Stop & Ponder Life

Dangerous Prayers: Send Me

Last time we looked at the prayer of Samuel and Paul asking God to speak. “Speak, for your servant is listening.”1 Samuel 3:10b Once Samuel prayed for God to speak and was attentive to what God was speaking he had a choice to act or not. I want to look at the second part of that prayer. The choice to act or not. Throughout Scripture we see examples of men and women who heard the voice of…

Dangerous Prayers: God’s Voice

A dangerous prayer is one in which you are truly expecting God to do something or call you to do something that may not be safe or easy, but it will always be good. Have you ever played it safe? So often we become comfortable and complacent that we begin playing it safe with our lives. We get into a routine that works and we stay there. It’s not a bad thing to come to a place where we are taken…

Christmas with a Purpose: The Listening

Have you ever been tired? I believe it is very easy to become tired in life. Especially in the Christmas Season. There is so much going on that we can quickly get warn out by the shopping, cooking, cleaning, kids, snow, work, self-centered people. Christmas is a wonderful time of year, but also it is a time when we can feel like there just aren’t enough hours in the day! By the way Christmas is…

Christmas with a Purpose: The Waiting #newbeginnings #greenvillepa #lifesnewbeginnings #Christcommunitychange #christmas

if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself.

2 Timothy 2:13

Have you ever noticed Waiting can be the greatest enemy of Faith, Expectation and Hope?

Waiting can be hard. In life and in the Bible there are many times when people have been waiting. In your life you may be waiting for something to change, but it has seemed like an eternity since things have been good.

BUT GOD….Remembered!

“If God has done what you think he should do, trust him. If God doesn’t do what you think he should do, trust him. If you pray and believe God for a miracle and he does it, trust him. If your worst nightmare comes true, believe he is sovereign. Believe he is good.”

Craig Groeschel, The Christian Atheist: Believing in God but Living As If He Doesn’t Exist

Throughout life it is clear we do not…

But God's Word is not Chained.

We looked at what it meant to answer the question of But God instead of asking the question But God. Throughout life we can struggle with these this concept. Today I want to continue talking about but God, from 2 Timothy 2. Paul is writing to Timothy shortly before his death. God is sharing through Paul about our perspective of God and His word.

We looked at God in our lives, but I want to…

BUT GOD…Part 1

Whether you are a Christian or not, life is filled with things that we don’t understand or like. As we look at the terrible things in the world or in our own lives it is easy to ask the question…BUT GOD!?!?!

But God why is this happening? But God if you are all powerful why don’t you stop it? But God I need this relationship to work out…But God I need this job…But God why can’t I see you…

Faith Over Fear: Faith For Fellowship

There are so many who are living in fear today. It is understandable; there are so many things in this world that can cause fear. That deep feeling that causes a fight or flight response. We all experience fear to some extent or another. If that fear is crippling so much that you can’t leave the house or you simply have a sinking feeling that you are able to ignore most of the time. This month I…

Armed for Battle 2

Last week, I focused on the first three pieces of the armor of God from Ephesians 6. Now I want to complete our study of what we are putting on. It is so important to put on the full armor of God. Many Christians fail to put on all the armor of God and in doing that they are weak and the spiritual enemy is able to attack them. This is why we must put on the full armor of God as instructed in…

“The true soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him.”

G.K. Chesterton

As we close our study of Ephesians we find this charge from God to not simply allow evil to permeate our world, but to fight against it. This is why we must be armed for battle; but not in our own strength. King David knew our battle was only won through God.

1Prai…

…And DO IT!

If you are like most of the world today in 2020; you have probably not had the best year. It has been a struggle for everyone. Whether or not the corona-virus, the riots, the travel restrictions, the forest fires, the hurricanes, unemployment…SHOULD I KEEP GOING…has directly affected you; I’m guessing something has not been easy this year. I want to you start by saying…God was not caught off…

A Study in Ephesians: Godly Family

Throughout the Bible there are many teachings and examples of a marriage and a family that strives to serve God. Ephesians chapter 5 has a section that focuses on this idea. The beginning of the chapter was all about being an imitator of God through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Then we reach verse 21

21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

Ephesians 5:21

Thi…

A Study of Ephesians: Christian Living

The second half of chapter 4 and first half of chapter 5 focus around the idea of Christian living or living as children of Light.

In this long section I believe the Holy Spirit through Paul’s writing wants us to understand that we are called to be Imitators of God.

32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. 1 Be imitators of God,…

Study in Ephesians Chapter 1 "The church is built on!" #FatherGod #Ephesians #biblestudy #foundation #Jesus

Ephesians is a letter written by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul while he was in prison to the church in Ephesus and others. The main focus on the letter is THE CHURCH and what it means to be the church of Jesus Christ. This letter has so much that we can learn from. The believer and the church must stand on the word found in Ephesians especially when there is so much…

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God.

Psalm 42:1

Are you longing for God?

As the deer pants for water our souls pant for that which will give life…God.

Throughout the Psalms there are many times we find that there is a longing in the heart of man for the Creator. The only one who can give life; the only one who can give hope; the only one who can be our help…

Happy Father's Day! Into the Depths: The Government will be on HIS shoulders...You don't have to do this alone!

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.

3 John 4

Happy Father’s Day!

We are living in a time in which the family unit has broken down. We have come to a place where mothers and fathers are often not present at the dinner table. With this weekend being the day we celebrate fathers it can also be a weekend of great sadness instead of celebration. If you are…

Into the Depths: The Faith You Have

But the righteous one will live by his faith.

Habakkuk 2:4

As we continue to look at the benefits and working of the Holy Spirit; we will look at faith and the three main types of faith we find in the Bible. It is important to recognize and understand these types of faith, because “the righteous one will live by his faith.”

The Bible is full of faith actions and teachings about faith, but we…