Following Jesus as an act of resistance to our cultural push toward hurry, hustle, distraction and shallowness. Most of our greatest mistakes tend to come when we’re in a hurry. …
Tag:
Love
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We do these practices like (slowing, simplicity, silence, solitude, sabbath and more) in order to grow the fruit of the Spirit within us and cultivate compassion like Christ within our …
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The dream was perfect. I was at a party and as I moved through the crowd I was really enjoying some sweet revenge by telling stories about someone who …
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We often define our lives by the big moments. But most of our lives consist of ordinary chapters. They may not feel significant, but ultimately end up changing everything. In …
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Modern Family “Setting the Tone” Jeff Jones, Senior Pastor 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 For every one of us here, we want to help those we love flourish in life, not hinder …
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Dear Roger, I know God said, “It is not good for man to be alone” (Genesis 2:18). I’ve been thinking a lot about friends—it’s been tough to make time for …
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Humility is not thinking less of yourself or having low self-esteem, it is thinking of yourself less, by thinking of others and God more. As the Spirit of God dwells …
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Forgive Quickly. The Bible speaks of keeping “short accounts.” In other words, don’t hold on to anger. Keep your marriage “current” instead of bottling up past issues, only to release …
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For the first ten years of my marriage, I struggled with the fear of abandonment. My father and my first pastor had both left their wives for younger women. Because …
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You married with the hope of sharing your life with someone who’s as pumped to make the most of it as you are, so how did the two of you …
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Do you know what Jonah’s final recorded words were? Were they words of repentance? Words of gratitude? Words of praise? Nope. They were words of spite. The last words that …
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“Returning to God in Unity” Ephesians 4:1-6 Introduction Many fish species swim together in groups called schools to survive. The school creates a tight formation that moves swiftly in perfect …
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As a child of God, you have a very special relationship with other Christians. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians pictures this relationship in two different ways. First, every believer is …
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“I want my kids to love me. But I am afraid that if I am too strong they won’t.” If you have ever had this concern, listen to this episode. …
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It’s easy to forget that even people like Paul the apostle needed—and indeed had—friends. In the book of Philippians, he named several of them, including Timothy. This man added enormous …
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Epaphroditus kind of sounds like a disease, doesn’t it? It’s an unusual name. But in the Bible, Epaphroditus was a dear friend and servant of Paul the apostle. His name shows …
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James teaches us we need to examine the purity of our hearts and behaviors. Here’s why…
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www.birthorderguy.
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Here we are explicitly told what the walk of believers entails: the walk “in love,” the imitation of God and of Christ, who loved with a love beyond compare. Having …
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““Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble …
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There are many opinions on what these three terms mean and how they relate to each other. Here are my thoughts. All three terms describe a process whereby a person …
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“After removing Saul, he made David their king. God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart; he will do everything I …
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Are manners still important in this day and age? Dr. Leman discusses the importance of etiquette in your kid’s behavior. www.birthorderguy.com.
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Dear Roger, Jesus told us to love our enemies, but I’m having trouble with that. I have some people who are really hurting me. In fact, I think that I …
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Dear Roger, Please help me build my relationship with God while I’m isolated from my church and others. Sincerely, Ronnie Dear Ronnie, I would love to help! I’ve put together …
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Is a lifetime commitment to a spouse even reasonable? Does permanence have to become a goal if it means a couple just has to grin and bear it? What if a …
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Dear Roger, I was recently asked when people of skin tone other than white as an indicator of racial or ethnic affiliation first appeared in the Bible. Was it before the …
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Dear Roger. I think I take my loved ones for granted.. My kids are driving me crazy! I dread holidays and family reunions. They are always a mine field! We’ve …
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The last thing we want someone to say about us is that we are “super needy.” We want to be independent, self-sufficient, strong individuals. The idea of needing people and …
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Dear Roger, Our small group was studying the passage in John 21 where Jesus commissioned Peter to be a shepherd for His sheep. I hadn’t considered the next part before, …
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Dear Roger, Many factors determine who should receive treatment during a world-wide health crisis. Who lives? Who dies? Who receives life-giving treatments? Essential workers, health workers, the elderly have …
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“Friends come and friends go, but a true friend sticks by you like family.” Proverbs 18:24. MSG I hired Gary Shrader over the telephone. I was 26. Gary was 24, green and …
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A Unique Take on the Good Samaritan. Excellent illustrations!
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I was first introduced to the idea of courtship while reading The Mingling of Souls by Matt Chandler. I was automatically intrigued. My boyfriend and I have been together for almost a …
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Thirty-six times in the New Testament we see a recurring word pattern—an action verb followed by the words one another. In English grammar this phrase is called a reciprocal pronoun—I …
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Affirming our grandchildren – it’s key: to building strong relationships, to discipleship, to passing the faith. Our words are powerful. When handled well, they can build up, encourage, communicate love, …
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WHY YOU SHOULD SEE “A BEAUTIFUL DAY IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD?” Russell Moore, in his charming article about Fred Rogers, pulls our heartstrings and reminds us how we should cherish …
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(Dear Reader, the following letter was written by a woman in another country who is in the throes of an acrimonious, three-year dragged out divorce. I am choosing not to …
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“I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your offspring …
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“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deuteronomy 6:5). How are we commanded to love …
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“It is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment” (Philippians 1:9). Remember that old Beatles song, “All You Need Is Love?” …
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Two conditions of the heart exist where no one can hide: one is when the heart is filled with love and the other when we are infected with bitterness. Either …
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How do you combine compassionate love with confrontational truth? What’s the secret to “speaking the truth in love”? The apostle John knew. Pastor John MacArthur gives us a glimpse of …
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Forget online matchmaking sites. If you need some tips on finding love, perhaps these weird and wonderful Old Testament tales will inspire you. We will also examine four passionate Bible …
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Dear Roger, Our small group is reading through the New Testament together. I never realized how much of the Gospels was devoted to the subject of demons. I got to …
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Someone sent me a picture of a sign they saw in a church. It is perhaps the greatest Christian passive aggressive note I have ever seen in my life. Since …
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Though often well-intended, a commitment to being “color blind” becomes harmful when it fails to recognize the good ways God has filled the world with color. In other words, sometimes …
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Have you ever come across a word that seems to jump out at you consistently? A word that causes you to sit up and take notice each time you hear …
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I’ve grown up my whole life hearing that racism was wrong, that “prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own …
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You never stop being a mom. From the day you learn you have a bun in the oven to the day you breathe your last, your child is always on …
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Dear Roger, Last week I helped lead my friend to Christ. It’s the first time I’ve ever done anything like that. She began crying as she confessed her …
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Dear Roger, How do I explain to my five-year old why God lets people be poor and homeless? In other words, how do I explain suffering in the world to …
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Jesus’ great, great, great, great grannies were all REALLY bad girls (except for Mary, of course). Matthew mentions five women in the royal line of the Messiah: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, …
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“Hi, son! How was your day?” “Fine.” “What happened at school?” “Nothing.” “Anything happen you would like to talk about?” “No.” Sound like a familiar conversation when you pick …
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How do you know if you are proud? Paul has the litmus test. 1 Corinthians 8:1-3 “Now concerning food offered to idols: we know that “all of us …
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We all love romance. We all love a good love story. I don’t know if it is ingrained in us to love romance, or a product of Disney marketing, but …
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Here’s a question I am asked occasionally…Here’s my podcast with Doug: Guilt drives a dad to worry about how to explain to his daughter that she was conceived before her …
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Almost everyone tries to develop new habits and make improvements at the beginning of a new year. But by the time March rolls around, most of the diets have crashed …
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Dear Roger, I was reading about the Great Commandment in Matthew 22. Jesus said that we are to love God with all our heart soul and mind. Jesus said that …
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Dear Roger, I have been deeply offended because my spouse has been mistreated by a trusted friend and I can’t seem to get past it. How do I find it …
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Dear Roger, Refugees and racism have been, and will continue to be, hot issues. It’s estimated that over 30% of the people in the Roman Empire in the first century …
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Dear Roger, I’ve had three daughters. The first one died in my arms. The second one has debilitating medical challenges. She’s lain on a deathbed more than once. The third …
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“Let us make human beings in our image, make them reflecting our nature.” Genesis 1:26 MSG Racial violence has stirred the rawest of wounds–racism. Judging a person according to skin …
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I woke up in Hell. Really. It was that hot. Open heart surgery was finished and my thirteen-year-old body was racked with pain. It’s easier today. Open the chest and …
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These days there’s a lot of talk about “unity” in the church. On the one side, there are Christians who insist that any talk of “race” and racism threatens the …
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The social networking phenomenon is accelerating at record speeds and isn’t likely to slow down any time soon. The Pew Research Center states the following statistics for 2018: “Some 95% …
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God’s love to all humanity is a love of compassion. To say it another way, it is a love of pity. It is a broken-hearted love. He is “good, and ready to …
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Why did Rebekah “fall” off of her donkey when she first saw her beloved? Learn why….
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Hi, I don’t feel comfortable stating my name, but I am 17 and a Christian. I was raised as one and was always told and preached that without God and …
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One of the most frequent questions I’ve been asked about Heaven over the years is about the nature of marriage there. As I share in my book Heaven, there will be one …
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The Biblical-World View and the Non-Biblical-World View approach the sex issue from entirely different perspectives. One is founded upon a sexual ideology where anything goes. The other is designed to …
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Most of us have been hurt by someone we know or someone we love. Sometimes, our reaction is to disconnect from that person and hold a grudge or to hurt …
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There is a twist—a deeper reason why the perception of hypocrisy exists. It’s not just our lifestyles that have gotten us in trouble; it’s the very way in which we …
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I sat across the room from the couple, trying to slow down my mind and open my heart to the criticism they were leveling at me. They had been offended …
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Dear Roger, Now we have the results: the President has not supported Israel as in the past. It seems to me that a lot of older Christians have an unhealthy …
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Our neighborhood kids are in their yards gleefully decorating for Halloween. Cardboard witches, ghoulish ghosts and sticky spider webs cover the lawns. I have nothing against candy. Give me a …
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One of my favorite Bible characters is Rebecca. So today we are in Genesis 24, witnessing Abraham’s servant being sent to find a wife for his young master. The story …
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The Bible does not describe us merely as wayward, broken, or needing a moral boost but as those who are dead in sin (Eph. 2:1). Dead men and women do …
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Jesus embodied compassion. What can we learn from how He treated others? True compassion demands action. It interrupts our daily routine. Caring costs. But compassion changes lives! Preached at LifeChurch.tv. …
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Hi Roger, I often find myself bouncing between believing and not. Growing up I was shown what it was like to put up a false front so to speak. At …
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When we ask the question about what draws others to us, we might first want to determine why we’re asking the question. This magnetism is not about popularity, attractiveness or …
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Racism isn’t just the presence of hatred-it’s the absence of love. How do we “neighbor” others? By recognizing our own prejudices, seeking to understand others, and by loving those different …
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One of the key ways to reach an unchurched audience is through special events. Warren Bird writes: “For church leaders who are trying to crack the code on more effectively …
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Here are scriptures to address Satan’s attacks on your mind. Blasphemous Thoughts –2 Cor10:4-5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, …
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What is the point of Jesus’ parables? We must learn the context, the question and the hinge moment (the outlandish surprise element). The legal experts only wanted to call other …
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It will come as no surprise to most that the U.S. population has been consistently loosening its ties with church over the past few decades. In the early 1990s, only …
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Jeff Foxworthy, the old, redneck comedian who readily admits that he is “not smarter than a fifth-grader” is wiser than he looks. In spite of his humble roots, Foxworthy teaches …
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Me. Myself. And I. The three people we tend to care about the most in western civilization. Since the fall of Adam and Eve, the sickness of self-absorption has infected …
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Over the last two weeks, we announced that the U.S. now has at least 8,000 multisite churches (by the broadest definition) and also 5 trends in how multisites launch and …
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Sermon begins at 32:05. We can listen to the voices of rage and anger in our lives. We can hear the shouts of the world around us, or we can …
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The Tolerance of Jezebel in Thyatira (Rev. 2:19-24) people? 19 ‘I know your deeds: your love, faith, service, and steadfast endurance. In fact, your more recent deeds are greater than …
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Velcro love sticks and stays. God’s HESED love causes us to act on commitment, not feelings first. Suffering is the context where true love begins. Christ’s sacrifice is the embodiment …
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Loving your mother-in-law can be a mixed bag. My mother-in-law made it abundantly clear that she didn’t approve of me from Day One. Her son, an angelic boy scout who …
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Throughout 5,000 years of recorded human history virtually every culture has had some kind of myths regarding the supernatural world. In fact, Judaism and later Christianity, also sprang from a …
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God sent His perfect love in Jesus, His Son. God’s love seeks to dig deep within our souls, He unearths those fears, and casts them out. Like Peter, when Jesus …
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Time is a precious commodity. If traded on the commodities market, its value would be incalculable. But alas, time cannot be bought or sold. And while the length of our …
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God knows everything. He knows what we do before we do it, what we think before we think it, what we say before we say it, what we need before …
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The beautiful love poem of Solomon to his bride teaches much about the passion, permanence, power and procreative purpose of marriage. Marriage is a holy covenant based on sacrifice and …
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Are you happy or unhappy with your life? If you sat down and made a list of reasons why you are happy or unhappy, chances are, you will be able …
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Dear Roger, I am the pastor of a 100 member adult church and I was informed today that my largest giving family will no longer be with us. This family …
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Faith is relational, not formulaic. If you are frustrated or confused by seeming inconsistencies in Scripture, the God of the Bible longs to meet you where you are, to be …
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Jesus teaches the Bible is not a rule book. Jesus didn’t live in a set way. He lived out His love in a consistent way with His character as the …
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There’s a gap that exists between who we are and who we want to be, the gap between our current project and where we want it go. What do you …
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Recently, at a routine mammogram, the doctors discovered that I had developed breast cancer. Since then, it has been a whirlwind of appointments, scans and surgery. Even though the past …
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We must act upon our faith by loving our community and serving others well.
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What was my most embarrassing moment? Combine my brash disregard for tradition, my total lack of tact, my predilection for clumsiness and the possibilities for humiliation are endless. The longer …
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Dear Roger, I have been in an affair with the pastor of my church for 15 years. Now that it is ending, do I have any legal rights for damages? …
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“Ninety-five percent of all the decisions you’ll ever make in your career could be made by a reasonably intelligent high school sophomore. But they’ll pay you for the other five …
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There’s always that one kid. The kid who won’t stay in his seat at the restaurant. The girl who has to have the last word. And the boy who’s always …
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We all have vampires in our lives. They’re not the ones with pale skin and blood-thirsty fangs – but they do suck the life out of us. They live in …
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What if Jesus walked into your church office, applying for a staff position. Would He be welcomed? Would He be laughed out of the office? Would he be politely dismissed …
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How important is your reputation to you? Have you suffered rejection and slander for following Jesus? How many of us Christians would follow Jesus during His time? His reputation was …
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What characteristics should a godly leader possess? I try to avoid the word “qualifications,” for that leaves the impression that if a man doesn’t bat a thousand percent in each …
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God wants us to pray specifically. Pray for your enemies, for the unsaved, for national and spiritual leaders, for your neighbors, co-workers and family. In praying for them, God will …
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Every person is created in the image of God Himself. Jesus loved the most unlikely people- God. In one way or another all human beings reflect God himself. Jesus served …
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One day we will know just how much God has blessed us. God has made us to be His hands and feet-to touch the hurting and feed the poor. We …
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As a community of believers grows, its needs new leaders raised up to handle the increased ministry needs. This is true for churches that handle growth by multiplying into …
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I’ve been following the Lord for a little over 30 years now. And as I’ve watched the passing parade, some of the most zealous, devout, committed Christians that I knew …
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In many local elementary schools, every few weeks the “Lost and Found” box is emptied out and the contents are scattered down the length of the main hall. Coats, mittens, …
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Your values are what you want to stand for, what you want to do, or how you want to behave. You can take a fixed approach or a principled approach. …
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Do all men leave? For the first ten years of my marriage, I struggled with the fear of abandonment. My father and my first pastor had both left their wives …
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We are born with a sense of justice. But because of this tendency, we tend to want to retaliate when we are unjustly treated. Walk in wisdom. Walk in community. …
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Marriage isn’t easy or fair. Love is a choice, not an emotion. Master the marriage cycle: joy, disillusionment, misery, understanding, mature love. Submission is putting the needs and interests of …
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Hosea was asked by God to marry an unfaithful woman and love her unconditionally. In doing so, he demonstrated the kind of amazing love God has for his children.
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What is the Christian church supposed to look like? What are some of the most common and dangerous problems facing any church and how can you correct them? …
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Young pastors or seminarians often ask me for advice on what kind of early ministry experience to seek in order to best grow in skill and wisdom as a pastor. …
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Dear Roger, After devastating occurrences taking place in my life one after the other I have given up on God! As somebody who from an early age has been taught …
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Hundreds of ministers have admitted that when they get the phone call with the sobbing, furious, or panicked person on the other line, they do not know what to say. …
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The image of God on the earth should show in the lives of Christ’s followers. Others should be surprised to see the love, forgiveness and spiritual power in our lives. …
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Who can you trust? Who will help you lead your church? In my estimation, people usually have one of these attitudes concerning leadership. #1 – “Can Do” This is the …
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The service begins with the baptism of a young girl who was supposed to be dead in the womb after a DNC. Instead, she survived and became a powerful testimony …
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Many people in our society are blind to spiritual things, especially to the unconditional love of Jesus and His free gift of salvation. A woman, an outcast in her land …
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Sexuality is designed by God as a way to know Him more fully. Knowing God is designed by God as a way of guarding and guiding our sexuality. By John …
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“Mommy, I’m so thirsty. I want a drink.” Susanna Petroysan heard her daughter’s pleas, but there was nothing she could do. She and four-year-old Gayaney were trapped beneath tons of …
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Encouraging love is patient. Patience is the ability to be wronged and wronged again, and to have the power to retaliate, but refuse to strike back. Kindness gives to one’s …
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Salvation is by grace through faith. That is a foundational truth. But it is usually understood to mean that nothing you do contributes to salvation. With this, a pervasive passivity …
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Dear Roger, I am a devout Christian and my girlfriend is Mormon. We are getting closer to closer and have been dating about a year and have gotten through tough …
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Did you know that God has blessed you with hope and a future? His blessing is both personal, powerful and prophetic. Genesis 49 reveals great truths about prophetic blessings as …
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Christianity certainly takes its share of bashing in the news. While most of what we hear is politicized rhetoric, the damage is especially devastating when professing Christians themselves contribute rude …
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Do you struggle with losing weight? Every day is a battle, one calorie at a time. And then there is that wicked cupcake, that seductive pizza, that chocolate milkshake that …
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“Yes, Brother, I see that hand!” Church leaders, like all men with feet of clay, are tempted to climb ladders of success. Buildings, budgets and baptisms are never far from …
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Roger,I was baptized when I was a baby, and again when I accepted the Lord into my heart when I was 21. My question is this: My 20’s were a …
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King Solomon teaches many valuable lessons about love and romance in the marriage relationship. We learn from him that love is pure, love protects and love is passionate. In the …
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Blind spots and facades can cripple our relationships. We must learn to receive honest feedback and speak the truth in love.
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God’s limitless love is beyond logic. How can we pass it on? Love someone when they least expect it and least deserve it. Read Pastor Mark’s Sermon in Punjabi.
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Genesis 43 recounts the reunion of Joseph and his long-lost brothers. The moving story in this chapter paints a picture of brothers expressing fear, guilt, grief and pain. Emotions are a …
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How do we know something unknowable or measure something immeasurable? There is only one way to lose self and that is to love another and be lost in Him. Preached …
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Jesus commends the Ephesian church for its strengths, offers correction for its problems and encourages members to re-kindle their first love, the Lord Jesus. In the struggle to live passionate …
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King David is called “the sweet psalmist of Israel” in 2 Samuel 23:1. On top of that, he is the most frequently mentioned individual in the psalm headings throughout the …
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TEACHER TO TEACHER This is the last lesson in our Faith Foundations study series. It contains four “big ideas.” First, we describe Casas as a Kingdom church whose primary mission …
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Bible study must include observation, interpretation and application, but must also include relational questions about intimacy with God and others.
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Leah, wife of Jacob and sister of Rachel, was switched with her sister on Jacob and Rachel’s wedding night. She lived in a loveless marriage, unappreciated and unsupported. We can …
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God loves us unconditionally and simply asks us to love Him intimately, humbly serve Him, and to walk with Him in submission and obedience.
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Our children need to develop healthy, functional relationships by practicing self-awareness, self-management and social awareness. As Joseph’s story unfolds in the Old Testament, we see how these characteristics lead him …
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Dear Roger, Do you have to publicly become a Christian or can you do it in private? Sincerely, Anonymous (from Casas Church Discovering Christianity Class) Dear Anonymous, When I was …
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I stopped off at a local bookstore with my daughter yesterday and picked up two seasonally published magazines about the Bible. One was published by U.S. News and World Report. The other …
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Children have an incredible knack at comforting. One mother tells of her little Tina coming home late from school. “Where have you been, Tina?” her mom asked.“Lisa dropped her best …
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I recently read an interesting quote about Buddhism’s impact on real world problems. Check this out. “Christmas Humpreys, an influential Western Buddhist, admits…’It may be asked, what contribution Buddhism …
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I recently read an interesting quote about Buddhism’s impact on real world problems. Check this out. “Christmas Humpreys, an influential Western Buddhist, admits…’It may be asked, what contribution Buddhism …
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Our purpose is to live for Christ, a life of noticing others so we can minister the encouragement, compassion and comfort Jesus first showed us. As our love shines in …
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Paul poses four questions. If we are encouraged by Christ, can we give that same encouragement to others? If we are comforted by Him, can we comfort others? If we …
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I’m convinced that we must be continually reminded of the message of the gospel of Jesus Christ. In this world, we face a great a great accuser (Rev. 12:10), an …
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The scene: A bunker on the front lines. Artillery shells are exploding all around. Machine-guns lay down a blanket of tracer rounds overhead. The drone of enemy dive-bombers is increasing …
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iPods, iPhones, text messaging, e-mail, social networking, video and audio input are all screaming for our attention. It’s funny how the absence of something in your life causes you to …
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Every pastor’s wife deals with pandemonium. The day-to-day challenges of family, work and ministry demand patience, grace and strength. Proverbs 31 was written by a mother to express the inestimable …
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God forces Peter to face his prejudices and surrender them to the Lord. Mankind has a history of prejudging others based on superficial characteristics. Instead God asks us to look …
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Many of us analyze the Bible to resolve doctrinal and behavioral questions instead of immersing ourselves in a story that is intended to saturate our heart, soul and mind. To …
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God is greater than any distance we create. He is all-knowing, all-powerful and everywhere all the time. Even though our inclination is to wander, God focuses on proximity. Jesus came …
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Reading the list of character qualities in Proverbs 31 can be daunting. No one person could possibly embody all of these traits or perform all of these tasks. Proverbs …