Growing in Faith

We heard all the sayings “It is darkest before the dawn.”and “Your breakthrough is just around the corner.” “Someday you will look back at this and laugh.” But if you are in the middle ....

We have all seen bridges. Some are big and some are small. They are usually found over a body of water, allowing us to get to the other side of land. A bridge represents connection.

Our God is a speaking God, the Bible supports this statement in many ways, that our God is a speaking God. Today we live in a world where we give little attention to God speaking to us ....

There are two kinds of people in this world. And in the passage we just read, Paul says the same thing except for the church. There are only two kinds of people in the church. Which kind are you?

Recently, at a mental health facility where my husband and I serve, we engaged with a strong spiritual atmosphere that came when the patients entered the room. I immediately felt ....

Have you heard about the Israelites collecting manna? To give a little recap, the Israelites in Exodus 16 were very ungrateful and unhappy. The passage reads, “The entire Israelite ....

In our first few years of marriage, my husband, Chris, came home from work one day and asked, “Where’s the coffee table?” I stopped what I was doing, and said, “I sold it on Facebook ....

Patricia Davids wrote, “Forgiveness heals the forgiver as well as the forgiven.” I have been thinking about that sentence since I read it. Have you ever had to forgive someone?

Have you ever tried to do something that was really hard, but stuck it out and felt rewarded when it finally clicked? Although difficulty is annoying at times, it always feels so good to ....

My church and I are working our way through the book of Genesis. If you have never read it, it is so good. It is packed with so much that it helps us understand all Scripture better....

Is anyone else glad that we have made it through January? After all the “burr” months that seem to fly by, it was the longest, slowest month I have had in a long time.

Our daughter recently read a book about the artist Fanny Brate. It talked about how Fanny Brate used perspective to make her paintings look more realistic. Perspective, in this case ....

One of my favorite things about being a mother is seeing my children’s imaginations soar. It was not unusual for me to wander about our home, picking up messes, when I overheard one ....

My husband and I are big “do-it-yourself” people. If there’s a project to be done, we are going to figure out how to do it. Along the way, we have made some pretty big mistakes....

All of the good stuff in life is messy: Cooking from scratch, baking, gardening, packing for vacation, art, traveling, babies and kiddos, animals, working out, eating wings or really big cupcakes ....

We have all seen or heard about relationships and friendships that blow up. Best friends turn into rival enemies. A person or people leave a church hurt. Two or more people are no ....

If you are unfamiliar with Job’s story, let me give you a quick summary: Job was a wealthy man, who some would argue “had it all.” Satan approached God and asked Him if he could ....

“Hold everything with an open hand.” It’s a phrase that has been floating around in my head and something God has been trying to teach me for years. Imagine standing outside with ....

When you are trying to fix something in your life the best thing to do is find the root problem. You must get down to the source of the trouble. The fruit will take care of itself once you ....

One of the challenges of the Christian life is contentment with the race God has given each of us to run. Many of us struggle with our course, obstacles along the way, or envy ....

One of the things many of us in this day and age tend to overlook is our health. I know that I have even been guilty of this. You get so busy with work, kids, social media ....

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 ....

If you hold phosphorus under a bright light, then turn out the lights the phosphorus will glow in the dark. This is a process where energy is absorbed by a substance and is slowly released ....

Are you struggling to cope with anxiety? Do you find you are anxious often? How do you calm your nervousness and apprehension? Don’t give into these feelings and run from the world.

One of the things many of us in this day and age tend to overlook is our health. I know that I have even been guilty of this. You get so busy with work, kids, social media, paying ....

Knocking on the door” is a nearly universal request for entrance. The verb “to knock” is an active action, not passive like waiting around for you to come outside. The verb “to knock,” ....

Imagine your life as a movie. Who would the main character be? In every movie, there are major characters and minor characters. What happens to minor characters is not as ....

Proverbs 2:1-5 (NLT) says, “My child, listen to what I say, and treasure my commands. Tune your ears to wisdom, and concentrate on understanding. Cry out for insight ....

In the Bible, we will see that in at least one case, three strikes mean “You are in!” Three strikes resulted in healing and salvation. God doesn't tell us to go back to the dugout if....

Have you ever had to renovate or tear down a home or building because its foundation was just not strong? Well, sometimes our lives need to be rebuilt too. It’s easy to become ....

We are shaped by the things we see and hear, but more importantly, we are shaped by the things we say and do. We come to believe what we pray. We also come to believe what we do ...

I love lists. I love to cross things off my list. There is something about writing out everything I need to do and then checking them off one by one. It makes me feel like I am accomplishing ....

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.

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

What do billboards do? They represent the company or service or organization that they are advertising for. Whether it's a product, service, or idea - that organization is represented ....

We all know the dangers of a physical diet containing too many sweetsand the outcomes; diabetes, obesity, heart disease, hyperactivity, anxiety, depression. We should equally recognize ....

Our appetites dictate the direction of our lives — whether it be the cravings of our stomachs, the passionate desire for possessions or power, or the longings of our spirits for God.

Leadership is not about exerting power and control but about serving others with humility and love. Jesus, our ultimate example of leadership, taught us that true greatness lies in sacrificial ....

Have you ever had so much that you thought you needed to get done, that rest and sleep seemed like it was never going to happen? Or do you ever find yourself “burning the candle at both ends” ....

"Pass the salt, please." That's a phrase that's commonly heard at the table while eating. Salt is a flavoring that gives otherwise dull and bland food some flavor. It's used for cooking and preserving.

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 ....

Laughter is a gift from God. Laughter is a great way to stay encouraged. We are all dealing with personal, emotional, spiritual issues. They can weigh us down and get our focus off.

So often we want things now and don't want to wait or endure the pain of waiting or going through it. But endurance is actually a good thing and develops precious fruit in our spiritual lives.

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 focus to Jesus.

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.

When you are tending to a garden or trying to grow a fruit tree you periodically remove the weeds and dead branches that are keeping the healthy crop to grow. You pull, tug, and prune ....

When was the last time you needed to use a flashlight? I am guessing your answer will include some variation of "dark" or "darkness".

On any given day, you probably encounter more darkness ....

The story begins with a man who has two sons. The younger son asks his father for his portion of the family estate as an early inheritance. Once received, the son promptly sets off on ....

What is God’s “umbrella of protection” and how do we stay under it in the home, in the workplace, and in other areas of life?

Picture this, God is standing beside you with an umbrella. Now, it’s not one of those ....

Mistakes… we all make them. Big ones, little ones, ones we think aren’t even mistakes until we look back and realize it was. Sometimes, these mistakes turn into huge regrets.

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. But we only see the meaning ....

There’s such deep comfort when someone sees our pain and, even more, sits with us in it when they show up not just that first week, but for the long haul – through our complex emotions and hard questions.