The mission of Papa Bear Hikes is to explore outdoor experiences. We share personal outdoor adventures and provide tips and pointers as to how anyone can enhance their outdoor endeavors. We passionately believe that anyone can enjoy what the great outdoors has to offer no matter age, physical condition, or skill level. While creating the podcast is fun, it does cost money to produce. That is why I am asking for pledges to support the continued production of, and expand, the Papa Bear Hikes podcast.

You can pledge as little, or as much, as you like. It all adds up! Imagine if 1,000 people pledged $5 monthly? You will be charged when you pledge, and then it will be ongoing at the beginning of each month. You can cancel or change your pledge amount at any time.

To that end, we need your help to continue putting out great content each week.

Kindly click on my patreon page below!!!

The Role of the Holy Spirit in the Book of Acts The growth seen in the early church was only possible through the power of the Holy Spirit who ensured the church would grow and endure.

Throughout the book of Acts we encounter the growing forces which we know today as the church and the kingdom of God. From cover to cover of this book we see the systematic expansion of the gospel from Jerusalem to the majority of the Roman world in only a few decades. This level of achievement is frankly not possible through human might and wisdom alone, there must have been another factor…

I just had a group of people knock on my door this Saturday afternoon.  They were handing out bottles of Joy dish-washing liquid.  They explained that they wanted to make sure everyone had a little joy in their life today.   It wasn’t until the very end of the conversation that they mentioned  were from the church down on the corner.  That was the only mention.

When You’re Unwilling

By Greg Laurie

But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of your Father in heaven. For he gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike. —Matthew 5:44-45

My mother was married and divorced seven times. I had the privilege of sharing the gospel with several of my…

Jesus Felt a Love for Him

Christ And The Rich Young Ruler – Heinrich Hofmann

  Looking at him, Jesus felt a love for him and said to him, – Mark 10:21

Here is a detail that the other gospel writers omit in this encounter with the rich young ruler.

Jesus brought him to the place where he was supposed to see his need, but the young man missed it. This did not anger Jesus, nor did it frustrate Him.

If you remember Jesus drew…

DEVOTION An Evangelism Essential  

  "Is not My word like a fire?" says the Lord, "And like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?"   ~ Jeremiah 23:29

Billy Graham once said, "Time and time again in my ministry, I have quoted a Bible verse in a sermon, sometimes without planning to do so in advance, only to have someone tell me afterward it was that verse that the Holy Spirit used to bring conviction and faith to him." Knowing God's Word is essential for any person who wants to lead others to Jesus Christ. Anyone who shares the gospel needs to use the Word of God. When Philip met the Ethiopian in the desert, the Bible tells us, "Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him" (Acts 8:35). What if Philip had not been a student of Scripture when the Ethiopian was looking for answers? He would have had to say, "I don't know, that's a good question. Uh, can I get back to you?" Fortunately, Philip was well-versed in what the Scripture taught. That is why we are told in 2 Timothy 2:15, "Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." I'm not saying we need to have the answer to every question. But I am saying that we need to study and prepare ourselves as effectively as possible. And if we don't have the answer, let that propel us back into the pages of Scripture to find it for the next time that question arises. Today's devotional is an excerpt from Every Day with Jesus by Greg Laurie, 2013