John 9:39, Habakkuk 2:2-3, Colossians 3:2, Psalm 119:18, Ephesians 1:18
Vision is the ability to see God’s presence, to perceive God’s power, to focus on God’s plan In spite of the obstacles….Vision is the ability to see above and beyond the majority. Vision is perception...
Mark 9:23-24, Jeremiah 29:11, Psalm 8:28, Matthew 17:20, Ephesians 1:18-19 , Isaiah 40:28-31
All-powerful God, overwhelmed by the sorrows and pains of the day, we are prone to doubting. We search for your goodness yet we cannot perceive it. We long for your greatness but we disbelieve it. H...
One key difference between much of the early church vs. the church of today (at least in the West) was the belief in, and regular experience of, miracles. As Joel Green, the noted professor and writer...
James 1:17, Philippians 4:19, Matthew 7:11, Psalm 103:2, 2 Corinthians 9:8, Isaiah 41:10, 1 Peter 4:10, Ephesians 1:3, John 15:5
Heavenly Father, forgive us when we neglect our reliance on you. We take for granted many gifts you give, but we also forget your desire to provide. Help us to receive those gifts, whether they are ph...
Matthew 15:27, Psalm 18:1-2, Psalm 57:1, Mark 10:47, Ephesians 1:18
You are our strength, Lord, we will love you, under the shadow of your wings, protect us. Jesus, son of David, have mercy on us, that you may open the eyes of our hearts. We shall call to you with the...
There are at least ten God-created longings of the soul: 1. To see my body as sacred 2. To be wanted, desired 3. To be loved without condition 4. To be intimately connected to God 5. T...
Gracious God, we are called to be a joyful people, giving thanks for You and Your good gifts. There are times, however, when sin and sorrow grow, pushing joy to the side. We lose sight of Your grace, ...
For fifty-one years Bob Edens was blind. He couldn’t see a thing. His world was a black hall of sounds and smells. He felt his way through five decades of darkness. And then, he could see. A skilled s...
Søren Kierkegaard told a parable about a rich man riding in a lighted carriage driven by a peasant who sat behind the horse in the cold and dark outside. Precisely because he sat near the artificial l...
In Annie Dillard's Pulitzer Prize winning book, Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, she mentioned the work of Marius Von Senden who became curious about the effect it had on people who had been born blind to...
Luke 18:9-14, Ephesians 1:7, John 14:6, Psalm 23:1, John 17:3, Titus 3:4-5
In his insightful book, Delighting in the Trinity , Michael Reeves shares an interesting point of connection between the Protestant understanding of sola grati discovered by Francis Xavier during...
Psalm 86:5, Joel 2:13, Exodus 34:6, 1 John 1:9, Micah 7:18, Romans 2:4, Ephesians 1:7
God of mercy, you are full of tenderness and compassion, slow to anger, rich in mercy, and always ready to forgive. Grant us grace to repent of our sins and to cling to Christ, that in every way we ma...
The only reason God would have had for creating us was not to get the cosmic love and joy of relationship (because he already had that) but to share it.
Pastor: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. People: Amen. Pastor: God has placed everything under Christ’s wounded feet, People: and appointed the one wh...
Ephesians 1:9-10, Romans 13:11-12, Matthew 13:39-43, Revelation 22:6-7, Luke 21:24-28, 1 Corinthians 10:11, Psalm 98:7-9
Early Christian writing has the ends of the world upon it, hence its emphasis on fulfillment, fullness of time: the shape of the world-plot can now be seen.
Perhaps you have been ensnared by a sinful habit that you will not abandon, and your guilt is so overwhelming you are ashamed to approach Christ. Whatever the reason for your broken intimacy with God,...
When something has gone wrong, justice needs to be done and seen to be done. Ian McEwan’s novel Atonement examines exactly this same dynamic. The central character, Bryony Tallis, makes a grave mista...
The author and pastor Louie Giglio isn't the type of runner who enjoys the scenery—he's just trying to survive his workouts. And when he's running in freezing rain? He's barely thinkin...
Psalm 1:2-3, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Luke 18:1-8, James 1:22, Ephesians 1:17-18
Lord God, let us keep your Scriptures in mind and meditate on them day and night, persevering in prayer, always on the watch. We beg you, Lord, to give us real knowledge of what we read and to show us...
There are few Christian authors more respected than C. S. Lewis. After his conversion to Christ at age 33, he would spend the rest of his life writing iconic Christian works. However, his relationship...
Lord Jesus Christ, you are quicker to forgive us than we are to brings our sin before you. We worry that the sin we carry is too deep for you to pardon or too evil for you to bear. We forget that you ...
Psalm 51:1-2, Isaiah 53:6, 1 John 1:9, James 5:16, Romans 3:23-24, Ephesians 1:7
Almighty and most merciful Father, we have erred and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep. We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts. We have offended against thy holy laws....
1 John 1:9, Ephesians 1:7, Psalm 103:12, Isaiah 43:25, Romans 5:8, Titus 3:5, 2 Corinthians 5:17
Almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us all our sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen us in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep us in eternal life. Amen. In churche...
Daniel 7:13-14, 2 Kings 2:9-12, Psalm 110:1, Luke 24:50-53, Acts 1:6-11 , Ephesians 1:20-23
First, what is the ascension? It is not simply Jesus’ return from the earth to heaven. It is a new enthronement for Jesus, bringing a new relationship with us and with the whole world. …In fact, t...
Mark 7:24-37, Psalm 103:2-3, Colossians 1:13-14, Ephesians 1:7, John 20:23, Luke 5:24, Isaiah 35:5-6
The One who cast out demons, who made the deaf to hear and the mute to speak, has also the authority and power to forgive sins and to make us whole. I declare to you in the name of Jesus Christ that o...
Prayer of Adoration Father God … our Abba: You seek us with relentless love – coming after us in Your Son, Jesus. When we are in the pits – You draws us up and out; When we are broken – You fix u...
We pray to You our Lord, our Savior, our Merciful God, that all our sins may be forgiven. Our sins are like a straight jacket, binding us, and keeping us from relationship with You. Although we know w...