My favorite non-profit organization—One More Child—made emergency shipments to us. Fuel supplies are not what they do, but they understood the crisis and responded. We were rationing half gallons to keep medical equipment running for people with life-threatening conditions. Thankfully, our Governor opened supplies just in time. I don’t want to overdramatize what was happening,... Continue Reading

Every believer, indwelled by the Spirit of Christ, is being anointed with gifts and graces in order to serve, together with the whole church, as Christ’s prophets, priests, and princes in the world today. Bearing witness to Christ in this way is the identity and calling of all believers. We all have the profound privilege... Continue Reading

Without Christ, there is no hope. Apart from unwavering faith in His unwavering promises, would we not, all of us, be undone? Looking at my father from the doorway, weak and worn as he was, these twin realities presented themselves: “Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by... Continue Reading

I was having coffee with one of the people of this church.  I asked them if they knew that God delighted over them.  They asked me how I could say that.  So I showed them this verses from Zephaniah: ‘he will rejoice over you with singing’ (3:17).  That truth made tears run down their cheek. ... Continue Reading

Two angels had been sent by the Lord to warn Lot and his family what was about to happen and take them away from Sodom. Lot, however, “lingered.” His infatuation with Sodom seemed to know no bounds. In response, “the men seized him and his wife and his two daughters by the hand, the Lord... Continue Reading

The call to guard our eyes is not just a warning against overt immorality but a reminder to protect against anything that diverts our hearts from pure devotion to God. Each unguarded thought, each glance that lingers is a potential breach in our spiritual defense, a deviation from holiness that leads to brokenness, strain in... Continue Reading

Practically, in your search for spiritual fathers, you’ll want to find the ones who don’t care how big or small their influence is. Their ambition is to be faithful with the talents they’ve been given — be they one or five. Those who are constantly calculating their speech, and maneuvering their public profile, are (jedi... Continue Reading

We would also do well to realize that more of the deep and tangible sense of God’s involvement in our lives is available to us. When we pray in the Spirit (Ephesians 6:18), walk by the Spirit (Galatians 5:25), and are led by the Spirit (Romans 8:14), we will experience more of the Lord, who... Continue Reading

We believe, by faith not sight, that the Lord was with Gabe through that perilous final journey as he passed through water and fire. We believe, by faith not sight, that when Jesus called his name and said, “you are mine,” Gabe gladly came. And we also believe that it was our privilege to be... Continue Reading

If a stiff-necked Israelite brought an unblemished animal, such an outward act did not fool the Lord or please the Lord. The Lord knows the heart. Therefore, the Israelites needed to approach the Lord with the offering he would welcome and delight in: a broken and contrite heart.   Because of sin, we are not whole.... Continue Reading