Humility: The Key to the Kingdom  In addition to the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector in Luke 18:9-14, the Gospel of Luke includes other parables that remind us that God is not impressed with superficial outward displays of righteousness, but rather accepts those who are truly humbled by the awareness of their sinfulness and need for mercy. Below are three examples of this: The Two De...  Read More

Does God Hear My Prayer?  At times we all wonder if God hears when we pray, especially when we don’t seem to see anything happening. The Psalms are a great place to turn when we experience this, for they are filled with prayers asking God to hear and respond. Fortunately they also offer wonderful reassurance that God does hear when we pray. Below are four of my favorite Psalms verses that remind u...  Read More

I love youth retreats.  Even though I invariably get to a point where I’m ready for my own bed and to breathe in something other than adolescent body odor, there’s just something about having a large group of teenagers stuck together for an extended period of time with the specific purpose of growing their relationship with God and each other that is, dare I say, enjoyable. During a retreat studen...  Read More

What We Know about “End Times”    Though there is much we do not know about the “end times” there are three truths from the Bible that we can know for certain:  1.       Christ will return. In 1 Thess. 4:16-17 we are told that Christ himself will descend and summon to himself the bodies of believers who have died, whereupon they will be united to Christ. The timing of this return is unknown but wi...  Read More

I have been a parent for just over seven years now, and it is one of the most joyful and challenging endeavors I have ever attempted. My guess is that most parents would agree. From the early days of parenting that exhaust us physically to the latter days of parenting that exhaust us emotionally, the path of parenting is filled with all sorts of various trials and struggles and hardships. It is a ...  Read More

Learning From Physical Struggles  In the Bible the Lord often uses the physical to point us to the spiritual, from the physical requirements necessary to enter the temple in the Old Testament to Jesus’ miracles in the New Testament. Below are four lessons we can learn from times we experience physical struggles of various kinds:  1.       Sickness reminds us of our spiritual brokenness apart from ...  Read More