dry and those exciting first steps have faded into memory, it's more important than ever to press in to Him like we did in the beginning, and trust that the feelings will follow.

We live in a culture that's not only made sex outside marriage acceptable -- it's made sex outside marriage the norm. The world tells us that the purpose of sex is for mere enjoyment without boundaries, but God tells us He created it for a special purpose, to be experienced within the covenant of marriage. Scripture's always been clear and consistent about God's design, and our response to His Word should be the same -- unwavering and unchanging, no matter what other people say or think.

Do you ever find yourself having to face a decision and not knowing which way to go? Sometimes we straddle the fence because we think it's better to be indecisive than to make a tough choice. In our relationship with God, it's easy for us to remain "on the fence" and lukewarm, but the Bible tells us that there's no room for indecision when it comes to following Christ. We're called to give Him our whole heart and allow Him to lead us in every way.

When we give our lives to Christ, God declares us "spotless" -- blameless and holy, because through Jesus, we've been washed of our sin. But too often we choose to go back to old, "wrinkly" habits, instead of living in the new, clean life God's called us to. He's capable of restoring us from all our mistakes, but we first need to be willing to allow Him to change us -- and then obey the next steps He asks us to take.

Author and priest Brennan Manning wrote, "The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable." When we pretend to have it all together, we fail to demonstrate that a relationship with God is all about process -- not perfection. But when we allow others to see that we’re always being shaped and refined by God, our growth becomes the best witness we could give!

God gives each of us a calling at some point in our lives. But all too often, we ignore it. Why? Because we've grown accustomed to the life we're comfortable in, the life we've built for ourselves, and we think that if we follow God's call, we'll lose all that we've worked for. What we fail to realize, though, is that when we each yield our life to God's will, we find the life He meant for us to have all along!