Thankfulness is a key indicator of true, eternal usefulness. But the Bible never tells us anywhere to contrive thankfulness, as if thankfulness itself is power and a sign of nobility. Many scientific studies have found therapeutic benefits to thankfulness, but God wants more for us than just a noble character and a healthy body. To be noble and healthy are good goals, but ...

Small steps of faith are the long pry bar that moves mountains of change....

How do we respond to the recent election cycle? What actions would make our response wise and profitable? I suggest thinking about two crucial issues: culture, and distraction. The collective mind (culture) of our country shifted swiftly in recent years, and the Supreme Court ratified the culture change. As Chief Justice Roberts said at the time of the "gay marriage" ruli...

It used to be that four tenets ruled most Christians' church life: 1. Act like you've got it together. 2. Isolate yourself. 3. Ministry is programs. 4. Bible reading is for me alone. This kind of church approach resulted in the entrance of many programs - a weekly newsletter chocked full of calendar events. But a plethora of programs pushed out the work of one-to-one,...

I was asked last night, "Who are you voting for?" Good question. Here are some other questions I'm asking myself, and for you to consider, as Election Day nears: First, if everyone's vote was made public, how would that change our fellowship within our church? Evangelicals are divided on Hillary and Donald. Would our lack of agreement impede our love of one another, becau...

We want happiness; we are ever in search of it; a current book written by a Briton describes how we Americans can't find it. Perhaps we are more prone to search harder for happiness; its pursuit is built-in to our founding document and character. Or turn on PBS and you'll hear about "mindful awareness", an eastern practice that's the en vogue way to happiness. Even the mun...

Resurrection Bible Church is located in Ivano-Frankivsk in western Ukraine and is comprised of 45-50 attendees and about 20 children in Sunday school. They have a fierce desire to see more Ukrainians hear the good news of Christ and worship the one true God. Pastor Oleg Kalin is a longtime friend of Pastor Jed's, they met in 2007 through a mutual mentor. In Ukraine, a coun...

William Cowper's (pronounced "Cooper") life rings with lessons for us, about depression, and about moving towards others in love, even when we know not what we should say or do. Cowper lived in the 1700's, was a friend of John Newton (Newton was his pastor for a time), and wrote poems and hymns that are still valued today. Martin Luther King often quoted Cowper's abolition...

When we listen to a sermon, the stakes are high - Jesus said in the parable of the soils that covetousness is always ready, looking to snatch the Word from us and make us unfruitful, or from becoming Christians (Matt. 13:22). The moment of the sermon is a battle. The battlefield is our hearts, because the location of the "root" of faith (13:21), and the location of covetou...

We Americans have had a twisting relationship with ambition. Alexis de Tocqueville observed about us: "There are no Americans who do not show that they are devoured by the desire to rise, but one sees almost none of them who appear to nourish vast hopes or to aim very high. All want constantly to acquire goods, reputation, power; few envision all these things on a grand s...