I’m guilty! I didn’t want to be guilty. I wanted to be all-in fully surrendered to God. I wanted to give Him my all but… I was afraid. Verses like: “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows.” (John 16:33) and “Take up your cross and follow me.” (Mark 8:34) terrified me! My faith has… Read More
It’s easy to imagine Jesus talking and teaching but in Mark 11, He taught His disciples by acting out a parable . . . and I’m guessing it’s one they remembered. It was the Monday morning of Holy Week and Jesus was walking toward Jerusalem. He was hungry… He noticed a fig tree in full… Read More
Who decides what is right and what is wrong? Is it the law? Does making something “legal” make it right? The Pharisees came to Jesus to trap Him with a question . “Should a man be allowed to divorce his wife?” Mark 10:2 And Jesus uses the question to talk about a bigger and deeper… Read More
It’s easy to doubt the outcome when we feel overwhelmed by our circumstances, isn’t it? Have you ever cried through tears, “will I ever…” Will I ever get well, get married, have a child, get a job, have peace, be happy? The list can be endless. I imagine we all have felt our faith falter… Read More
Are you ever surprised how often “I can’t” is your first thought about something? I know that too often my first thought is “I can’t do this,” whenever I’m facing a challenge. Oh, I want to consistently enjoy God’s strength and peace but I’m ashamed to say that I can let doubt dictate my thinking.… Read More
Do you ever worry about being a hypocrite? I think it’s healthy to question our own hypocrisy. Recently my morning devotion challenged me to remember that temptation often comes after spiritual victory. You see the enemy of our souls knows that its easy for a spiritual victory to turn into pride; and well, to quote… Read More
I’m sitting here staring at an idle keyboard and blank screen. I want to pour out encouragement and inspiration but I’m carrying around this heaviness and it’s hard to pour from a cup that needs to be filled. Life can be like that sometimes, can’t it? In Mark 6, Jesus and His disciples had just… Read More
Do you feel hopeless? Maybe you’re disappointed and discouraged by the state of the world. Maybe your hopelessness is much more personal. I want you to know you can trust Jesus when you feel hopeless. He is able to heal you. No, I can’t promise that He will heal you physically although I know He… Read More
Listening is defined as the way the brain actively processes what the ear hears. But I’ll admit, that when I was teaching a class of kindergartners or talking to my children, anytime I said, “would you please LISTEN to me!” I was looking for more than simply filtering sounds into words. I wanted them to… Read More
What do you think it means to be a good disciple? I was taught that to be a good disciple you needed to be a good student. Although, learning what Jesus taught and studying God’s Word are an important part of discipleship, I believe there’s another simple definition that better explains what it means to… Read More
You can feel the electric anticipation in the overflowing room. Jesus is speaking God’s Word in ways that you’ve never heard it spoken before. You’re fully focused on the teacher when bits of debris begin falling on you and those around you. In this account in Mark 2, four men carried their paralyzed friend to… Read More
Mark was probably the first Gospel written. It was penned by John Mark, who was not one of the 12 Disciples but was a follower of Jesus and a companion of Paul and Barnabas on their mission journeys to “go and make disciples.” The 1st Chapter skips over everything prior to the start of Jesus’… Read More
He is risen! It’s a statement of faith we proclaim on Easter but can you imagine the difference it could make in our lives if it is the first things we declared every morning and our last thought every night. You and I trust the Son of God, the Alpha and Omega . . .… Read More
Have you ever felt abandoned by God? Have you experienced times when you’ve taken your needs to God and it feels like He’s not listening? You’re still sick. Your heart is still broken. You still don’t have a job and your need is still unmet. Yesterday, we looked at Jesus prayer… “My Father! If it… Read More
The hardest words and the ones for which I am most thankful are found in Matthew 26… My Father, if it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet, I want your will to be done, not mine.” Matthew 26:39 Your will be done, not mine! They are so hard… Read More