IIW Blog
Why New Year Is in the Dead of Winter
It’s fascinating to me that our New Year here in Western culture occurs in the dead of Winter. I know other cultures’ New Year occurs at different times of the year, and that’s great. I’m sure God is speaking to all cultures with the timing of their New Year celebration, but I’m only qualified to...Read the Post→
How to Live through Painful Holidays by Doing a Gift Exchange with Jesus
When I was a kid, Christmas couldn’t come fast enough. I loved the big family gatherings, seeing my cousins, all the great food (especially my mom’s fudge), decorating the tree, and of course all the presents. I loved it all. And my birthday is in December. It was the best month of the year. Now,...Read the Post→
Why I Would Rather Live in Failure than Regret
At the end of the day, we all have a choice to make. To keep going or quit. Those are the only two options. We all can have many pivots along the way, where we quit something lesser to pursue something greater. But we never want to quit something greater to pursue nothing at all....Read the Post→
The Key to Living in the Inheritance of Abundance, and Not Entitlement, by Embracing Gratitude
So many people live in a scarcity mindset. This causes jealousy and self-destructive behavior in relationships. These people intrinsically believe there’s only a limited amount and I might not have enough. For example, when bosses sabotage their up-and-coming star employees, they’re afraid and threatened by another’s success because of a scarcity mindset. “If you succeed,...Read the Post→
The 4 Masks of Wounding and An Invitation to Healing
So often the thing that’s causing the pain in our lives isn’t what we think. It isn’t the blatantly obvious bad fruit like self-destructive addictions or jacked-up relationships. It isn’t the less obvious bad fruit like workaholism or perfectionism. The thing that’s causing the pain in our lives is wounding. But too often we don’t...Read the Post→
God Is Anti-Formula and Pro-Partnership
Although there are principles and guidelines clearly spelled out in the Bible, God is intentionally anti-formula. In fact, he goes out of his way to avoid patterns that we could turn into a formula. Because he values something so much more. Partnership with us. Old Testament: Every Battle is Different In the Old Testament, there...Read the Post→
The One Healthy Goal of Relationship (and Two Unhealthy Goals)
We all yearn for relationships. God, as the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), is in relationship within himself. And we were created in God’s image (Genesis 1:26-27). So we were created specifically for relationships, with God and with each other. We are hard-wired by God to need relationships. We can’t be healthy without them....Read the Post→
How to Cut Unrighteous Soul Ties in 5 Steps
Have your head and your heart ever disagreed? Especially about whether a relationship is over or not? In your head, you’re totally over it. But your heart keeps weeping, and try as you might, you can’t stuff it down. And, even in other relationships, it keeps flooding back into your mind? You might be suffering...Read the Post→
7 Traits of a Healthy Group
If you’re looking to join a healthy group, whether it’s a church, a mastermind, an association, or a support group, here are 7 traits to look for. 1) Givers They are givers, giving to others more than they take. And no one is keeping score. There’s no “you owe me because I helped you.” Their...Read the Post→
Why You Need Support Not Accountability
Accountability groups, or accountability partners, are big in some Christian circles. But, while well-intentioned, accountability’s not all it’s cracked up to be. What you actually need is support, not accountability. Here are 4 reasons why. 1) Support Helps, Accountability Controls The critical difference between accountability and support is that accountability is “friendly” control, while support...Read the Post→