If you’re like most people who are trying to follow God, then chances are you’ve struggled with this thought before: “I’m not who I used to be...but I’m not who I should be!” You’ve gotten to a better place—but the Enemy wants you to think you’re still closer to who you were than who you’re becoming. Is the Enemy right? How do we fight against this thought?
Read MoreSometimes the greatest hindrance to seeing God’s faithfulness in the present is because it doesn’t look the same as it did in the past. The Enemy is cunning enough that He’ll recall God’s work in your past—but only so that you will compare it to what you’re experiencing in your present. We need to be grateful for how God worked, but ready to trust a foreign way.
Read MoreOur Enemy knows what He’s doing, and He’s more cunning than any political strategist. In fact, that’s why He focuses on our past...because He knows we can’t change it. What we did or what happened to us? It’s already written in stone. But while you can’t control what has happened then, you can control how you handle it now. It’s time to reclaim your past!
Read MoreFear isn’t a pushover. You can’t wish or hope it away—fear must be driven out of your life. It requires work to banish fear from your life…but it’s worth it! The future God has in store for you is dependent on your willingness to work with the Holy Spirit. And as you do, you will see the grip of fear lose ground; giving way to hope and confidence.
Read MoreIn most cases, your imagination is scarier than reality. We tend to think and worry about things that never actually materialize. But every now and then, our nightmares become reality. Your test comes back positive, you lose your job, your loved one dies...what now? How do we face fear that comes not in our darkest dreams, but in our starkest realities?
Read MoreFear isn’t just wicked—it’s clever. Fear knows exactly how to strike at your soul—bringing your hope and confidence to shambles. And each and every blow from fear is built on the same foundation: “What If?” It’s the paralyzing phrase that keeps us from the fulfilling future God has in store. To fight it, we must work with God to wrestle our “What If?”
Read MoreSociety has a love/hate relationship with scary stories. We enjoy the thrill they deliver one moment…and then find ourselves terrified the next. What’s crazy? Most of us still continue to tell ourselves scary stories to this day—but ones that truly instill fear in our hearts. What about you? Are you telling yourself stories that feed your faith or your fear?
Read MoreSun Tzu, the sixth-century Chinese general, famously said: “Know your enemy and know yourself. In a hundred battles, you will never be in peril.” That’s good advice. You’re more equipped to fight a monster when you truly know what you’re dealing with. And when it comes to the wicked warrior of Fear, you need to know exactly what you’re up against.
Read MoreMany of us take worship for granted. We follow the customs and traditions, but we don’t actually know why. Like...“Why do we get together on Sunday? Why do we sing songs? Why do we raise hands? Why do services end in a blessing? Why do our services follow a similar format?” If you’ve ever had questions like these, then this is the sermon for you.
Read MoreDespite the modern attempt to individualize faith, Christianity is a communal faith that is designed to be lived out in fellowship with other followers of Jesus. We need each other, and we need the specific giftings with which God has designed us. So when we withhold our presence and potential from our church, we limit what God wants to do in our lives.
Read MoreSome of the more misunderstood aspects of the Christian faith are fasting and prayer. In fact, you may wonder: “Why do I pray if God already knows my thoughts?” or “How does fasting food change things?” Those are good questions, and thankfully God gives us great answers—answers that show fasting and prayer aren’t just “niceties”, they’re necessities.
Read MoreBaptism and Communion are two sacraments of the Church. A sacrament is an “outward sign of God's gift of inward grace, to which humans have a responsibility of an outward response.” In our relationship with God, these two sacraments are a way of seeking God’s blessing over our life—receiving His grace and mercy alongside our community of faith.
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