Growing up, I was an Eagle Scout, and my favorite part of being a scout was to go camping and to pitch my tent in all kinds of places. I enjoyed the sights and smells of the great outdoors and found peace and joy in nature. Whether it was the…
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Be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. —Ephesians 5:15-16 One way you can prepare for your journey to heaven is to make the most of your time on earth. The apostle Paul said it…
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“You’ll never amount to anything.” The teacher’s words seared my ten-year-old spirit. I understood her underlying frustration. After all, I was hyperactive, easily distracted, and consumed more than my share of sugar. Oh, and I had a mega-crush on a cute boy in my class who happened to be a…
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It was one of the most dramatic moments in human history. Matthew chapter 28 presents us with the picture as Mary Magdalene entered the garden with burial spices in her hand to visit the tomb of Jesus, her teacher, Savior and friend…the One who had freed her from demon possession…
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If I were to ask you to draw a picture of Jesus and Peter during that incredible walking-on-water scene, which direction would Jesus be facing? Would he be facing Peter or looking away? My guess is that ten out of ten people would portray Jesus with his gaze immovably fixed…
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Have you ever read a scripture in God’s sacred word only later to learn that you completely misunderstood what it meant? Even worse, when someone would preach from that specific text it would irritate you. There was one verse in particular that annoyed me and made me feel uncomfortable, uneasy,…
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As I arrived at the port of Haifa in Israel on a cold January day, I had a mission in mind—to be baptized. I had only one day in Israel, and I wanted to see as much of it as I possibly could. Unaware of what awaited me and how…
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“My sheep hear my voice, I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand.” John 10:27-28 We moved into a new house with a pool when Missy was five and didn’t know how…
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Grace-full moments. We can't live without them. When we extend grace to others, despite our flaws and weaknesses, we reflect something of the very nature and character of Christ. With grace, sin becomes the enemy, not people. What was it that enabled Paul to endure such sinful opposition and rotten…
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We continually witness the ugliness and damage hate produces. Why do we allow it to prevail? Because love, life and truth must be received and released freely through yielded lives and minds. Truth is often misunderstood and misapplied. Transforming truth must be delivered in unconditional, redemptive love. Freedom allows all…
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