"They simply kept hearing, 'He who formerly persecuted us now preaches the faith he once tried to destroy.' And they glorified God because of me." (Galatians 1:23-24, CSB)It's difficult for some to identify with the extreme change in a Saul become Paul, or a slave trader named John Newton who became a poet-preacher. When one hears the farthest reaches of grace encountered, indeed, the heart rejoic...  Read More

Swords can be dangerous if you’re at the wrong end of them...  Read More

Recently in our Spiritual Gifts Survey/Inventory, we kept reminding everyone, ourselves included: "This is not a test! (or, a quiz)!" There are no wrong answers...just an honest evaluation. In 2 Corinthians 13:5, Paul challenges the church to 'test' and 'examine' themselves. The measure, the point of evaluation is 'Christ in me.' This brings another favorite phrase of Paul's to mind: 'being in Chr...  Read More

Whether we are aware of it or not, our lives as Christians are constantly under examination.  Read More

Recently I have had conversations with people looking for a relationship leading to marriage. In the good old days, often someone would introduce us to a person of the opposite gender and an ambitious person, may try to 'set us up' with someone they thought would be 'perfect' for us. All of this was well-intentioned, if not always appreciated. Though this is not my practice, I have learned that I ...  Read More

We are all on a journey of grace with Jesus, and we are all at different points along that journey.  Read More