Growing in Faith

Have you ever felt like quitting something? I guess everyone from time to time feels like quitting their job, quitting a sport, quitting a relationship or quitting church. It seems like it ....

Yes, God can and often does use us when we are broken. In fact, He regularly uses imperfect, wounded, and weak people to do His work instead of waiting for us to be whole or strong.

As human beings, we are pretty familiar with and obsessed with time. It rules our lives. We have to be at work on time, we have to schedule our time, we have to go to bed on ....

God warns against being "lukewarm.” In the Bible, this means living with a divided heart. People claim to know God, but they blend His ways with worldly comforts. God prefers ....

Comparing God to a GPS is a popular analogy because both provide guidance, but they work differently. A GPS gives exact, turn-by-turn directions to a predetermined physical address.

I am so glad there is no shelf life on the promises of God. When He makes a promise, when He establishes a covenant, He keeps it. God keeps His promises, and one of the ways we know that ....

When you take the trash out, you put it in the bin and walk away from it, right? You don't go back to get another look at it or take it back into your house, smelling up your kitchen.

Our God is a speaking God. The Bible supports this statement in many ways. Today we live in a world where we give little attention to God speaking to us because there are so many distractions ....

Galatians 6:9 is one of the most powerful and well-known verses about perseverance. It reminds believers to keep pushing forward through challenges. There is the ....

People identify themselves in a variety of ways. We have all heard people say, “I am a ___.” Fill in the blank with runner, Democrat, Republican, night owl, introvert, overcomer ....

I don't agree with the saying, "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me." We can all heal from physical wounds, but words that affect us internally are ....

In America, fast almost always trumps quality. We are a nation of instant gratification. We don’t like long lines or long waits. And, sadly, this impatience spills over to how ....

1 Corinthians 15:33 serves as a warning that surrounding ourselves with, or forming close friendships with, individuals who possess poor character or negative habits will eventually ruin ....

We call 911 when there's some trouble or emergency. We don't call that number just to say hi or to chat. Our prayer life should not be limited to just 911 prayers. The Lord wants ....

I admit I go to the gym and maybe you do too, but is your spirit suffering? While it feels good to be in decent shape, in the eternal it is a waste of time. When we pass into eternity ....

Activating the Holy Spirit involves inviting His presence through faith, repentance, and intentional daily surrender, acknowledging He already dwells within us. To experience His power ....

In the same way as rest stops for road trips, rest stops for spiritual journeys can come in various ways. Each type of stop can place us in the midst of Jesus who calls us to “come all ....

When putting something together, you can gather the pieces and lay them all on the table but assembling them means they are fitting together for a function and purpose.

Just because something appears to be clean, doesn't mean it is. A shiny cup could have the appearance of being clean, but if the inside is not cleaned out from what was in it ....

Are you a follower of Jesus? Before you rush to judgment and declare an immediate “Yes!”, just sit for a moment and really think about it. Are you a true blue, unashamed follower of Christ, or do ....

What makes a person a Christian? Going to church or doing good deeds do not necessarily make a person a Christian. Does sitting in your garage make you a car or sitting in the ....

Waiting to serve God until circumstances are perfect is a misconception; instead, true faith involves trusting in Him, and despite current, imperfect, or challenging conditions.

“Letting the devil live rent-free in your head" means allowing negative thoughts, fear, unforgiveness, or distractions to consume your mind and dictate your emotions.

People make promises, committing themselves to do things. Sometimes they follow through on their commitments, but other times, they fail. That failure could be because they never ....

If a person goes a couple days of diet fasting, their energy will plummet, and they will experience headaches, dizziness, and muscle breakdown. Without water, the consequences are ....

We need to make Jesus our focal point everyday, just as a spinning ballerina must keep returning her eyes to a given point to maintain her balance, so we must keep returning our ....

Jesus calls us to be as wise and shrewd as serpents, but this wisdom is very unlike the world’s wisdom. Godly wisdom is innocent, gentle, reasonable, peace-loving, impartial and sincere.

Trusting God through life’s twists and turns means relying on His sovereignty, not personal understanding, to navigate unexpected detours and challenges. It involves believing that ....

Picture this, God is standing beside you with an umbrella. Now, it’s not one of those little compact umbrellas that flip up with the wind coming and you still get soaked. No, it’s a giant ....

You can't fill a cup that is already full of something else. That's just common sense, right? But, what about us? The same theory applies. We can’t be filled with the Lord if we are full of ....

We all have ways that we like to enjoy our coffee or tea. Cream, sugar, vanilla, or some other flavoring that makes it enjoyable to drink. While having your coffee or tea with a bunch ....

Mistakes? We all make them. But God can use them for our good and for His good will. Because God governs everything that comes across our paths, no experience is ever wasted.

Does this sound familiar: the alarm clock rings and you shut it off, but then you spy on your cell phone. It is then that the pull begins — not physically magnetic, but strong, nonetheless.

Christians are compared to palm trees in the Bible (Psalm 92:12) to symbolize strength, fruitfulness, and resilience, growing upright and deep-rooted to withstand life's storms ....

I am sure we have all seen Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer. He was teased and shunned for his difference: his red shining nose. He wasn't allowed to play in any reindeer games ....

Worry, in essence, is the sin of distrusting the promises and the power of God. Ouch! It’s choosing to dwell on, to think about, the worst-case scenario. It’s faith in the bad things rather than ....

Whether it’s a cup of tea, bathwater, or dinner, lukewarm just won’t do. When any of those are lukewarm, they lose their appeal, and they are just not as effective. The same is true ....

Here's the scenario. You leave for work in the morning, and the fog is so thick you can only see a few feet in front of you. You drive slowly trusting that the road will be revealed as you ....

God is heaven-bent on writing amazing stories in all our lives. God may design some chapters in our lives to be long and delightful, others, far too short, and sometimes painful.

The three pigs. One built his home with straw, one with sticks, and one with bricks. When the wolf came to huff and puff and blow the homes down, he was able to blow down the ....

Perhaps you enjoy a good buffet. Picking and choosing all the foods you love, leaving behind items you’d rather live without and your taste buds thank you for it. Choices seem endless

No matter who you are, what you do for a living, or your social status, we all have exactly the same number of minutes in a day. The question is, how will we use them?

Let's compare friend-type to silverware, particularly the knife. There are different types of knives that serve different purposes. You have the butter knife that is used for delicate ....

Marching orders" refers to official commands or instructions, either from a military commander to start a troop movement or from a higher authority to begin a task or proceed with ....

Having to leave a message or wait in line is nothing short of annoying and surely tries our patience. Thank God that He is always available to listen to and answer prayers, regardless of how ....

To be "tuned in to Jesus" means aligning our heart, mind, and life with His teachings and will, which can be done through things like prayer and meditation, studying His Word ....

Do you know what it’s like to feel spiritually dry? Do you ever wonder if you are going through the motions? Maybe you feel as if you have stopped moving, spiritually, altogether.

Is it possible that in the darkest moments, the greatest beauty can emerge? I have often thought about the refiners’ fire written about in the Bible. Silver is heated at immense ....

We have all experienced anger at some point in our lives, and it can be a real problem. Though it starts as a harmless feeling, it can quickly grow into something dangerous that’s hard to control.

People who have healthy hearts don't typically get heart surgery or a heart transplant. It's those whose hearts aren't functioning properly. What about our spiritual heart?

Do you feel guilty when you slow down or take a break—even when you are exhausted? You are not alone. Many of us live with the pressure to stay busy, even when our minds, bodies ....

"What you don't know won't hurt you" Have you ever heard that? I don't agree. We have to know God’s Word, so we can know how to live, what He desires of us, and how to fight the ....