As I’ve gotten older, I’ve had to be more careful about what I eat and drink. Certain foods—though I really like them—don’t agree with me the way they used to. In some cases, they make me feel downright sick.

You’d think I would heed wisdom and avoid those things. But more than once, stubbornness has gotten the best of me, and I’ve paid for it. The days that follow usually require lots of water and a determined effort to flush that mess out of my system before I start feeling better.

The funny thing is, I know I’m not alone in this. Most of us have learned—at some point—that certain things aren’t good for us, yet we refuse to let them go. We fall into a familiar cycle: restraint, lapse, then detox… restraint, lapse, detox. And all the while, we keep making ourselves sick because of a lack of discipline.

Repentance is a lot like a spiritual detox. And like any detox, it comes with discomfort—grief, guilt, sorrow, and pain. Repentance and faith do work. They grant us grace—the grace to get up and try again. Thank God for grace! But at some point, we ought to begin learning to do better.

And doing better requires something deeper than behavior modification. It requires an inner transformation—a change in our hearts and minds that begins to reshape our actions, attitudes, and outlook. Get it?

It’s not enough to diet, to abstain, or to set physical limits on ourselves—though those things may work for a season. Lasting transformation comes from an inner change, a yielding of our hearts and minds to the will of God. We need to get clean on the inside.

• Getting clean on the inside means unseating anything—or anyone—that has taken up residence on the throne of our hearts and undermines our relationship with God and our spiritual well-being.
• Getting clean on the inside means decluttering our hearts and minds, turning down the noise, and creating space to hear the voice of the Spirit more clearly.
• Getting clean on the inside means allowing God to cleanse us through the washing of the Word (John 17:17).
• Getting clean on the inside means receiving a spiritual, mental, and emotional detox from the things that make our souls sick, steal our joy, or disrupt our peace.

Paul put it this way:

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Romans 12:2

Are you ready to get clean on the inside?

Good Morning, I love you all!

ihs,

just adam

When I was growing up, my mother had high standards for what clean meant. Housecleaning wasn’t just about appearances. It meant washing walls and baseboards, and scraping gunk out of the windowsills with a butter knife. The smell of Clorox wafting through the air was the scent du jour. By the time I went into the Army, I was well prepared for inspection—because Sarah Nell could give any drill sergeant a run for his money.

From my mother, I learned that looking neat is not the same as being clean. Appearing to have things in order is not the same as being clean. By her standards, it wasn’t enough for something to look clean—it needed to feel clean and smell clean, through and through.

In my mother’s world, there was no shoving things under beds or stuffing them into closets. Nothing was pushed out of sight. She was meticulous about keeping a clean house.

Oh, that we would take such care when considering the contents of our hearts and minds.

Politeness is no replacement for a pure heart. Courtesy is no cover for corrupt intentions. Gentility is a poor substitute for genuine grace and generosity. And no amount of religiosity can reckon with our need for a real and right relationship with God.

Doing what appears to be right is not always the same as doing what is actually right. Doing the right thing must include right intentions and right timing.

Jesus said it like this:

“Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.
Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean.

Matthew 23:26-28

Lord, grant us clean hands and pure hearts!

Good Morning, I love you all!

ihs,

just adam

There are moments when circumstances squeeze us into tight places—spaces where our integrity is tested. I wish I could say I always pass with shining colors, but that wouldn’t be true.

Still, it’s good to remember that our character is not defined by a single moment. It is graciously carved over time—through trials, through trips, and yes, through triumphs.

When we’ve been with Jesus, there is grief when we fall short, gladness when we rise to meet the challenge faithfully, and grace no matter what.

Peter, perhaps, understood this better than most. But if we’re honest, all of us have moments that are far from stellar.

Thank God the grace we encounter when we have been with Jesus is persistent—somehow always right there when we need it most. Grace comes after us. Yes, there is conviction. Yes, there is correction. But there is always comfort, too.

During the trial of Jesus, Peter tried to conceal his identity. Yet even in denial, Christ’s presence could not be hidden…

“But a certain maid beheld him as he sat by the fire, and earnestly looked upon him, and said, This man was also with Him. And he denied Him, saying, Woman, I know Him not.”
Luke 22:56–57

When we’ve been with Jesus, there is something about us—something that refuses to stay hidden.

Have you been with Jesus?

Stop trying to hide it. Those who have been with Him cannot prevent His grace from breaking through—even through the cracks created by our own failures. Even our weaknesses bear witness to the sufficiency of His grace.

Stop hiding. Accept your sacred identity. Get up from where you’ve stumbled, and get going.

Have you been with Jesus?

I don’t care where you’ve been or what you’ve done. Get up. Get going. Grace is coming after you.

Good morning. I love you all.

ihs,
just adam

When I woke up this morning, I rose with a question resting in my heart. I found myself retracing the landscape of my life—remembering those who encouraged me, challenged me, and helped shape who I am today. Thank God for so many faithful witnesses.

So let me ask you:

Who taught you about Jesus?

I’ve come to realize that who taught us about Jesus has a great deal to do with what we know about Him—what we believe about Him—and whether or not we choose to follow Him at all.

Listen.

The greatest evangelists in Scripture are not those who merely studied the Messiah, but those who encountered Him for themselves and then went about telling the story of what they experienced.

We tend to give the most weight to those with education, credentials, or polished abilities. But I want to suggest to you—like Jesus said to Martha—“one thing is needful.”

Have you been with Jesus?

Have you witnessed for yourself His grace and His power?
Has He changed your life?
Did He heal you?
Did He pick you up when you were down?
Did He deliver you?
Did He comfort you—keep you—when you couldn’t keep yourself?

Have you been with Jesus?

You all know that I’m inclined to study, and I believe study is an act of obedience to the command to love God with all our heart, our mind, and our strength. But life has taught me this:

Talking about Jesus is not the same as talking to Jesus.
Reading Scripture is not the same as sitting under a text and allowing it to read you.
Learning someone else’s story is not the same as telling your own.

Sadly, many of us learned about Jesus from people who barely knew Him—or didn’t know Him at all. And I wonder how much that has distorted our view of who He really is.

So I’ll ask again:

Have you been with Jesus?

Remember that story.
Rejoice in your story.
Repeat your story.

Tell it—and watch how it resonates with those God places in your path.

The greatest evangelists in Scripture were not the scholars or the scribes, but ordinary people just like you and me who met a Man who was God in the flesh.

Have you been with Jesus?

Tell your story.

“The woman then left her waterpot, and went her way into the city, and saith to the men,
Come, see a man, which told me all things that ever I did: is not this the Christ?
Then they went out of the city, and came unto him.”
John 4:28–30

Good morning. I love you all.

ihs,
just adam

The world doesn’t lack passion. It lacks footing.

In a recent Ministry Collaborative podcast, Mark Ramsey quoted an old saying:

“Give me a place to stand, and I will move the world.”

That simple sentence exposes a hard truth: movement without a foundation is just motion—and motion alone rarely changes anything.

I’ve been pondering his words, and I’ve come to a less-than-obvious conclusion.

Much of our ineffectiveness—in life, in relationships, and in ministry—comes from an unwillingness to take a stand on what truly matters, or even to dare say that some things matter more than others.

I appreciate the impulse behind the idea that everything matters to someone, depending on perspective. It is a generous instinct, rooted in a desire to affirm people. But even noble intentions carry risks.

When everything matters, nothing does.

When vision is distorted by isolation, individualism, or materialism, we become myopic—unable to see clearly. In those moments, what we need is a better lens.

For those who preach or lead congregations—and for all who seek to follow Jesus—that lens is grace: grace that calls for righteousness and justice without condemning those who have been deceived by selfishness and insularity. It is grace that affirms the life and dignity of all God’s creation. It is compassion. It is generosity.
Where we stand, if we hope to move the world, is in Christ, with Christ, and on Christ.

If we want to move the world, the question is not whether we are passionate enough. The question is, ‘Where are we standing?’

The Church does not need more motion. It needs more grounding.

My ancestors understood this when they sang words that carried faith through uncertainty and loss:

My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness
I dare not trust the sweetest frame
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name

On Christ, the Solid Rock, I stand
All other ground is sinking sand…
All other ground… is sinking sand!

The Apostle Paul said it like this:

For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
1 Corinthians 3:11

Learning where to stand requires:

• Naming your Ground
This week, take time to name—out loud or in writing—what you are actually standing on.
Ask yourself: What convictions shape my decisions when no one is watching?
If Christ is our foundation, clarity matters.
• Practicing Discernment, Not Equivalence
Resist the pressure to treat everything as equally urgent.
Pay attention to what you elevate with your time, energy, and attention.
Some things matter more—and choosing wisely is an act of faith, not exclusion.
• Letting Grace Be Your Lens
Before reacting, judging, or withdrawing, ask: Am I seeing this through grace?
Grace does not deny truth or justice—it grounds them in compassion and generosity.
• Examining Your Movement
Notice where you are busy but ungrounded.
Activity is not the same as faithfulness.
Ask: Is my movement rooted in Christ, or driven by anxiety, outrage, or fear?
• Seeking Community
Faith was never meant to be practiced alone.
Seek grounding in community—through worship, conversation, prayer, and shared discernment.
Standing firm is easier when we stand together.
• Maintaining your Foundation
Make space each day—however briefly—to return to Christ as your footing.

If we want to move the world, we don’t start by running – we start by standing—

in Christ,
with Christ,
and on Christ.

ihs,
just adam

February 3, 2026 – BHM

When I was about six years old, standing in the yard with my mother, while I can’t remember what was going on at the time, or what I had said or done, but I remember clearly her saying to me,

“Adam, you know what’s right.
No matter what’s going on.
No matter who’s around you.
You know what’s right.”

As a young man, I resented her words. They haunted me—returning at the most inopportune moments, interrupting my mischief.

As I grew up, however, I began to appreciate her words. And as I’ve grown older, I feel the full weight of her words. Way back then, Sarah Nell was speaking words that would one day give—and save—my life.

I can hear the voice of the Spirit in her words…

We must not lose our souls.
We must not yield to easy assimilation masquerading as integration.
We must not surrender our distinction.
We must not allow frustration to become despair—
despair that tempts us to collude with the powerful.
We must not mimic their ways.
We must preserve our integrity.

With justice and reconciliation as our goal,
and love as our sole motivation—
joy, creativity, resilience, compassion:
these are our weapons.
This is our protest.

I say to you—brothers and sisters, men and women of faith:

We know what’s right.
No matter what’s going on.
No matter who’s around us.
We know what’s right!

We know what’s right. Now let’s get to it.

He has shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the LORD require of you,
But to do justly,
To love mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God?
Micah 6:8

Good Morning, I love you all!

ihs,
just adam

How do we truly measure success?

If our worth isn’t defined by what we produce, then what standards should guide us? The way we choose our metrics—how we measure and qualify achievement—shapes not only our goals, but also our sense of fulfillment. Instead of simply counting results or focusing on the end destination, it’s worth asking: what really matters in the journey? 

Results or Reasons

Results matter, for sure, but not at the expense of the means and methods of achieving them. Our whys and hows are as important as goals we aim to reach.

Our motivations matter.  Our intentions matter.  Our methods do matter.  And I would dare say that these are at least as important as the outcomes we seek.

I reckon we need to begin to ask ourselves better questions, huh?

Reflections

• Are my actions motivated by love?  Do my actions elevate others? 

• Is what I’m saying, doing, or thinking helping to create joy in my life and in the lives of others? 

• Will my accomplishments only benefit me?

• Am I operating from a place of guilt and insecurity, or acting from a place of freedom and abundance?  

• Why am I doing this? How do I apply myself to the tasks before me?

These are better questions that allow us to examine ourselves while developing better ways of being that are actually life-giving and liberating for both us and others.  

The former ways bring exhaustion and frustration, only the latter yields contentment and confidence.

Get it?

²³ And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; ²⁴ Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ.

Colossians 3:23-24

Good Morning, I love you all!

ihs,

just adam

The Search for Meaning

From the moment we are young, we begin a lifelong search for meaning. We quickly learn that certain actions bring rewards, while others lead to consequences. Over time, our sense of self-worth becomes tied to what we do—our achievements, our productivity, and the judgments of others.

The Cycle of Busyness

Society teaches us that what matters most is what we produce. The idol of productivity demands constant performance. When circumstances or challenges prevent us from “doing,” our identity feels threatened. This relentless system of busyness leaves even the most successful among us feeling empty, questioning our value, longing for meaning, and searching for peace.

No matter how hard we work, this cycle never delivers true contentment or confidence. Instead, it drives us to exhaustion, convincing us that our lives only matter when we are producing, achieving, or accumulating.

The Invitation to Rest

But there is hope. Thank God for Jesus, who reminds us that our value is not measured by what we produce. We are valuable simply because of who we are. Jesus says, “Consider the birds of the air”—they do not earn their worth, yet they are cared for.

Peace comes with His presence, and rest is not something we must earn. It is a gift of grace, freely given. We do not have to surrender to the grind to find meaning. Instead, we can ground ourselves in grace, remembering that our being, not our doing, defines our worth.

A Gentle Reminder

I need this reminder often, and perhaps you do too:

“…Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these…”
Matthew 6:28-29

Good morning. I love you all.

ihs,
just adam