Christmas: It’s All Good
When we hear good news, we lean in and hope it’s true—even before believing it. So if the message of Christianity is supposedly good, why don’t more people lean in? Perhaps we need to take a fresh look at this good news to see if our current version is in line with the original one. […]
Shining Through
During times of crisis, there is something that those who follow Jesus should be doing above anything else – letting their light shine. Doing this in times of trouble and uncertainty may not answer why bad things are happening, but it will demonstrate where our hope lies. How do we let our light shine in […]
Defined
Defined: Who God Says You Are How do you define yourself? The more you have going for you, the more potential you have for identity problems. Here’s why: it’s easier for you to base your identity on the wrong thing. All identity problems have the same cause and the same cure. It does not matter […]
Love Thy Neighbor
Someone once asked Jesus what the greatest commandment was. His answer, was to love God and love your neighbor. Loving God was easy. Loving your neighbor? Not so much. Luckily Jesus knew that. That’s why he gave us a road map for loving our neighbor. Let’s explore two ways we can instantly begin to make […]
Not In It To Win It
People sometimes use religion to justify positions, especially around social and political topics. But our faith was never intended to try and win arguments. In fact, it’s just the opposite. Jesus did not play to win, he actually played to lose. His first century followers took up their cross rather than their rights, after they […]
Don’t Settle
To settle is to choose what is safe or easy over what is risky or costly. When we find ourselves in the midst of a pandemic like the one we are experiencing it is particularly tempting to settle while we wish for a return to our old normal. But perhaps we should view this time […]
Raise The Sails
A sailboat doesn’t get movement without the wind. Therefore, the wind is the most important element in sailing. If you have no wind, you have no movement, and you aren’t going anywhere. The same is true with a movement of God. No movement can happen without the wind of the Holy Spirit. But something else […]
Prepared
Are you ever afraid someone will ask you why you believe what you believe? Do you fear someone might question what you believe? Responding to people’s questions and challenges can get complicated. But what if you were confident that you had the answer to these critical questions about your faith? And what if you knew […]
Bystander
While believing in Jesus gives hope, Christianity is not based on hope or blind faith. It’s based on evidence. As an eyewitness to many of Jesus’ miracles, the apostle John reminds us that the supernatural feats of Jesus are not just random acts of kindness meant to help and inspire people. They are signs that […]
Better
Most of us want 2020 to be better than last year. We start off with good intentions by making commitments to improve but we inevitably end up not following through. Better requires a bit of honest and awkward evaluation. It requires some honest and awkward transparency as well. Commitment isn’t enough. You must be connected […]