
Harmony in Calling
"Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited." -Romans 12:15-17 Harmony (n.): 1. agreement in action, opinion, feeling, etc.; accord; 2. order or congruity of parts to their whole or to one another; 3. agreeable sounds (http://www.thefreedictionary.com) There is no doubt that there are many expressions of the Christian faith. With over 33,000 current denominations cited* and growing every year

Don't Grow Cold!
"Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved." -Matthew 24:12&13 My husband has been gone a lot at work preparing for a big yearly deadline. I enjoyed the time off finding other things to do, but I missed him too. When life got back to normal, we went on a couple dates to readjust. "I'm just getting used to you again," I said. It was so interesting to me how easy it was to 'grow cold' toward him

When Faith Seems to Fail Us
"For faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." -Hebrews 11:1 Have you ever hoped for something for so long that your hope died? Have you ever "had faith" in something that failed you? I am sure we all have. When it happens, it makes life difficult. But the most difficult circumstance is when we think our God, all-powerful, all knowing, all-loving, seems to fail us. Maybe it was a promotion at work. Maybe it was a relationship that we though

Sharing Our Witness
"Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature." -Mark 16:15 "I am convinced of one thing: at least 50 percent of all nonbelievers would receive Christ if properly approached by a trained, Spirit-filled believer who can communicate God's love and forgiveness revealed through our Lord Jesus." - Dr. Bill Bright It's super intimidating to share our faith, isn't it? I've had experiences of being so nervous sharing my faith that I forget the most important pieces o

True Healing
"Those troubled by evil spirits were cured, and the people all tried to touch Him, because power was coming from Him and healing them all." -Luke 6:18,19 Have you ever heard of miraculous healings? Perhaps you've only heard of them in the Bible, happening way back in Jesus' time. But is there healing today, in the here and now? Jesus said, "Believe, that you may do these things and more, for the helper is coming to you." The helper is the Holy Spirit. And he did not say way b

Servant Leadership Versus Entitlement
"Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant." -Matthew 20:26 I walked into the store toward the customer service counter and waited for a few minutes. I was next in line, but to my surprise, a store employee walked right up to the customer service desk when the register became open and made a purchase. The cashier saw me and told the employee, who said something about the fact that there were two lines, and I was in the other one. I

Growing Through Experience
"So as David stood there among his brothers, Samuel took the flask of olive oil he had brought and anointed David with the oil. And the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon David from that day on. Then Samuel returned to Ramah." -1 Samuel 16:13 We live in a microwave culture. If we want something, we want it now! But, even though we can go through a drive-thru to get fast food immediately, this microwave mentality often does not apply to our calling and life with God. We t

Righteous Anger
"And 'don't sin by letting anger control you.' Don't let the sun go down while you are still angry." -Ephesians 4:26 What makes you mad? Often we don't talk about getting angry in Christian circles because it's an uncomfortable topic. But, if we're true followers of Christ, isn't it true that certain things should make us angry? I'm not talking about the kind of anger where we didn't get our way. I'm talking about things that are really evil - injustices like human traffickin

Slaves Versus Sons and Daughters
"And because we are His children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, 'Abba, Father.' Now you are no longer a slave but God's own child. And since you are His child, God has made you His heir." -Galatians 4:21-31 Have you ever felt like a servant or a slave, instead of a son or daughter? I worked as a server for a while in high school and also in college in order to make ends meet. It is gruesome work! Working in the restaurant indust

Where Does Wealth Come From?
"Now, LORD God, let your promise to my father David be confirmed, for you have made me king over a people who are as numerous as the dust of the earth. Give me wisdom and knowledge, that I may lead this people, for who is able to govern this great people of yours?" -2 Chronicles 1:9-12 Where does wealth come from? Should we seek to gain wealth as followers of Christ? There are many get-rich-quick ideas out there, most of which lead to more poverty. (Proverbs 21:5) And, there