Would you say that our world is joyful? We’d like it to be joyful, wouldn’t we? Especially at Christmas. Do you ever try to talk yourself into joy? Do you ever find yourself trying to manufacture or evoke joy from others? The truth is that anyone can be joyful for a moment, when everything is … Read more
Most everyone is seeking peace especially during the Christmas season. However, if we are honest with ourselves we might have to admit that we experience a lot more stress than peace. The gospel of Luke chapter 2 is the most well known and most well used Scripture verses of all time as it pertains to … Read more
Today we’re talking about HOPE. Hope is always related to something future that has not yet unfolded. You can’t hope for something that has already materialized or that you can hold in your hand. Then you wouldn’t be hoping, you’d be observing. In order to have hope, you have to hope for something that you … Read more
Empathy is often confused with sympathy but the two are different. To be sympathetic is to feel sorry for the other person. It is to look at someone else’s pain and situation and say or think, “That stink’s!” And then, after we say that to them we just move on with our life because it does … Read more
We’ve all had difficult times where we have felt very alone. Sometimes the people you think will be there aren’t, and the people you never expected are, but either way it can be difficult trust enough to let others into our pain. When I look back, I can see that part of feeling alone was … Read more
Laodicea was a well-fortified city and it was built in a strategic location to be a support to trade routes and to benefit from them. As a result it was exceedingly wealthy. In fact, it was such a wealthy town that 30 years before this letter was written they had experienced a devastating earthquake and … Read more
Everything in the atmosphere eventually wears down and comes to an end. Time closes everything and time shuts it down. Everything that is, except for Christ! Jesus Christ and His truth is timeless and what He puts into motion will stand the test of time. In fact, anything that Christ redeems is eternal. Just as … Read more
From the Church in Sardis we see two truths about reputation: 1. It is possible for people’s perception to be inaccurate. 2. It is also possible for us to be more concerned with our reputation than our reality. The church at Sardis may look alive (reputation), but they are spiritually dead (reality). People may be … Read more
The city of Thyatira in Revelation 2:18-29, was the smallest of the seven cities mentioned in the letter to the churches. Yet, it is to this little known church in a little known city that Christ addresses His longest letter. Christ commends this church for their good works, love, and perseverance. However, in the midst … Read more
I think that most of our issues in life start with feeling vulnerable, afraid or out of control and trying to reassert our will. Maybe you didn’t know it, but that is the foundation of every addiction or unhealthy coping behavior. From cocaine, to food, to obsessive cleaning or even workaholism, we’re constantly trying to … Read more