READ: PSALM 139; MATTHEW 11:28-30; JOHN 3:17; 16:7-14 I work in the office of our local fire department, and unfortunately sometimes part of the fire department’s job is locating the bodies of people who have drowned. This is a valuable service that can help bring some peace to the victim’s family. However, it can be [...]

READ: ROMANS 2:9-16; 3:21-31; TITUS 3:3-8 It was a sweltering Sunday. We were a few days into the mission trip, and I decided this must be the usual climate in Costa Rica. The small church was filled with people. There was no air conditioning. We were on the third hymn when my vision began blurring. [...]

READ: JOHN 1:1-15; 8:12-18; 2 CORINTHIANS 4:6 Vacation time for my family when I was a kid usually involved tents and sleeping bags. We enjoyed the outdoors, and camping helped us stay close to nature—while also saving on hotel costs. As a little kid, I took notice of signs where we camped warning us of [...]

READ: PSALM 23; PHILIPPIANS 4:11-13; HEBREWS 13:5 Growing up, I participated in a program at my church where I learned Bible stories and memorized Scripture. I remember memorizing Psalm 23 when I was in second grade. However, the words of this psalm didn’t mean nearly as much to me as a seven-year-old as they do [...]

READ: LAMENTATIONS 3:22-26; EPHESIANS 3:14-21; 1 JOHN 4:16 Ten or fifteen years ago, when I was a teenager and struggling through that often awkward and difficult phase of life, I wish I had known just how much God loved me. I knew of God’s love. I felt it in my life. But I didn’t realize [...]

READ: GENESIS 32:24-32; HOSEA 12:3-5; EPHESIANS 4:22-24 When I was an RA (resident assistant) in college, I had this resident who used to tell me she and God had been “wrestling” about something. She would spend entire days with the Lord, crying and repenting, and wrestling with Him about different behaviors and attitudes in her [...]

READ: ACTS 2:40-47; GALATIANS 6:9-10; EPHESIANS 4:1-16 Have you ever heard Christians talk about “doing life together”? It can be hard to understand exactly what this looks like. But I got to experience it in a variety of ways this week. I have some friends in my church who, like me, are married with young [...]

READ: PSALM 46 I never thought I would have to let go and say, “It is well with my soul,” like the old hymn. I never thought I would have to learn to be okay with the storms in my life. I prayed for God to take them. I begged Him to change things and [...]

READ: MATTHEW 1:23; 28:20; MARK 6:45-54; EPHESIANS 4:2 As I stood at the lake’s edge, I was observing a genuine SOS moment. A young family member—I’ll call him Ford—had just received a kayak for his tenth birthday. He loved to be on the water, so a kayak seemed a fitting gift for him. Since our [...]

READ: 1 PETER 5:6-11 Each small worry can quickly become a big worry. It expands from the place inside of me where a little thought pops up. I start to think about it more and more. I consider all the scenarios and things that could happen. I start to worry about how I’m going to [...]