The reality of suffering affects us all. During seasons of suffering, one’s focus can easily shift from praising God to one’s pain. In these times, though God is still praiseworthy, genuinely praising him becomes difficult.
I am sure you have experienced the painful sensation of biting your lip while eating only to relive the moment repeatedly afterward because your swollen lip finds its way back into every bite. The feeling is the same as hitting a sore thumb, catching a hang nail, or bumping a...
One thing that people love to do is cheer for their sports teams. Currently, the NFL playoffs are going on and you see people from all over the country rooting for their favorite team. One of the games I watched the other day was the Kansas City Chiefs versus the...
I have a confession to make: I love listening to other people’s conversations. Sitting in a coffee shop and listening to the conversations around me is fun. Any time I need a break from reading or writing, I’ll sit there and allow my focus to gravitate toward the loudest conversation...
Focus your mind for a moment on a man Simeon living in Jerusalem some 2000 years ago. He has followed God his whole life and has been faithful and devout in everything that God has asked him to do. As long as he could remember, he had been reading the...
If you have never taken the time to sit down and read 1 John as a whole, this is the week to do it. 1 John is a 5 Chapter book that probably will take you less than 15 minutes to read. While it certainly has some challenging sections, the...
In Mark 2, Jesus is having dinner with his disciples and, to the Pharisees’ surprise, sinners and tax collectors. Instead of asking Jesus directly, the scribes of the Pharisees question Jesus’ disciples about this. Jesus overheard though, and he answered, “It is not those who are healthy who need a...
When is the last time you prayed specifically for boldness? The quality of boldness is not one that is always admirable. Boldness means to be fearless before danger (Merriam-Webster). While that sounds like something we all would want to be, there are plenty of people whose mindless fearlessness has resulted...
Perhaps no other city received Paul and Barnabus with more love than the city of Lystra. In Acts 14 after Paul had healed a lame man while speaking the good news of the Gospel, the people proclaimed out loud, “The gods have become like men and have come down to...
The book of Acts is sometimes known as the "hub" of the Bible. But what is clearly seen is how the gospel message is unleashed and the world is turned upside down after the Day of Pentecost. This series explores the history, sermons and conversions of the book.