Royalty usually moves in the opposite direction of poverty. Kings seek palaces, not stables. Power surrounds itself with comfort, not vulnerability. Yet the Christian story begins with a scandalous reversal: the Creator of everything entered His creation as a helpless baby, born not in a palace, but in a borrowed stable.

When Scripture wants to speak about a life well-lived, it often reaches for the olive tree. Not a flash-in-the-pan crop. Not something harvested quickly and forgotten. But a tree that grows slowly, suffers storms, survives fire, and still produces fruit—sometimes for more than a thousand years.

When Jesus taught His disciples to pray, He began with a simple phrase that reaches deeper than we often realize: “Hallowed be Your name” (Matthew 6:9, NIV). To hallow means to make holy, to set apart, to reverence.

Did you know that most oak trees don’t begin producing acorns until they’re around twenty years old—and according to the University of California’s agriculture bulletin, their peak production doesn’t come until they’re between fifty and eighty?

Is it possible to remain faithful in a world where compromise is the norm—even with our wealth? The Bible reminds us that we live in a fallen world filled with evil deeds.

What if the field you sell today could plant seeds of eternal treasure tomorrow? In Matthew 13:44, Jesus says, “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.”

Did you grow up among Christians who said, “Don’t drink, smoke, chew, or go with folks who do”? Lots of churches had “lists” of what to avoid and definitions of worldliness that might include things like playing cards, dancing, and shopping on Sundays.

You Can’t Take It with You was a Pulitzer Prize–winning 1936 comedic play by George Kaufman and Moss Hart that became an Academy Award–winning movie in 1938. It is about a highly eccentric extended family whose curious members involve themselves in any number of complicated situations.

Poet Percy Green once wrote that “a man of words and not of deeds is like a garden full of weeds.” There are probably some literature professors that would debate the following summation, but a simple way of explaining Green’s lines is that it’s better to take action than simply talk about it.

What if I told you that grit isn’t just about working hard—it’s also about stewardship and wise investing? The Bible teaches us that success isn’t just about talent or intelligence, but about consistent, disciplined effort over time.

I often pray that my children don't take having the Bible in our language for granted. Too often, we neglect it, letting it gather dust on shelves.

Recently I was assisting in facilitating a Steward Investors Masterclass for a group of Faith-Driven investors and was reminded of the importance of surrender.