“A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” - Proverbs 18:24The biblical story of Ruth portrays the kind gesture of a daughter-in-law, and the reward that follows such act.Ruth and Orpah, two Moab women, married two sons of Elimelech and Naomi. When Ruth, Orpah, and Naomi’s husbands died, Naomi made plans to return to Bethlehem, and urged he...  Read More

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. - Hebrews 11:1 Faith operates in the realm of the unseen and it requires a level of trust and hope that can appear to be counter-cultural to society’s standards. However, with faith comes new heights and new opportunities. 24-year old American track-and-field athlete Gabby Thomas was determined to not settle where she...  Read More

“The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever.”  - Isaiah 40:8 Does your faith need refueling? The same way that a gas tank gets drained with time, so can your faith dwindle with the passing of time if you aren’t careful. When you need to refuel, what you need is to go hear the Word of God. That’s why we gather for worship, whether in person or online, because the...  Read More

“For all of God’s promises have been fulfilled in Christ with a resounding ‘Yes!’ And through Christ, our ‘Amen’ ascends to God for his glory.” - 2 Corinthians 1:20The Bible says that God is not a man that should lie. If He spoke it, He will bring it to pass. One reason so many people give up on God in the waiting process is because they do not live as if God is certainly going to do what He said ...  Read More

“Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes.” - Psalms 37:7There is a story in Luke about a man named Simeon who waited his entire life to see the Messiah, the one who would save and lead the people of God and establish a new kingdom. Simeon is told by the Holy Spirit that he would not see de...  Read More

“Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires.” - Psalm 37:4Psalm 37 is one that encourages so many when they read it. If you read it, you will find you can receive the desires of your heart. When reading verse 4, many get excited; “Take delight in the Lord, and he will you your heart’s desires.” You begin to think about what you desire and how God is promising to give it to...  Read More

God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. - James 1:12 On April 30, 1945, an unknown Jewish writer left a note for a friend who helped him escape Nazi persecution by hiding him in his home. In the note, he writes, “thank you for what you did for me. You and your family have shown grace ra...  Read More

“Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, Wait patiently for the Lord.” – Psalms 27:14 Author and speaker Joyce Meyer once said, “Patience is not simply the ability to wait – it’s how we behave while we’re waiting.” There is a process that you must endure; but if you remember that there is purpose in the wait, it will help you to navigate difficult days. In Genesis 37–50, the story is told of a young Joseph who was sold into slavery by his brothers out of hatred and jealousy. Joseph went from being a personal servant and being falsely accused of rape followed by imprisonment, to being the highest official in ancient Egypt to serve the pharaoh. He ultimately established peace with his brothers. Joseph said to his brothers, “do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives…God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance. Joseph understood that his journey had purpose and meaning. No matter what you are going through, there are a couple of things that you can do will waiting on God. First is to pursue your faith. Instead of filling yourself with worry and doubt, use that time to pray. Stand on the Word of God. Use that time to develop patience and understanding. Second, change your attitude. Your next level will require a stronger and more mature version of yourself. Challenges will be on that level as well. Taking on an attitude of gratitude will make the wait more manageable. Third, serve others. When you are helping others, you have less time to focus on your problems. If you are faithful with the little things, God can trust you with the larger things. Don’t waste your waiting period of the things you cannot control. Allow God to prepare you for what you are going to receive and continue to live out His will for your life in the meantime. God’s ultimate purpose is to make you more like Jesus. And that is worth the process.   Read More

“Wait patiently for the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.” – Psalms 27:14 Few things are more frustrating in life than waiting. For the impatient, waiting can be torture. When you are a child, you must wait twelve years to graduate from high school and hopefully leave your parents’ house. When you are applying to college, you must wait for the acceptance letter to find out whether you have been admitted. When you meet someone special with whom you see a future, you must wait for the relationship to develop and mature before you can move through its various stages. When you are expecting a newborn child, you must wait nine months, oftentimes through pain and discomfort until the baby finally arrives. Life is filled with periods of waiting. And when you must wait, discouragement can set in. It can cause you to lose sight of your goals, your dreams, and your aspirations. As time passes, you begin to question and wonder if what you are waiting for will ever come to be. Will your time ever come? God uses waiting periods to grow and mature us; the wait strengthens our faith and gives us the tools we will need on the next level God has for us. The best lessons are learned in the journey and not the destination. God does not want you to give up though. If you are currently waiting on God, do not waiver. You will never regret waiting on Him. His timing is always perfect.   Read More

“Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.” – Galatians 1:10If you truly want to set yourself free and claim the freedom Christ offers, you must resist the urge to compare yourselves to others. In Galatians, Paul speaks on the issue of circumcision. The Judaizers were...  Read More

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” – Romans 3:23 You don’t have to be perfect. You just have to be committed. God is big enough, God is good enough, and God is great enough to handle your imperfections. God used Abraham even though he lied about Sarah. God used Noah even though he got drunk. God used David even though he took another man’s wife. Yet what makes these characte...  Read More

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Galatians 5:1 Perfectionism is a very rigid view of life that assumes that one’s worth and acceptance is contingent upon doing everything perfectly with no flaws; however, it’s this pursuit of flawlessness that leads us on a fast track towards unhappiness and depression because perfection is an illusion—an impossibility. Spiritual perfectionism will have us believing that we can earn God’s grace and favor by the things that we do. Yes, it is important to seek to live a Spirit-filled life. But we must recognize that we will fall short of God’s glory at some point. So, there is no need to throw in the towel and give up on our walk with God. Think about it from the view of a parent. As a parent, you have nurtured your child and you have tried your best to instill great values in that child. However, there will be times when your child makes mistakes. Does this change your love for your child? No. There may be consequences for those actions; however, your child will still be yours regardless; and you still have a high expectation of them to do great things. Sure, you might mess up from time to time. But this does not mean you have to revert back to your old habits. Acknowledge you have messed up, accept God’s forgiveness, and keep pressing on! Do you find this to be a struggle for you? Maybe you continue to go back to your old ways because you feel as though you cannot live a “perfect” spiritual life. Don’t let perfectionism keep you from claiming the freedom God has already given you. Let that bondage go.   Read More

“Jesus replied, ‘Very true I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the son sets you free, you will be free indeed.’” – John 8:36 The abundant life for which Jesus came and died was predicated upon a desire to set us free. John the evangelist conveyed the Lord’s sentiments when he said, “So if the Son ...  Read More

“Then Jesus said to him, ‘Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.’” – John 5:8 Continuing our discussion from yesterday regarding the paralyzed man at a healing pool who was healed by Jesus, this was not the last time that Jesus encountered this man. In John 5:14, it reads, “Later Jesus found him at the temple and said to him, “See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you....  Read More

“Then Jesus said to him, ‘Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.’” – John 5:8 In John 5, a paralyzed man sat at a healing pool for 38 years. Jesus was in Jerusalem for the feast of the Jews, and he decided to visit this pool, where the diseased and disabled frequented. Jesus, on the Sabbath, chose a man amongst the multitude. He asked him, “Do you want to get well?” Why did he ask this question? Because no change was going to be made until the man first acknowledged that he needed it; and that same question applies to us. Each time we choose to give into temptation, we are saying “No, I do not want to get well.” After Jesus asked the man if he wanted to get well, he acknowledged that he didn’t have the help he desired. Jesus cured him and he was able to walk. The cure was not just for himself. The cure was also so that the man could tell others how he was healed. God wants you to start fresh, and every day is a new opportunity to do so. To start fresh, you must first acknowledge that you cannot do it on your own. Once you acknowledge this, and become receptive to God, He can move in your life. And when you receive that healing, you will have a testimony to share with others. Like the paralyzed man, you will be able to share with others that you didn’t make it on your strength alone, but that you serve and Almighty God who brought you out of the dark into the light. This process may not happen overnight. Often, God builds patience in us through the waiting period. No matter how long the wait, commit to submitting to the Lord’s will; and when the wait is over, you will be glad you answered, “Yes I want to made well.”   Read More

“It is for freedom that Christ as set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” – Galatians 5:1 The apostle Paul knew a lot about what it was like to be in prison. During his second missionary journey, he was arrested and imprisoned in Philippi. He was set free by an earthquake that freed him and Silas. After his third missionary journey, he was ...  Read More

“For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” – Romans 13:10 When you sin, you are not the only one who suffers the consequences. Those around you suffer as well. I once heard a preacher ask his audience the question, “Whose life hangs in the balance of the decisions you are making?” This might sound drastic and bold…and well, that’s exactly what it is. Every action has a reaction; in other words, the decisions you make have consequences, which can directly affect your parents, kids, significant other, friends, team players, classmates, employees, and others in your sphere of influence. If you sow good seeds, you reap good seeds, and the same goes if you sow bad seeds. The Bible lays out a general template for operating in the flesh (sinning) vs. operating in the Spirit (living righteously). “Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like…. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5: 19-22). The consequences may not be immediate, but they are eventual. Maybe you are wrapped in sin, and you cannot find your way out. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. That’s where Jesus comes in. He is our help in times of trouble. He will never leave nor forsake us, even when others do. Decide today that you will master the sin and the sin will not master you!   Read More

“This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. – John 15:12 It is easy to love someone who is loving, but what about those who you consider to be hard to love? It’s often difficult to love others because our love is conditional, based on how we feel. However, God measures love by our obedience and not our transitory emotions.1 John 5:2-3 states, “This is how we know that w...  Read More