The Blazing Center

The Skittle Lined Path

17 May 2010

456219 CommentsThe+Skittle+Lined+Path2010-05-17+22%3A00%3A02Stephen+Altrogge

I’m going to let you in on a personal secret. This may come as a surprise to some of you, but it’s true: I don’t like it when life gets hard. I want my walk with Jesus to be all pleasant, all the time. I would prefer minimal to no suffering, and would like most [...]

Though I Starve, I Will Bless the Lord

15 October 2009

32355 Comments2009-10-15+10%3A00%3A08Stephen+Altrogge

Though the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the vines, the produce of the olive fail and the fields yield no food, the flock be cut off from the fold and there be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will take joy in the God [...]

Enjoying Where God Has You Now

24 September 2009

316715 CommentsEnjoying+Where+God+Has+You+Now2009-09-24+10%3A00%3A56Stephen+Altrogge

If traveling to the future were an option, I’d be all over it. The future has such promise, and I’ve spent many hours pondering what’s to come. When I was single the future held the promise of marriage. Now that I’m married the future holds the promise of buying a house. I longed for the [...]

Taking Away the Sting of Affliction

30 June 2009

26198 CommentsTaking+Away+the+Sting+of+Affliction2009-06-30+10%3A00%3A18Stephen+Altrogge

Only two types people can be content in the midst of affliction: Monkish types who wear chafing robes and seek to overcome pain by annihilating their desires and Christians who have found their contentment in something, or more specifically someone, other than their circumstances. Jeremiah Burroughs puts is this way: There is a power of [...]

I’m a Greedy, Discontented Pig

23 June 2009

25996 CommentsI%27m+a+Greedy%2C+Discontented+Pig2009-06-23+13%3A59%3A20Stephen+Altrogge

Discontentment does funny things to me. Like turn me into a greedy, ungrateful pig. Point in case: my budget. There are times when money is a teensy bit on the tight side. My bank account starts running thin, and the McDonald’s value menu starts to look like a little bit of heaven. You’ve all been [...]

Some People Have to Learn the Hard Way

16 June 2009

25428 CommentsSome+People+Have+to+Learn+the+Hard+Way2009-06-16+10%3A00%3A59Stephen+Altrogge

If only… You complete the sentence. If only my mom was in better health. If only I wasn’t drowning in housework. If only I could get a job that paid me what I’m worth. If only I could get rid of these constant headaches. If only I could get married, buy a car, own my [...]

When Your Shrimp Are Too Big

10 June 2009

252313 CommentsWhen+Your+Shrimp+Are+Too+Big2009-06-10+10%3A00%3A10Mark+Altrogge

Years ago, when my wife told me she had entered a contest on the local Christian TV station to win a cruise, I said, “Kristi, why waste a stamp? Nobody ever wins those things.” A few weeks later I heard Kristi answer the phone: “Yes, this is Kristi. What? Are you kidding?” Yes, Kristi’s name [...]

Did Paul Wear Wrestling T-Shirts?

3 February 2009

18234 CommentsDid+Paul+Wear+Wrestling+T-Shirts%3F2009-02-03+10%3A00%3A47Stephen+Altrogge

I’ve never been a big fan of t-shirts with cheesy, tough-man slogans splashed across the front. You know the kind I’m talking about. The words are written in jagged lettering and say something like, “Pain is just weakness leaving the body”, or, “No pain, no gain”, or “I like being jabbed in the eye with [...]

The Cubicle of Death

4 March 2008

2872 CommentsThe+Cubicle+of+Death2008-03-04+13%3A00%3A00Stephen+Altrogge

There’s a well known saying that, “The grass is always greener when you dump lots of manure on it.” So true indeed. There’s another, lesser known saying that goes something like, “The grass is always greener on the other side.” Also very true. In fact, I’m living proof. When I was in high school, I [...]

Remedies For The Discontented Heart

15 September 2007

1181 CommentRemedies+For+The+Discontented+Heart2007-09-15+15%3A16%3A00Stephen+Altrogge

Go to God, your exceeding joy. Psalm 43:4 says, “Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy…” God is the source of all joy, deep joy, exceeding joy. When you’re tempted to be discontented, run to God, the source of your joy. The temptation in discontentment is to do [...]