The Reality of Our Present World

In Romans 9, Paul wrestles with one of the deepest questions of faith: Why does God choose some and not others? He looks back at Israel’s history—Isaac over Ishmael, Jacob over Esau—and reminds us that God’s purposes are rooted not in human merit but in His sovereign will. For some, this is a comfort. For others, it sounds like the work of a “cosmic manipulator,” pulling strings and deciding outcomes without regard for human freedom. But Paul&rsquo…

(And Why We Can Still Learn From Mary Oliver) “Instructions for living a life:Pay attention.Be astonished.Tell about it.”— Mary Oliver Every once in a while, a line from outside the walls of the church echoes something profoundly true about the heart of God. That’s Mary Oliver. While she never claimed Christianity in a doctrinal sense, her writing carried a posture Christians would recognize instantly: wonder, reverence, stillness, gratitude, and a…

“Behold, I am doing a new thing;now it springs forth—do you not perceive it?” Isaiah 43:19 (ESV) As we stand on the threshold of a new year, we find ourselves looking back with gratitude and ahead with expectancy. God has been faithful—again. Not just in the mountaintop moments, but in the quiet ones. The hidden ones. The ones you didn’t know if you’d make it through, yet here you are. Tonight isn’t about making resolutions that…

“And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory…” — John 1:14 (ESV) On this Christmas Eve, we’re reminded of a truth so staggering it’s easy to take for granted: God stepped into our story. Not from a distance. Not from the clouds. But into a manger—low, quiet, breakable, vulnerable. He came close. The world waited for a King and got a Child. Humanity longed for a throne and was given a feeding trough. We…

There’s a quiet kind of wisdom tucked inside an old Cat Stevens lyric—“Take your time, think a lot. Think of everything you’ve got.For you will still be here tomorrow, but your dreams may not.” There’s truth here that echoes a far older voice. Scripture reminds us that the rush of life, the urgency of our desires, the pressure to make something happen now can blind us to what God is actually doing. We live in an age of acceleration&mdash…

Most of us are familiar with the Bible's reference to the “12 tribes of Israel.” What’s surprising is that Scripture actually contains 14 tribal names—yet only 12 appear at any given time. The lists change depending on the season: land inheritance, military service, priesthood, or prophecy. Jacob’s 12 sons formed the original tribes, but when he adopts Joseph’s sons—Ephraim and Manasseh—as full heirs, the family expands.…

“How can you say, ‘I am not unclean, I have not gone after the Baals’? Look at your way in the valley; know what you have done— a restless young camel running here and there, a wild donkey used to the wilderness, in her heat sniffing the wind! Who can restrain her lust? None who seek her need weary themselves; in her month they will find her. Keep your feet from going unshod and your throat from thirst. But you said, ‘It is hopeless, for I have…

Imagine walking through the desert for forty years. The heat is relentless, the terrain unforgiving, and the miles unending. You’d expect your clothes to fray, your sandals to split, and your feet to ache. Yet in Nehemiah 9:21, we read: “For forty years You sustained them in the wilderness, they lacked nothing. Their clothes did not wear out nor did their feet become swollen.” That’s more than survival—it’s supernatural provision. God wasn&rsquo…

When your past doesn't define your place in the family of God In 1863, Edwin Booth—yes, the brother of John Wilkes Booth—stood on a crowded train platform in Jersey City. The crowd accidentally shoved a young man near him and fell between the platform and the moving train. Without hesitation, Edwin reached down and pulled him to safety. That man he saved? Robert Todd Lincoln—son of President Abraham Lincoln. Two lives intersected in a moment that…