IT troubles you, fatigues you, shames you. IT is the disease you can’t heal, the job you can’t stomach, the marriage you can’t fix, the rage you can’t tame. IT hurts. IT looms over life. Two towering letters, tall and defiant. IT! They march like Frankenstein’s monster. Each step a thud. Each thud an earthquake.…
When You Believe in God but Not in Prayer
A pastor once asked his church to pray that God would shut down a neighborhood bar. The whole church gathered for an evening prayer meeting, pleading with God to rid the neighborhood of the evils of this bar. A few weeks later, lightning struck the bar and it burned to the ground. Having heard about…
The Quiet Power of Bedtime Prayers
I slip out of my daughter’s room with my last, “I love you” and quietly shut the door. Before I head downstairs I sneak a peek at my son as I hear his voice uttering this prayer. Dear God, Thank You for a good day. Thank You for the yummy food we had to eat…
Show Me the Way, God!
I’m the answer to your prayer. That’s why I was sent down here. — Clarence the Angel, after George tells him “I got a bust in the jaw in answer to a prayer.” When George Bailey sidles up to Martini’s Bar on Christmas Eve, he’s at the lowest point of his life. In the span of only a few hours,…
Ask for Prayer and Pray for Others
Don’t Forget Now I beg you, brethren, through the Lord Jesus Christ, and through the love of the Spirit, that you strive together with me in prayers to God for me. — Romans 15:30 The apostle Paul was traveling from Corinth to Jerusalem with money for the Jerusalem church. Knowing the Jews in Jerusalem would…
Verse Mapping Luke: She Believed
Welcome to the first session of Verse Mapping: Luke by Kristy Cambron. If you want to unpack the context of the Scriptures you’re reading but do it in a super-simple way— looking at the Hebrew/Greek translations, finding connections in the Word, & learning as much as you can from your time with the Holy Spirit— then…
Hannah’s Request
Hannah prayed and said: “My heart rejoices in the LORD… I rejoice in Your salvation.” — 1 Samuel 2:1 When have you really wanted something? We all know what it feels like to long for something desperately, for something, such as a life-giving job, a significant other, a repaired relationship, a sense of purpose, or…
Prayer: The Fight Club
Prayer does not change the purpose of God. But prayer does change the action of God. — Chuck Smith Prayer is a battle. Sometimes it may not feel like it; other times it is all battle and little joy. The soul delights in prayer. It is how it breathes. The spirit is invigorated through prayer.…
A Prayer to Renew Our Minds
In order to move forward in something new and different, we need to renew our minds. To do that, our minds need a new connection. Repentance can feel like a heavy word. Maybe it’s a new word altogether for you. But repentance is the way God uses to change us. Let me show you what…
Pray Until Something Happens: The King’s Speech
Where the word of a king is, there is power; and who may say to him, “What are you doing?” — Ecclesiastes 8:4 In the 2010 Oscar-winning film The King’s Speech, actor Colin Firth plays the part of King George VI, whose ascension to the throne of Great Britain would be accompanied by his severe…