Our culture has a high value for efficiency. We want to get from point A to point B as quickly and effortlessly as possible. But God’s goal isn’t efficiency — it’s transformation. He uses wilderness seasons in our lives to transform us into the kind of people who can actually fulfil His purposes.
Read MoreIn order to find God’s will for our lives, it’s important to understand how God guides us. Whether it’s through our natural talents, our circumstances, or through dreams and visions — scripture teaches that God uses both natural and supernatural means to guide people.
Read MoreThroughout the Bible, God repeatedly promises to guide His people. But how do we know when God is speaking and when it’s something else? Thankfully, we can turn to the counsel of the Bible, the inner witness of the Holy Spirit, and our church community to help us to confidently discern God’s voice.
Read MoreAs Christians, one of the most common questions we ask is “What is God’s will for my life?” But discerning God’s will isn’t always obvious. So how do we know God’s plan for our lives? It starts with the understanding that God’s will is more about the kind of person we’re becoming — not what activity we’re doing.
Read MoreWe would all love for God to give us a clear sign to help us know His will in every situation -- but those occasions are rare. Instead, rather than giving us a sign, God wants to lead us with His peace. But for God to lead us with His peace we must first learn to discern the difference between worldly peace and God's peace.
Read MoreIn the first Christian sermon ever recorded, Peter explained Jesus’ resurrection with an intriguing phrase: “Death could not hold Him.” On Sunday, Todd explained what Peter meant by this and how Jesus’ triumph over death has opened the door for all of us to eternal life.
Read MoreWe tend to gravitate towards certain aspects of Jesus’ personality — His compassion, His wisdom, or His power — but we tend to avoid Jesus’ suffering. Isaiah 53 brings the suffering of Jesus into sharp focus and explains how he entered into our suffering on every level in order to redeem us from our sins and reconcile us to God.
Read MoreWhy did Jesus die? Out of the thousands upon thousands of people crucified by the Romans, what makes His death so unique? Isaiah 53 foretold how God would come as the Suffering Servant to receive the punishment we deserve — making it possible for God’s justice to be fulfilled while still showing mercy to a broken and sinful world.
Read MoreThe world looks for certain things to identify successful or significant people: money, looks, connections, credentials, and talents. But Jesus didn’t have any of those things. To the world’s eyes, He was completely ordinary. But God doesn’t see as the world sees. God looks at the heart — and under Jesus’ ordinary exterior beat the greatest heart that ever lived. Jesus shows us that God uses the ordinary of our lives to bring about the extraordinary.
Read MoreSuffering is often messy, disruptive, and painful to witness. So when we hear about someone else’s suffering, our natural response is to look the other way. But when we make the choice to enter into someone else’s suffering, we become vessels through which God pours out His comfort to the people who need it most.
Read MoreHow should we respond when we’re in pain? Job’s response to suffering was affirmed by God, which is surprising since his prayers were more rants against God than proclamations of faith. So why did God affirm them? Because they were prayers. Job teaches us that we can’t go wrong if we’re going to God with our pain.
Read MoreModern secular culture sees suffering as the ultimate evil — something to be avoided at all costs. But the early Christians took a different view: suffering was something to be embraced, not merely endured. How could they say that? Was this just macho chest-thumping? Or are the pointing us to something deeper — something essential that could transform our experience of suffering?
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