Posts by Richard Parrish
Love: A Command to Live, Not Just to Say
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love” (1 John 4:7-8 ESV). Many admonish us to “love.” Social media memes and posts amplify the need for love—often sharing…
Read MoreWhen Our Desires Conflict With God’s Commands
“Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble…
Read MoreA Never-Ending but Reasonable Sacrifice
“I appeal to you therefore, brothers [and sisters], by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is…
Read MoreA Costly Commitment
“Then Jesus told His disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.’” – Matthew 16:24 “I can’t wait till I’m on my own!” My 16-year-old daughter’s words were punctuated by the flip of her hair and a defiant scowl as she proceeded to her…
Read MoreA Song of Surrender
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6 ESV). Americans acknowledge that we trust in God. “In God We Trust” is printed and embossed on our currency. But do we? What evidence…
Read MoreAn Unusual Resume
“If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness.” “For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong” (2 Corinthians 11:30; 12:10 ESV). When interviewing candidates for a position, the process typically begins with…
Read MoreIs It Time to Exchange Your Burden?
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:28-29 ESV). When I was a young boy, I had the opportunity of…
Read MoreKeep Planting Seeds of Goodness
“And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9 ESV). Weariness weakens our desire to do good. Just ask the apostle Paul. Paul is weary of those “on a mission” to undermine Christ’s gospel (the Good News). One cannot read…
Read MoreThe Antidote for Weariness
“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be…
Read MoreWe’re Not There Yet!
“…I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:13-14 ESV). Each December, I reflect on my progress…
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