Category Archives: Uncategorized

“So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you have to endure many trials for a little while. (1 Peter 1:6 NLT) Based on what I mentioned in yesterday’s Post, what’s my “take-away,” the “profit” of my faith-building pain? One very valuable benefit of that painful season was that it taught meContinue reading “The Profit of Pain”

“so that the world will believe you sent me.” (John 17:21b NLT) One of the many things I love (prefer) about Hope Church is the diversity. To me it’s a picture of the New Testament Church. The first century Church saw people from all walks of life – Jews and non-Jews (gentiles), slave and free,Continue reading “A Picture of Oneness”

“And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.” (Ephesians 3:18 NLT) When my then sixteen-year-old son was diagnosed with leukemia, can you imagine my first response? Unbelief (I couldn’t believe what my ears were hearing), followed shortly thereafterContinue reading “How Faith is Built”

“Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” (Mark 4:40 NLT) The Summer following my college graduation, my wife and I did an internship at the church she had attended growing up. We stayed with her parents, so our expenses were minimal, and we were excited the church was paying us $75 aContinue reading “Faith and Fear in the Storms of Life”

“If you love me, obey my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you.” (John 14:15-16 NLT) After my divorce, to say I struggled would be an understatement. But among the most glaring evidences of my struggle was my lack of finances. Nearly everyContinue reading “The Friend I Didn’t Know I Had”

“But I fear that somehow your pure and undivided devotion to Christ will be corrupted, just as Eve was deceived by the cunning ways of the serpent.” (2 Corinthians 11:3 NLT) The “deceiver,” as satan is sometimes referred in the Bible, is no respecter of persons and, like David Copperfield (see yesterday’s post), will createContinue reading “Overcoming Disillusionment”

“But I am not surprised! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” (2 Corinthians 11:14 NLT) Have you ever been to Las Vegas? What enters your mind when you think of that city? Glitter? Glamour? Gambling? Though Vegas itself held very little appeal to us, my wife and I now live there becauseContinue reading “Disillusioned or Deceived?”

“Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!” (Psalm 139:14 NLT) Recently I heard a friend say: “You’re never in a moment God hasn’t designed.” Think about that. I remember some moments when it seemed God was a million miles away. Like the moment my wife told me she was more committed to another manContinue reading “God’s Design”

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them. (Romans 8:28 NLT) Have you ever wondered why things have happened in your life as they have? It was the Fall of 1967 when I arrived on campusContinue reading “Chance or Chosen?”

“Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are My disciples.” (John 13:35 NLT) One day, sooner than any of us can imagine, we’ll stand at the threshold of eternity. Looking back across the years of our lives, what will fill our mind as we quickly review every detail? JESUS! InContinue reading “When Jesus Is First”