Articles
Let There Be Light: The Secret to True Security [sermon 2/4 in series]
Sermon Manuscript: Good morning, let’s get right to work, please open your Bibles to the Gospel of John on page 886. I want your eyes on this passage. You can follow on YouVersion too. We are going to begin our study in the Gospel of John and understand further what Jesus meant when he said, in John 8:12, “I am the...
Loving Christ Over Ministry
“For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you but Christ and Him crucified.” 1 Corinthians 2:2 Filling His Need There is almost never a day that goes by where I am not reminded to keep “Christ and Him crucified” at the center of my life. A few winters ago on a cold snowy day in Chicago, I was unexpectedly...
A Christian’s Life is To Know Him and Make Him Known
The stars were shining bright as I looked to the sky tonight. I could not help but be mesmerized by the glow that shined through the little pinholes in the darkness. The child within me could only wonder what was on the other side shining through. My mind races and my soul became fascinated by the mystery of God....
Treasuring Christ Above All Things
Being worthy of Christ does not seem like an achievable goal to me. How can I “earn the right” to “be entitled” to something as high and noble as Christ Himself? I was struck with a passage today that spoke of being worthy of Christ, or on the contrary, it explained what makes us unworthy of Him. Matthew chapter...
Honesty: The Means to Having More of God
So how do honesty and grace connect? The grace of God is the very thing that allows us to be honest with God. If it were not for His grace – the combination of his unconditional love and his unrelenting mercy – we would not be able to say the things to God we need to say. Because He...
Lessons from the Birth of Our Baby Boy
Waiting for a baby is like waiting for the Lord Jesus to return. You never know the day or hour when he may come and if you are not ready it will catch you off guard. Sure enough, on Monday morning, August 2nd, Molly woke me with a familiar urgency in her voice. It was 12:35 AM and she told...
3 Keys to Helping Someone Through Loss
This may sound a bit off, but consider this a pastoral confession: I enjoy being involved with people at their greatest point of loss. There is nothing more tragic than the loss of someone you love. Death is hard, no matter when it comes. As a pastor, I am often involved in helping people through the loss of their loved one,...
Afraid of God or Fear God?
My brother said to me, “I think that I am afraid of God more than I fear God.” This honest statement echoed within my own soul. I contemplated the way I view God and the shallow attempts I make to appease Him in order to somehow restrain He wrath. There are things I say – or don’t say to...
Do Angels Really Exist?
Timidly she approached me after all the other youth had emptied the room. Her question was nothing to be embarrassed of, yet she still hesitated asking it. She slowly muttered, "My friends tell me that angels are not real… that they only exist in movies n’ stuff." Then, in a sort of whisper so no one would hear her,...
Avoid the Tragedy of Counseling Too Quickly
A few days ago some of the counselors and I were jesting about starting a drive-thru counseling service. We laughed at the thought of people taking advantage of this quick service to get fast answers to life's problems. "I am sure that already exists in Vegas," someone said. We quickly returned to the reality of hard sessions that require...
A Book Review of “Let The Nations Be Glad!”
Where do I find the material helpful, confusing, or frustrating? At a young age, I was exposed to missions. I grew up in a church that was passionately sending people all over the world to do God’s work in foreign places. That same church is now the very church I pastor. Over the years our missions program has often lacked...
A Book Review of “From Eden to The New Jerusalem”
Alexander, T. Desmond,From Eden to the New Jerusalem, United States, Kregel Academic & Professional, October 13, 2009 In 2005, during my studies at the Moody Bible Institute, I was deeply moved by the scholarship and storyline of biblical theology. After understanding the differences between systematic theology and biblical theology, and respecting the rightful place and practice for each, I declared...