Years ago, while helping to lead a children’s outreach with Youth With a Mission, I learned a children’s chorus based on Ephesians 4:31-32 (KJV). “Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, […]
Have Patience – Forgive Yourself and Move Forward
“Have patience with all things, but chiefly have patience with yourself. Do not lose courage in considering your own imperfections but instantly set about remedying them — every day begin the task anew.” – Francis de Sales It’s edging toward mid-August, and the beginning of the school year in the Northern Hemisphere swiftly approaches. Churches […]
Last Man Standing? Is It Time to Bow Before the King?
On July 31 2022, the usual 10:30 am church service at Bethel Church in Redding, California, was invaded by the holiness of the presence of the Lord. No one preached a sermon. There was very little interaction beyond the worship, and it was powerful. It was spontaneous, and yet the Lord had a plan. For […]
Do You Regularly Pray for your Pastors? Why not?
I am fiercely protective of those I love. God is even more so. He promises to defend all His children, including those in servant leadership positions. It is easy for average churchgoers to forget that their pastors are just as susceptible to being wounded by gossip, passive-aggressive bullying, slander, and unjust criticism. Jesus understands pastors’ […]
Restitution! God will Restore What was Taken
I have been the unfortunate victim of three burglaries. Each event left me shaken. The first incident occurred when I shared a house with a single mom and her young daughter. I was the first to arrive home after a mid-week church service. I heard the back door slam shut as I opened the front […]
Being Raised in a Christian Culture Won’t Save You
A cautionary and sober word to my followers: You may have been fortunate enough to be born in and raised in a Christian culture, but you must be born again by deliberately choosing to surrender your past, present and future to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. You must confess and repent by turning away from […]