By Linda Tancs
Would you put something together without reading the instructions first? Chances are, if you have, then you might’ve ended up with a mess or at least missed a few things. The same is true of life. God wants you to read His directions, the Bible, to lead you. It’s your one sure guide in an unsure world. Don’t try to “wing it.” You’ll likely end up with a mess.
By Linda Tancs
The term “girl power” gained popularity in the 1990s thanks to pop groups like The Spice Girls. It encourages women and girls to believe in themselves, pursue their goals and support each other. Although it’s become trendy in modern culture, it’s as ancient as the Old Testament. Consider the case of Zelophehad, who died without sons, and according to the prevailing custom, his daughters were not entitled to inherit his land. The five sisters petitioned Moses, arguing that their father’s name should not be forgotten and that they should be entitled to an inheritance. Unsure how to proceed, Moses approached the Lord, who ruled in the daughters’ favor (Numbers 27:1-11). God is a God of justice, after all. But how courageous of the girls to come forward and challenge societal norms. Their faith in God is a testament to them, establishing a limited right of inheritance for Israelite women and influencing future legal interpretations. Is there a girl in your life in need of encouragement? How can you best empower her?
By Linda Tancs
Writer C.S. Lewis once observed, “You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” Even in the Bible, the concept of retirement is mentioned only once (Numbers 8:23-26). Levite priests retired at the age of 50, at which time they entered service as mentors of sorts to younger priests. Even then they did not retire in our modern sense of the word; they transitioned to other roles instead. Moses remained fruitful right up to the end of his life at age 120 (Deuteronomy 34:7). So did Job (Job 42:16-17). God desires that you continue to bear fruit in your old age (Psalm 92:14). History provides plenty of examples: Benjamin Franklin was 70 when he signed the Declaration of Independence; Mother Teresa received the Nobel Peace Prize at age 69; Leonid Hurwicz received the Nobel Prize in Economics at age 90; and Nelson Mandela was elected president of South Africa at age 75. You get the point. The older you are, the more you have to share with others. Don’t hide your light (Matthew 5:15). Be a beacon.
***************
As part of FOOT FORWARD MINISTRIES (a teaching and speaking ministry), Go Forward in Faith represents faith-based meditations for personal and professional growth. Join the Facebook group @goforwardinfaith.
By Linda Tancs
What do a farmer and an ant have in common? Diligence. Proverbs teaches us that the ant gathers its provisions in summer so that it will have enough to survive on in winter (Proverbs 6:6-9). Similarly, farmers look to their harvest in due season (James 5:7). No thing, whether man or even insect, will reap what it does not sow. Be faithful and diligent in your work, and you will reap a harvest.
***************
As part of FOOT FORWARD MINISTRIES (a teaching and speaking ministry), Go Forward in Faith represents faith-based meditations for personal and professional growth. Join the Facebook group @goforwardinfaith.
By Linda Tancs
“Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy ride” is a popular misquote from the 1950 film All About Eve. The line actually referred to a “bumpy night” rather than a ride, but the gist of it is that turbulent times were coming. We all know what it’s like to fasten our seatbelts, so to speak. The apostle James reminds us that in our trouble we should be joyful because it tries our faith and builds patience (James 1:2-4). When the way gets bumpy, strap on the seatbelt of endurance and enjoy the ride, knowing that God will deliver you from your trials.
***************
As part of FOOT FORWARD MINISTRIES (a teaching and speaking ministry), Go Forward in Faith represents faith-based meditations for personal and professional growth. Join the Facebook group @goforwardinfaith.
By Linda Tancs
St. Dominic de Guzman was a Castilian-French Catholic priest and the founder of the Dominican Order. He once remarked that it is better to be a hammer than an anvil. He was speaking of the need to master one’s passions or else they’ll master you; in other words, exercise self-control, which is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:23). As the apostle Paul intoned, we must not become a slave to anything (1 Corinthians 6:12). Get the hammer ready.
***************
As part of FOOT FORWARD MINISTRIES (a teaching and speaking ministry), Go Forward in Faith represents faith-based meditations for personal and professional growth. Join the Facebook group @goforwardinfaith.
By Linda Tancs
There are times in life when you can’t go forward and you can’t go backward. Maybe you left a career that was bad for you. You know you can never go back but you don’t have the skill set, or maybe even the connections, that you need to move forward on the new thing. You’re having a Red Sea moment. Like the Israelites fleeing the Egyptians, you’re hemmed in. But Moses reminded the Israelites to stand firm and see the deliverance of the Lord (Exodus 14). They did, and so should you. Embrace your Red Sea moment, whatever it is, and await God’s glory (Isaiah 60:1).
***************
As part of FOOT FORWARD MINISTRIES (a teaching and speaking ministry), Go Forward in Faith represents faith-based meditations for personal and professional growth. Join the Facebook group @goforwardinfaith.
By Linda Tancs
The popular idiom “two steps forward, one step back” is a reminder of times when you make progress but then experience an event that causes you to be further behind than you were when you made progress. For example, maybe you took a “better” job only to be fired months later. It’s frustrating when life seems to be going backwards. But God, the author of life, only operates in one direction: forward (Jeremiah 29:11). Remember that the next time life throws you a curveball.
***************
As part of FOOT FORWARD MINISTRIES (a teaching and speaking ministry), Go Forward in Faith represents faith-based meditations for personal and professional growth. Join the Facebook group @goforwardinfaith.
By Linda Tancs
The “school of hard knocks” is an expression referring to the education one gets from life’s usually negative experiences. We’ve all been in that school. After all, disappointment and failure are a part of life. But failing at something does not mean that you are a failure. The inventor Thomas Edison put it best when he said that he hadn’t failed; he’d just found 10,000 ways that something won’t work. The apostle Peter failed miserably when he refused to acknowledge Jesus after his arrest (Luke 22:54-62), yet he was not a failure. Indeed, Jesus had restored Peter to fellowship after his denials and commissioned him to pastor his people (John 21:15-17). For us, too, our failures are foundations for the greater work that He seeks to achieve in and through us. In life you may feel like you’ve failed the test but, in God’s school, you get to keep taking the test until you pass. Now that’s a school worth attending.
***************
As part of FOOT FORWARD MINISTRIES (a teaching and speaking ministry), Go Forward in Faith represents faith-based meditations for personal and professional growth. Join the Facebook group @goforwardinfaith.
By Linda Tancs
You may be familiar with the expression, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” It’s been attributed to various people, like the father of President John F. Kennedy and football great Knute Rockne. The biblical equivalent would probably be something like Joshua 1:9, which admonishes us to be strong and of good courage to meet the challenges ahead of us. Sometimes it’s easier said than done. You might be feeling more like “When the going gets tough, the weak will shrink.” Don’t be hard on yourself. Isaiah 40:29 promises that He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. You were built tough, as an old car slogan reminds us. Now get going.
***************
As part of FOOT FORWARD MINISTRIES (a teaching and speaking ministry), Go Forward in Faith represents faith-based meditations for personal and professional growth. Join the Facebook group @goforwardinfaith.
goforwardinfaith.com 