The Protection of His Armor
In the message “Dressed For Battle” we considered how we all face an enemy who seeks to engage us in battle each and every day. The attacks are deceptive but extremely methodical, as the enemy tries to pull, push, and lure us off the path of following after Christ. We then saw how our best […]
Dressed For Battle
The life of a soldier at war is difficult. They live under the constant threat of attack and each day they must prepare for battle. Each day they must make sure they are properly dressed to face the enemy. In a very real sense, we are ALL at war! Every child of God faces an […]
Jars of Clay
In the message “Sacrifice of Weakness” we saw how one of our greatest gifts we can give our Heavenly Father is the recognition of how little we have to give. It’s a wonderful mystery that the Almighty God can reach so far down and lift us up, through the gift of His Son and the […]
Sacrifice of Weakness
In the message “Remain Like a Child” we considered our need to come to our Heavenly Father with an understanding that we have no ability to save ourselves. We then saw our call to continually approach God like a little child approaching a loving Father; “whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest […]
Remain Like a Child
In the message “Hold Me” we saw how our Heavenly Father desires for us to reach up to Him with outstretched arms and how this is perhaps His greatest joy. We considered the example of a child reaching up to be held by their parent. This is where our relationship with God begins and, in […]
Hold Me
In the message “Step Toward Jesus” we were encouraged to examine the motivation for the things we do, and exhorted to do ALL things for the love of being closer to Jesus. This is the essence of our relationship with our Father – simple, but absolute love. When a young child wants to be held, […]
Step Toward Jesus
In the last several messages, we consider the faith of Peter as he stepped out of the boat and walked on the water. We saw the importance of properly hearing the call and of keeping our eyes focused on our Lord as the waves are crashing at our feet. This story contains many lessons for […]
Meet Them Where They Are
Peter heard the call of Jesus in the middle of a storm and “got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus” (Matthew 14:29). Peter knew the voice of his Lord and knew that if He called, He would also provide a way to follow. But Peter soon “saw the […]
Hear The Call
In the last two messages, we’ve considered Peter as he responded to Jesus’ call: “Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus” (Matthew 14:29). We saw that Peter needed great faith to step out of the boat, even though his faith quickly faded “when he saw the […]
Focused On Jesus
I’ve always been impulsive. I was one of the first to follow Jesus. I didn’t even know who He was, but when He said “Come, follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men” (Matthew 4:19), though I didn’t know what He meant, I dropped my fishing nets and followed. After three years, I […]
Step of Faith
Today was a busy day! Early this morning we heard that King Herod killed John the Baptist. Jesus seemed to take this news pretty hard; “When Jesus heard what had happened, He withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place” (Matthew 14:13). I knew He wanted to be alone, but the crowds kept following Him. […]
What It Means To Forgive
In the message “Forgive As He Forgave” we saw that our forgiveness of others should be based on recognizing the magnitude of forgiveness we have been given through faith in Jesus. A true understanding of God’s mercy toward us ought to compel us to be merciful to others. But still, forgiveness remains difficult and somewhat […]