Category Archives: Be Zealous. 2025 Theme

Have you ever read the story of the lighthouse keeper? There are several versions, one goes like this.

Years ago, along a rugged stretch of coastline, there stood a small but vital lighthouse. It was manned by a faithful lighthouse keeper named Elias, who took great pride in his duty. Every evening, he would carefully trim the lamp, clean the lens, and ensure the light burned brightly through the night, guiding ships safely past the jagged rocks. Continue reading →

One of the great enemies of zeal that threatens to extinguish its fire is weariness.

Weariness may be described as fatigue. Exhaustion. Or burnout. One writer offered this insight about the serious challenge of weariness.

“Weariness undermines zeal by diminishing motivation, reducing focus, and leading to spiritual burnout. It can make it difficult to maintain the enthusiasm and passion needed for long-term dedication to a cause or goal, especially in spiritual contexts.” Continue reading →

A Bible class teacher was presenting the lesson to a children’s class about Jesus’ parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector who “went up to the Temple to pray.”

The Pharisees said, “God, I thank You that I am not like other men.” He then began to recite the sins he didn’t commit. Extortion. Adultery. And injustice. He even cited the Tax Collector saying, “Thank God, I’m not like him.” Continue reading →

In Christian literature, numerous authors and religious thinkers have compared spiritual passion to the components of a fire. Samuel Ward called it “The Holy Fire of Zeal.”

Discussing the need for spiritual fervor, Liam Thatcher uses the imagery in “Living Sacrifice: Fire and Fuel.” Continue reading →

Years ago a family from Mississippi visited the congregation where I was preaching. They brought with see them his mother, Evelyn, who had recently retired to Florida. Evelyn’s son asked me if I would visit his mother, who was not a Christian, and try to secure a Bible study with her. Continue reading →

Michael Jinkins tells a story about Clarence Jordan, author of the “Cotton Patch” New Testament translation. Jordan was the founder of the interracial Koinonia farm in Americus, Georgia, and suffered ridicule, threats, and finally his buildings burned in protest to his work. Undaunted, he rebuilt and continued his ministry. Continue reading →

Religious surveys conducted by organizations like the Barna group and others have shown that the “more friendships a person has in a congregation, the less likely they are to become inactive or leave.”

I recently read one survey of over 400 people who were asked why they left the church. More than 75% responded, “I didn’t feel anyone cared whether I was there or not.” Continue reading →

“We suffer from the “4 F’s” in life– fear, failure, frustration, and fatigue.”

While attributed to various authors, these 4 challenges are widely recognized in the realm of psychology. They constitute the commonality of experiences and emotions of all human kind. And Christians are not exempt.

These challenges can dampen our zest for life, diminish our passion for projects we once enjoyed, and severely decrease our get-up-and go. This is also true regarding our spiritual fervor. Continue reading →

The 17th century British preacher John Wesley is estimated to have ridden over 250,000 miles on horseback preaching, teaching and ministering. He preached over 40,000 sermons.

Wesley authored over 400 publications in his lifetime. At age 83 was still writing, however, he was disappointed that after 15 hours at his desk his eyes would begin to hurt. At age 86, he was still preaching, but sad that he only had the stamina to preach twice a day instead of three times as he had for many years. Continue reading →

“Living with zeal is far more than a positive attitude,” wrote Phillip Shumake in his book Lifelong Zeal, “it’s an active part of your character that requires you to expend significant energy.”

Phillip then offers this thoughtful admonition. Continue reading →