restoration

We Ought to Bear Fruit

“Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown.” – Matthew 13:8 The Bible tells us in so many parables that we ought to bear fruit. Can you imagine a farmer going out into his field and looking at the crops and not seeing the potential that lies before him or her? There’s not a farmer out there who would say, I hope that tree doesn’t produce any fruit. It would be foolish for a farmer to hope that their crops will stop growing, right? God would never say that about us. God sees us as fruit-bearing beings that carry forth His Kingdom and His life. We live by faith and what God says about us: You’re redeemed, renewed, restored, and forgiven. No one else can see in your life the magnitude of the greatness that God sees. A

August 20, 2022 1 Comment

The Good Shepherd

“The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.” – Psalm 23:1-3 Earlier this month, we touched briefly on Psalm 23, reminding us we lack nothing. For the next couple of days, we’re going to take a closer look at this beloved verse as we continue talking about living a life without lack and having everything we need in the sufficiency of God’s Kingdom. As we work through specific verses of the Psalm, I encourage you to commit them to memory so you can meditate on them and really allow their truth to sink into your spirit! The Lord is my Shepherd, I lack nothing. We talked yesterday about how we have a good Shepherd and how in His love, we have everything

February 15, 2022 2 Comments

He is Our Shepherd

“The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.” – Psalm 23:1-3 We will be looking at Psalm 23 for the next few days as we continue talking about living a life without lack and having everything we need in the sufficiency of God’s Kingdom. I encourage you to memorize individual Psalm verses as we go through them so you may dwell on them and truly let their truth sink into your spirit! The Lord is my Shepherd, I lack nothing. We have a good Shepherd and in His love, we have everything that we need. He makes me lie down in green pastures. Sheep lie down in green meadows when they have had enough to eat. A pasture is where flocks

November 9, 2021 No Comments

The Journey to Healing

“Then he said to him, ‘Rise and go; your faith has made you well.’” – Luke 17:19 In continuing our study of the story of the ten lepers who cried out to Jesus for healing, it’s interesting to note that He bid them embark on a journey in order to see their miracle manifest. Though He often touched someone — or even spoke a word — and restoration happened immediately, this time it was different. Rather than instantaneously changing their circumstances, He instructed them to go and show themselves to the priest, who happened to be in Jerusalem. Since they were near Samaria at the time, it would have been a three or four day walk from where they were to get to the temple. And while they could have come up with any number of reasons why they shouldn’t make the trip, they started moving with the faith that

September 21, 2021 No Comments

A Lesson in Walking By Faith

“Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance and called out in a loud voice, ‘Jesus, Master, have pity on us!’ When he saw them, he said, ‘Go, show yourselves to the priests.’ And as they went, they were cleansed.” – Luke 17:11-14 We’ve talked before about the plight of those suffering from leprosy in the ancient world. Unfortunately, after someone was declared leprous, they were forced to leave their families and live on the outskirts of town with others who shared their diagnosis. So grim was their lot that many saw no way out other than to die or receive a miracle. And this is where the story in Luke 17 picks up. Jesus was traveling from the northern country of Galilee south

September 19, 2021 1 Comment

What Begets Miracles?

“The blind and the lame came to him at the temple, and he healed them. But when the chief priests and the teachers of the law saw the wonderful things he did and the children shouting in the temple courts, ‘Hosanna to the Son of David,’ they were indignant.” – Matthew 21:14,15 We learned yesterday about the atrocities that were being committed by the money changers, and how — since Jesus hates injustice — He swiftly drove them out of the temple courts. However, an interesting and oft-overlooked part of this story is that no sooner did He turn over the tables and clean up the mess than He began healing everyone in sight. Though we typically read about Him doing one miracle at a time, on that day, a wave of the Holy Spirit’s power washed over Him, and He restored everyone who came into His presence. This caused

September 10, 2021 No Comments

Hope Anchors

“But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect.” – 1 Peter 3:15 As Christians, we should never take hope for granted, because it’s the incredible force that inspires us to move ahead when everything around us says to quit. The dictionary defines it as a “feeling of expectation,” but the beauty of living in Jesus is that hope is more than just an emotion or a desire — it’s a fact. The Bible says that we can anchor our soul in it, because we know for certain that there is always more goodness ahead than what we see. When the storms of life swirl around us and we fear for our safety and wellbeing, hope keeps us rooted in the unchanging

August 22, 2021 1 Comment

Connection Changes Things

“A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire; He rages against all wise judgment.” – Proverbs 18:1 (NKJV) Emotional isolation stifles the human soul. In fact, the first five months of life are foundational to the health of body, mind, and spirit, because that’s when bonding happens. When, as infants, we internalize the love of our mother or parent figure, we’re equipped to retain a sense of connection later on, even if our guardians are no longer present. The reality of having our emotional needs met enables us to be loving and empathic people who have healthy relationships with others as we grow older. Of course, because we live in a fallen world, many things can go wrong in this process, and a lack of attachment can lead to a host of difficulties trying to build and maintain life-giving bonds. If we’re not regularly internalizing the love of our

August 21, 2021 No Comments

Connection Transforms

“A man who isolates himself seeks his own desire; He rages against all wise judgment.” – Proverbs 18:1 (NKJV) Emotional isolation stifles the human soul. In fact, the first five months of life are foundational to the health of body, mind, and spirit, because that’s when bonding happens. If, as infants, we internalize the love of our mother or parent figure, we’re equipped to retain a sense of connection later on, even when our guardians are no longer present. The reality of having our needs met enables us to be loving and empathic people who have healthy relationships with others as we grow older. Of course, because we live in a fallen world, many things can go wrong in this process, and a lack of attachment can lead to a host of difficulties trying to build and maintain life-giving bonds. If we’re not regularly internalizing the love of our spouse,

August 21, 2021 2 Comments

A Compassionate Touch

“When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So he began teaching them many things.” – Mark 6:34 While there are many words we can use to describe how healing happens in the church, if I were to pick one, it would be compassion. Nearly every time Jesus restored, touched, or taught in the Bible, it says that He had compassion for the people He was helping. In fact, this familiar word literally means to “suffer alongside.” The term passion, which is often used to describe the cross, comes from the french word for suffering, which is pati, and when you add the prefix co, it means to “suffer with.” Truth is, there’s great healing power in offering sympathy and tenderness to an emotionally-wounded neighbor, and since we live in a world that can’t seem to stop

July 30, 2021 No Comments

We Ought to Bear Fruit

The Good Shepherd

He is Our Shepherd

The Journey to Healing

A Lesson in Walking By Faith

What Begets Miracles?

Hope Anchors

Connection Changes Things

Connection Transforms

A Compassionate Touch

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