Each week our pastors study diligently to deliver practical, thought-provoking messages from the Word of God.
We can all have the kind of heart that finds favor with God. Mary’s world was turned upside down in a terrifying way, but she gave a resounding, joy-filled “yes” back to God. When God interrupts our lives, how will we respond? God doesn’t chose us for selfish joy; He often interrupts us and asks us to forsake our ease and our comfort for a task that requires all of us.
Read MoreSuffering is a universal human experience. However, we can rejoice in physical suffering because Christ suffered the wrath of God for us so that we could have a relationship with Him. In the midst of all things, good and bad, we can find gratitude because of Christ and all we have in Him. We must divorce our gratitude from our circumstances. We can rise above our circumstances with a heart of gratitude because we have Christ.
Read MoreOur default is to think and to live without gratitude. We have a negativity bias. Good is never good enough for us. This default to ingratitude is destructive. We pay a price for it. It is a form of self-harm. All of this is a product of narcissism. Until you see yourself for who you are and recognize all you've been given, this default that harms yourself will continue.
Read MoreNew things often lose their value. However, when it comes to relationships, the more time that has passed, the greater the value of the relationship. If one continues in persistent well-doing, he will find great value in long-term relationships.
Read MoreExpressing gratitude directly counteracts the effects of your default happiness set-point. Gratitude will produce a happier and better life. If you want to move your happiness set-point, express gratitude. If you want a better life, find gratitude.
Read MoreNoah displayed gratitude towards God by offering a sacrifice even when it was not commanded of him. He simply thought of God’s goodness to him and his family. This recognition led him to a heart of gratitude.
Read MoreGod’s expectation of us is that we be moderate in our relationships. Tension is the default in most relationships, but moderation should lead to unity behind the mission of the church.
Read MoreHow you come to the Lord matters. How you respond to Christ determines His response to you. No one loves you like the Lord, but the response you get from Him will be a direct result of the response you give to Him.
Read MoreWhen was the last time you needed God to do something special in your life? When was the last time you really needed God? The challenge from this message is simple: live in such a way that you need God. We all need stories to tell about what God is doing in our lives and if we don’t have them, maybe we are not doing all we can and should for God.
Read MoreThe paradox of Proverb 11:24 runs throughout the Word of God. Open hands lead to more, and clenched hands lead to less. When it comes to generosity or the lack thereof, you will live in the environment you create.
Read MoreJosiah's ambitions exceeded God's direction. We have to remember God's sovereignty. We have to do things God's way. A failure to do things God's way will mess up happy. Lean on your own understanding, and you will pay the price.
Read MoreThe temple did not and could not function apart from the service of good people. Just as the temple did not and could not, our church cannot function without the service of good people.
Read MoreWe are response-able. We have the ability to effect, with our response, the outcome of many situations in our lives. There is a difference between those who act on what they are supposed to do and those who don't.
Read MoreAsking the right questions in life leads to right action. Perhaps the most dangerous incorrect question we ask in life is "why?" It creeps into our thinking and makes us feel sorry for ourselves. When we think and act like victims, no one benefits. The best way to eliminate the victim mentality in our world is to eliminate it in ourselves.
Read MoreAction follows thought. What we end up doing originates in our minds. If you want to change your actions, you have to change your thinking. We need to learn to take personal responsibility and think the right way.
Read MoreSin perverts the goodness we are supposed to show to one another. It disrupts our relationships. That is why Paul said "crucify the Flesh." Our flesh is dead, and we are made alive in the Spirit. Since our life is in the Spirit, we ought to act like it. This should improve our relationships
Read MoreWhen we stand before the judge, how will the Lord find you: guilty or not guilty? We are not to presume on God’s grace but to grow in it. We are to grow and be better people each and every day. The Lord should not find us the same as the day He saved us. We ought to be better.
Read MoreThe world may scoff. The world may mock and ask, “Where is the Lord?” But the reality is that the Lord is coming back; it will be a day of judgment, and it will not be a good day for those opposed to God. However, God is long-suffering, and every day He delays His coming is a display of His patience. The only reason He delays His coming is that men might repent. God values lost people, and we ought to be part of the process of bring men to faith in Him.
Read MoreThe belief that “we can do what we want because we are already saved” is empty. The people that teach that and similar beliefs are like a well without water. They have no depth; their lives are empty. Are you a dry well? If someone came to you would they leave thirsty or quenched? How do you fill your well? By going to Christ every day. He is the everlasting water. We are all subject to other influences in our lives. We can be mastered by God or self, but we can’t be mastered by both. Every time you give in to your own selfish wants and desires, you become more of a slave to self. We can overcome that, but we have to make God our master. We have to love Him, know Him, and want to serve Him.
Read MoreThere is a right way to live, and we all know that our feet have at one point strayed from the good and right path. If we are going to stay on the right path, we need to remember that there is a spiritual battle being waged, and we can never allow pleasure to become life’s supreme goal.
Read More
