READ: JOHN 14:15-31; GALATIANS 5:22-26; PHILIPPIANS 4:4-9 Advent takes place during the four weeks before Christmas, and it’s a time when some Christians prepare to celebrate Jesus’s first coming and look forward to His return. During Advent, many Christians reflect on different themes each week, and one theme is God’s peace. Peace isn’t something we [...]

READ: PSALM 34:1-8; JOHN 1:35-51 John 1 is one of my favorite chapters of the Bible. Twice in this single passage, we hear the words, "Come and see." First, the words are spoken by Jesus Himself. John the Baptist is with two of his disciples, and when Jesus passes by, John can't keep the excitement [...]

READ: ACTS 2:42-47; EPHESIANS 2:13-22; 1 THESSALONIANS 5:11 When God created Adam, He said that people shouldn’t be alone. And so, God created Eve. From the beginning, God created people for community. God designed Adam and Eve to thrive in fellowship—in companionship and intimacy with one another (Genesis 1-2). But then, Adam and Eve disobeyed [...]

READ: PSALM 119:25-40; EPHESIANS 1:18-23; HEBREWS 12:1-3 Hebrews 12:1-2 holds some of my favorite words in the Bible: “Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.” I’ve always loved this idea of fixing our eyes on Jesus. But in our everyday lives, [...]

READ: PSALM 34:1-8; MATTHEW 6:25-34; JOHN 14:1-7; PHILIPPIANS 4:4-9 Why do we worry when we know that God loves us? Why do we let our hearts become troubled when we know that Jesus warns us against that very thing? I wish I could say I never have a troubled heart. I wish I could say [...]

I struggle with making decisions. I have some perfectionistic tendencies, so I spend too much time thinking about choices that don't matter much in the long run. And in the past, I've let myself sit in these decisions for far too long, going back and forth and seeking out every expert, trying to pick the [...]

In high school, I had a plan for my life, and I didn't want anything to get in the way. I loved Jesus, but I didn't want to surrender my goals to Him. . My junior year, I had the chance to go on a trip with my church to Honduras. We had a week [...]

Maybe you've heard the saying: God will never give us more than we can handle. I'd never thought much about that idea until I found myself in Guatemala, begging God not to let both of my grandparents pass away while I was gone. . My grammy had been sick when I left for my semester [...]

Have you ever been on the brink of a major transition? New schools, new jobs, new homes, new friends—these changes can be good, but they can also be painful. People might ask you how you're feeling, but it can be hard to put those feelings into words. Transitions can be bitter and sweet, all at [...]