If you were to walk down the street and interview 100 people and ask them if love is important, I think you would get almost universal agreement that it is. Even the Beetles sang “All you need is love, love. Love is all you need.” It’s important! Scripture agrees. 1 Corinthians 13:13 says “But now … Read more
According to 2 Peter 1:4-8, while in this struggle to live out our faith we must never accept surrender to sin, we persevere. In that perseverance, we need godliness. But what is godliness? GODLINESS = Total surrender to living Christ’s way. So surrender isn’t always bad, it’s all a matter of what or who you … Read more
It’s ok to say something is really hard. It’s ok to say I haven’t succeeded yet. It’s not ok to quit or surrender. If it’s the right thing to do we should continue to pursue it. This is called perseverance and it’s the subject of the 4th message from our Growing in Faith series based … Read more
We are constantly looking for information. Why do we have such a need to know? Because information influences the choices we make. Knowledge is one of the things that the apostle lists as an area we need to grow in as we are sanctified (2 Peter 1:4-8). But we’re not just talking about information here. … Read more
What do we need in order to keep growing in faith? There is nothing we can do to add to our salvation to get more saved. Yet there are things we are clearly called to pursue as Christians, which are a part of growing in sanctification. Both Paul and Peter address these ideas. In 2 … Read more
Have you ever had a situation where you didn’t really see the full picture? Only having part of the information can lead to some very wrong conclusions. Sometimes I think that is what happens with Jesus at Christmas. We see Jesus coming to save. We see peace and joy. We see love and salvation, and … Read more
The picture we have of Jesus birth in Bethlehem isn’t always perfectly accurate. There are a lot of assumptions that we make based on tradition and parts that we fill in because it seems information is lacking. While exploring one of those issues, we also dive into the reality that Joseph, Mary and baby Jesus … Read more
All things considered most people didn’t notice the arrival of the Messiah. Yet with all of the miracles surrounding Jesus’ birth there was plenty of awe and wonder by those few who did. The Shepherds left praising God for what they had seen. Zacharias & Elizabeth praised God, Simeon and Anna at the temple praised … Read more
Have you ever had a friend that you really liked, but you lost connection? That can happen in a variety of ways. It could be a falling out where feelings are hurt, and decisions are made to end a relationship. It can be a misunderstanding. It could just be things changed, like job, a move, … Read more
How important is thanksgiving or gratitude? Even secular psychologists can prove incredible benefits of practicing thankfulness. It benefits our relationships, physical health, psychological health, sleep, self-esteem, mental strength and it enhances our empathy while reducing aggression. Those are great benefits which may cause us to say I should practice gratitude, but for the prophet Daniel … Read more