Have you ever received a meal, a card in the mail, a surprising gift, a blessing out of the blue?  Do you remember how you felt when someone who didn't have to, did something that made you feel their care?  God blessed my wife with the gift of hospitality and she loves to share it by cooking and serving meals. Because of that gift, I have been afforded the opportunity to share with many the glorio...  Read More

Everyone on the face of the earth is represented as soil by this farming story found in Mark 4:3-20. Isn't it interesting that Genesis 2:7 says, "God created man from the dust of the ground." Jesus scatters His good WORD all over earth and it is received either by hard, rocky, thorny, or good soil.    Jesus is the sower and we, by extension, have been given a mandate of sharing the gospel seed. It...  Read More

What is desperation? Can you think of a time when you felt you were without any answer and just desperate? One definition stated it is the feeling that you have when your situation is so bad that you would do anything to change it.In Mark 5, we meet with two completely different people who have situations of desperation. Jarius is losing his little girl at the brink of death and there is an unname...  Read More

Have you ever used phrases like "you are asking for trouble," "playing with fire," "rocking the boat?" I wonder if the disciples ever felt like that as they followed Jesus into difficulty. At the end of Mark 4, Jesus whisks the disciples away from the multitude and takes them directly into the mess. In chapter 5 they go from that mess, to a maniac (demoniac) named legion. The Gospel on the Ground ...  Read More

Families are knit to God’s heart. In fact, they were His design from the start. When God created man, He said, "It is not good for man to be alone," so He created woman (Genesis 2:18). Then, He blessed them and told them, "Be fruitful, and multiply" (Genesis 1:28).In Mark 3:20-35 the scene opens with much familial disruption. Even close relatives and religious insiders were nonplussed by what Jesu...  Read More

Legalism, legalistic, judgemental, and self-righteous are all words that make me feel nauseous. How about you? I grew up in a time in which in many circles that was the feeling about churches. Men began to take their eyes off the Bible and preach man-made ideas as if it was truth.  Jesus said in Matthew 5:17 that He did not come to abolish the law, but to fulfill it. In Mark 2 and 3 we see a verba...  Read More

Revelation 1:5 “and from Jesus Christ ... to Him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by His blood...”Revelation 1:18 “and the living One (Jesus). I died and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.”Revelation 2:3 “I know you are... bearing up for my name’s sake”Revelation 2:10 “...Be faithful unto death and I will give you the crown of life.”Revelation 2:17 “....  Read More

Hebrews was written to Jewish Christians during a time of persecution. They were encouraged not to return to the practices of the old Jewish covenant. The encouragement was to “run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus the author and perfector of our faith.” (Hebrews 13:1-3)The race is the challenge to persevere, pick up our cross daily and strive to be more like ...  Read More

Have you surrendered ALL to the Lord? Those words from the pulpit cut like a knife through my bitter heart. I started thinking "Why am I so tired if I have surrendered it ALL to him? Why am I hesitant to take things to the cross?" The Holy Spirit reminded me of the book of James saying count it ALL joy when you go through trials. How do I do that? It's not possible, I thought. I can't control what...  Read More

Colossians 1:9-14 became my favorite verses in 2021. I was reading through the Old Testament and when I got to the first chapter of Colossians I continued to read that chapter every day for the next week. I was so drawn to it and desired to know it and live it. So much so that they have been the verses that I specifically pray over each of my family members and close friends daily, since 2021. The...  Read More

The Apostle Paul, a man of profound theological insight, penned the epistle to the Philippians from a prison cell. Yet, his words exude not despair, but a radiant joy that defies earthly circumstances. This joy, he insists, is not contingent upon external factors, but rather, it is a fruit of the Spirit, cultivated in the soul of the believer.Paul's joy springs from a deep and abiding faith in Chr...  Read More

In Paul’s letter to the churches of Galatia, he (in classic Paul style) was writing to correct false doctrine that had crept into the church and to remind them of the truth of the gospel and our identity as followers of Jesus. In Galatians 4:4-7 he writes, “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so ...  Read More