“Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying.” Matthew 28:5-6 (NLT) God, in Jesus, chose the path of weakness over power. The cross defines God as One who is willing to relinquish power for the sake of love. Power withou...  Read More

“Make sure that no one is immoral or godless like Esau, who traded his birthright as the firstborn son for a single meal. You know that afterward, when he wanted his father’s blessing, he was rejected. It was too late for repentance, even though he begged with bitter tears.” Hebrews 12:16-17 (NLT)Jesus began His ministry by preaching repentance, and the church began the same way. When God finally ...  Read More

““Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?” Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” Matthew 22:36-39 (NLT) Why bother with relationships? Why can't we just be left alone rather than add more to ou...  Read More

“Finally, Abraham said, “Lord, please don’t be angry with me if I speak one more time. Suppose only ten are found there?” And the Lord replied, “Then I will not destroy it for the sake of the ten.”” Genesis 18:32 (NLT) Sometimes questions are seen as rebellion. I grew up in a church that discouraged questions. No one asked: Why do we do Sunday school? Why do people have to dress up, or be quiet? Q...  Read More

Matthew 12:20 says, “A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out, till he leads justice to victory.”The world is looking for something real, not contrived, masked, or faked. Why do we hide behind masks? If it is fear, what are we afraid of? If we show our real self and are rejected, where do we go? When we want to hide the dark side of our lives from others, we ar...  Read More

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”As believers, are we to just ignore the past and press forward even if we have been sexually or physically abused? In Philippians three, Paul talks about forgetting those things that are behind, but in context he is talking about his victories not his ...  Read More

“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.” Psalms 34:18 (NLT) Remember the life of Joseph? Rejected by his own brothers—falsely accused by his employer; thrown into jail. Forgotten. Eventually redeemed, becomes the number two man in Egypt and runs back into his family. Treats them all well, gives them good jobs and places to live.Then there is young David...  Read More

“Blessed are the meek.” Matt. 5:5 The word “meek” means “not fighting against God”. Lay down your arms and surrender. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve basically shook their fists in the face of God and said, “not your will but our will be done”. We must surrender ourselves to God—saying, “You are God and we are not”. It’s time we stop dictating to God what we like and don’t like; what we will a...  Read More

Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. 1 Corinthians 12:27 (NIV) Many people sit around waiting for the church to do the work of ministry. But in the New Testament, the church is not a building or a meeting; the church is literally ‘the called out ones’; it is the people of God.A young man once approached his pastor one Sunday morning, upset because he felt like the c...  Read More

“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. "Make level paths for your feet," so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.” Hebrews 12:11-13 (NIV)         It has been said that the church is the only institution th...  Read More

“Jesus made a whip from some ropes and chased them all out of the Temple. He drove out the sheep and cattle, scattered the money changers’ coins over the floor, and turned over their tables.” John 2:15 (NLT) He sat down and made the whip himself. This was no flash of rage or impulse. But what was he so angry about?          Jesus, the man of peace, performs a violent act. Everyone seems bewildered...  Read More

”6 When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners. 7 Now, most people would not be willing to die for an upright person, though someone might perhaps be willing to die for a person who is especially good. 8 But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.” Romans 5:6-8 (NLT) If you were given an outrageous ...  Read More