John is my absolute favorite book in the Bible. I read sequentially, so every time it comes around again I get excited. This week, I was in John Chapter 2 when a question popped into my mind I had never considered before. “Why was turning water into wine Jesus’ first miracle?” I didn’t know right… Continue reading 3 Reasons Jesus First Turned Water into Wine
This blog started with a dream. In it, I reached for my cell phone and saw the back had a raised image of an idol god on it. When I woke up, it occurred to me that maybe God was trying to tell me something. I thought hard about what the idol god looked like… Continue reading 4 Questions to See if Your Phone is An Idol
In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus gave us the Great Commission. It’s a call for every Christian to tell others about the salvation that can only be found in Christ. For many Christians, talking to people about Jesus can be a definite step outside the comfort zone. We feel inadequate or even afraid to push others away… Continue reading 70 Ideas to Spread the Gospel with Food
The Bible is filled with references to shepherds and sheep. While sometimes a sheep is just a sheep, a lot of the time, the term is used as a symbol for human followers in dire need of someone to lead them. See, on their own, sheep (like people) are kind of a mess. They need… Continue reading Why Is the Lord Compared to a Shepherd?
Human beings are vessels. We are containers that, when empty, can be filled and used (2 Timothy 2:21). Recently, a new Christian movement has encouraged emptying oneself in order to receive from God. It’s called “contemplative prayer,” and it involves centering one’s focus on the presence of God, sometimes by repeating a word or phrase.… Continue reading How to Empty Yourself and Fill Up With God
Hebrews 9:22 says that without shedding of blood there will be no remission of sin. It started after Adam and Eve’s transgression in the Garden of Eden. God clothed their nakedness with animal skin (Genesis 3:21). That system of animal sacrifice as a temporary covering for sin would last for about four thousand years. But it… Continue reading What Is Sin & Why Is Blood the Price of It?
In Revelation 3:16-17, Jesus tells the church at Laodicea that they are lukewarm, neither cold nor hot. It’s a metaphor describing the condition of their spiritual walk, and it comes with consequences that are as vivid as they are dire: God will vomit them out of His mouth. But what does it mean to be… Continue reading Are You a Lukewarm Christian? 3 Steps to Red Hot
In the book of Revelation, the Church of Sardis has a name that it’s alive, but it’s dead. John writes about it in Revelation 3:1-6. Just six little verses tell a whole lot of information, not only about the church of that time, but also the churches of America and the West today. See, Sardis… Continue reading 3 Kinds of People In the Church of Sardis Today
Let’s face it. Forgiveness is hard. Whether you are the one asking for it or the one giving it, it’s challenging either way. This week, I had experiences with both, and Matthew 6:14-15 says that’s the way it has to be. But whether it is our own sin we have to take before God or… Continue reading Forgiveness For Me; Forgiveness For You
Anxiety is real, even in believers. No matter how many times we recite Matthew 6:27, telling ourselves not to worry about tomorrow, sometimes we just can’t help it. The bad news blares at us from every available media mechanism. And, even our own spirits bear witness that we are in the last days. Things are… Continue reading Easing Anxiety With the Providence of God
