Let’s talk Jesus, shall we? Jesus came between sinful man and holy God and made the ultimate intercession on the cross. He pleaded God’s case to man, calling everyone to repent and walk in love. He pleaded man’s case to God, asking for us to be forgiven in our ignorance. In the end, he bore the weight of just punishment for the sins of all mankind in his body on[…]
Bill Johnson said, “If you gave me one hour to pray, I would spend 45 minutes of it in praise and thanksgiving.” Posture is all-important in prayer! Always begin with praise. The paradoxical thing is that a good prayer meeting can’t start with prayer; has to begin with worship. Psalms 100:4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name. Praise[…]
I’m going to tell you one of the most effective tools I’ve found for the work that I do over here in the Middle East. What if I told you it’s also effective in America as well? Would you want to use it? It transcends cultural boundaries. It opens up hearts. It reaches over denominational lines. It takes people from the farthest-flung corners of the earth and puts them on[…]
1. The example of Jesus. The book of Acts 10:38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. Colossians 1:15 says, “He is the image of the invisible God….” The Greek word used for image is eikon, which means Jesus is the exact imprint of the father. That means Jesus[…]
1. Minimalism – (https://www.becomingminimalist.com/what-is-minimalism/) Minimalism takes the focus away from what we have and puts it on the meaning that we get from the things we do have. Pastor and conference speaker Louie Giglio once joked, “Is there anything in the world more anti-Jesus than a storage unit?” (Don’t get offended—I said joked!) Seriously, no offense if you have a storage unit, but let’s think about it. You can do[…]
With the onslaught of football season (which is viewed almost like holy days in the SEC nation), much controversial talk has recently resurfaced in the media regarding the kneeling protests of the NFL. Needless to say, this fresh wave of commotion was begun with Nike’s recent campaign, which features the face of the kneeling protests, Colin Kaepernick, with the slogan, “Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything.” This[…]
I’ve been provoked. I’m angry. I have a righteous indignation. It all started in one of the city’s many malls the other day. I was getting another charger for my cell phone (hopefully one that won’t break this time) and some groceries. As I finished, I was walking toward the taxi line to head back toward my part of town. As I approached one of the mall’s atria, I begin[…]
It is my great pleasure to feature Stephen Garner for the first time. I hope you enjoy my father’s unique blend of biblical insights, illuminating anecdotes, and punny repartée. Our numerous hikes together over the past decade have then a powerful connecting force during my young adult years. Read more of his work at https://hikerdude.wordpress.com/. Someone asked me once how I became interested in hiking. I hadn’t really given it[…]
Have you found God’s plan for your life? Wouldn’t it be nice if every one of us got a letter in the mail when we were 17 years old telling us exactly what we were made to do? I definitely did not, yet the journey has been both winding and incredibly satisfying. I hate to break it to you, but God probably isn’t going to write your life instructions with[…]
[Orig. pub. Oct. 23, 2016 on Ramblings of a Bluestocking] Ok, let’s be raw. I’ve always been a very driven person. In college, I knew what degree(s) I wanted, where I would be in ten years, what kind of job I wanted, and what kind of man I wanted to marry. However, if you haven’t had this happen at some point in life, you will: the sudden realization that everything[…]
It’s not often that an offshoot of the Allman Brothers Band starts a conversation about God‘s revelation. I went hiking last week of my father in Shenandoah National Park. As we tackled a particularly steep 800ft ascent, my father began laughing as the iPod he was listening to shuffled across a song by the band Sea Level. I chuckled along with him as we both labored with our legs to[…]
