Ecclesiastes 12:10

    In the 2018 Winter Olympics, Ester Ledecká won the gold medal in the Super G alpine skiing.    Which was odd because she was a snowboarder.   She had done some alpine skiing but was ranked 49 th in the event. She had to borrow some skis from a teammate to even compete.  After she won, she refused to take off her goggles since she had skipped wearing makeup as she had not expected to win the event.   How does that happen?   It turns out her inexperience was her advantage. The rest of the field ran the race the exact same way, but she ended up taking an atypical route that turned out to be slightly faster than what the experts thought was ideal. A new perspective was all it took for her to achieve greatness.   Often in church work, I hear people exclaim; I couldn’t do ‘this or that.’ That is just not my thing! My talent lies elsewhere.  While that may be true, it might also be that your limits are not because you can’t, but be...

    One of the biggest mistakes new Christians make is the assumption that being a Christian means that things will always go perfectly. To be fair, they might think that because many false teachers proclaim that. They imply that if you follow God, you won’t suffer, you won’t struggle, and life will be the best possible.   Yet that isn’t what the Scripture teaches.  Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted . 2 nd Timothy 3:12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you; 1 st Peter 4:12 so that no one would be disturbed by these afflictions; for you yourselves know that we have been destined for this. 1 st Thessalonians 3:3   Though even with this knowledge, we can still say that the Christian life is the best possible. It will come with suffering and trials and afflictions, but these will not compare to th...

    There is such a thing as a reasonable lack of belief. Maybe you’re from Missouri and you have to be shown.  Or perhaps, you just don’t know enough to know. Faith comes by hearing, but how can they hear if not one tells them (Romans 10:14).    Yet that isn’t the reason for most people's unbelief in God.   You see, God has made himself and his will known. The truth is out there. He was made proof of who He is through His Son. His word is clear, verifiable, and eternal.   The lack of belief is a choice. We don’t believe because we choose not to.   There are lots of reasons for that. Maybe it’s social pressure (John 12:42). Maybe they are caught up in their own bias (John 7:5). Maybe they just refuse to see what was right in front of them (John 12:37). Maybe they were just stubborn. Maybe they are just lazy (Belief without action isn’t belief, James 2:17)   Doesn’t matter why; the result is the same, and it’s not good. Unbelief will...

    In  Matthew 13:34 we read, “ All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables, and He did not speak to them without a parable ”. The parable, a short story with a spiritual message, was the favored teaching method of Jesus. Even today, those who might not know much scripture probably know the gist of several parable.   Why?   If we look at the next verse, we are directed to Psalm 78. This psalm speak about making sure the next generation knows about what God has done. It tells of famous bible ‘stories. By these tales, they would grow and figure out how God works and how it relates to them.    That’s why we need to make sure our kids know those Bible stories. The examples, the trials, the up and downs, they help shape and guide us. Not only that but they stick with us.  If you want to remember something you create a story, as you travel down that path it reminds you of the lesson along the way.  These tales are not just ta...

    What direction do we want to go?  For some, the answer is none. They want things to stay the same and be the same. Success is measured in staying right where you are.  For some, the answer is back. To the ways things were. Like in the good old days. Things would be a lot better for them if they revert.  For others, it is right or left. The draw is to make everything into a political debate that has a definite side. So, everything needs to move to one of those sides.  For others, it is down. They might want it to go that way, but somehow take a perverse delight in telling you how bad everything is and just about everything is wrong. Any movement is a dip down. Everything is wrong, destined to fail.   Yet for the Christian, we must have a different direction. In Philippians 3:14, Paul tell us about the  “ upward call of God in Christ Jesus ”.  Colossians 3:1-2 says, “ Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking ...