As I was driving on Highway 99 South in my home state of California one morning, the Holy Spirit reminded me of the prophecies of Jesus in the Old Testament, long before He was born.Of course we know of Jesus' birth from the New Testament gospels. But centuries before...
We live in one of the darkest hours in human history.The COVID-19 pandemic demands we distinguish between that which is essential and that which is not. With that being said, I am reminded that more than 2,000 years ago, a woman named Mary ran, while it was still...
A few years ago, I became aware of the amazing story of John Smith—a teenager who died as a result of being submerged in the icy water of Lake St. Louis for 15 minutes—and who was miraculously brought back to life when his mother, Joyce, prayed. I felt as...
The spread of COVID-19 required all of us to be quarantined. This global pandemic necessitated all of us to live, at least for a season, behind closed doors. Removed from the rest of society, including our extended families, friends and communities, we isolated...
If you're like me, you're probably looking forward to enjoying some of your family's traditional dishes this Thanksgiving.But the thing about the Thanksgiving meal is that no matter how large it is, no matter how full I feel immediately afterward, I'm always hungry...
If you're like me, one of the things you missed most during the nation's shutdown was eating at your favorite restaurant. Even though you weren't there in person, you could recall the smells and the special flavors that made your mouth water. And I suspect not being...
In the wake of the pandemic and all its collateral damage many of us assumed we would never be happy again. After all, clearly our world has changed and we can never go back to the way things were. In a classic case of proving an old adage true, we didn't realize what...
A few years ago I became aware of the amazing story of John Smith—a teenager who died as a result of being submerged in the icy water of Lake St. Louis for fifteen minutes—and who was miraculously brought back to life when his mother, Joyce, prayed. I felt...
During the coronavirus pandemic, masks became symbols of life or death. Once used only by healthcare professionals in dire situations or by first responders going into hazardous scenes with smoke, gas or toxic chemicals, they are now worn by the general public to...
No human being healthy in mind, body and spirit enjoys pain. By its very definition, pain causes distress, disruption and dysfunction. Whether acute with the sharp intensity of a blade stabbing through your body or chronic with the dull, unbearable ambience of...
I will never forget how I first glimpsed the presence of Jesus in my life. I did not experience a dramatic healing or a voice booming down from heaven. But it shook me up and left me unsettled just the same.If you saw me in high school, you would probably say that it...
Jesus dramatically proved His identity as the Messiah sent to save His people from their sins. But He did not sacrifice Himself and atone for our sins in the way that even His closest disciples expected. Whether they thought He would supernaturally install Himself as...
If church services were athletic events, pastoring would be considered a full-contact sport. Pastoring is complex and multifaceted. There is no area of human life which we are not called to address, and there is almost no detail or task in the church for which we're...
In the book of Genesis, God spoke creation into being in six days and rested on the seventh. In the book of Joshua, we read that the Israelites marched around the city of Jericho, also for seven days, and when they blew their ram's horn, the walls of the city fell....