Tag: prayer

Does Fasting During Lent Have To Be Only About Food? 

Good Morning Friends, Today we reflect on the traits, traditions, and practices that prepare our hearts for faith—especially fasting during Lent. People fast for many reasons, and Scripture gives us examples from Moses, David, Esther, Daniel, Anna, Paul, and Jesus. Even in modern times, figures like Cesar Chavez and Gandhi fasted for causes. Doctors now … Continue reading Does Fasting During Lent Have To Be Only About Food?  →

Will Our Repentant Hearts Find Beauty In The Burnt Palms Of Ash Wednesday?

Good Morning Friends, In Scripture, ashes symbolize mourning, mortality, and repentance. But in agrarian life, ashes also fertilize the soil—what looks dead becomes the ground for new growth. Job wore sackcloth and ashes to show repentance, and the prophet Joel calls us to “rend our hearts, not our garments,” inviting an inner change that leads … Continue reading Will Our Repentant Hearts Find Beauty In The Burnt Palms Of Ash Wednesday? →

When Life Feels Unmanageable, How Do We Endure?

Good Morning Friends, Some of my family were cowboys out West and others were farmers in the Midwest, so when we moved to Collier County in the 1960s, visiting Immokalee didn’t feel entirely foreign to my father. But what he saw there—the human rights challenges facing migrant workers—was deeply troubling. Still it was a different time. … Continue reading When Life Feels Unmanageable, How Do We Endure? →

What Does It Take To Deal With The Pressure Of Being A Good Leader?

Good Morning Friends, Church work brings pressure—more than we often expect. Pressure from family, friends, and the work itself can drain our peace, even though we long for the church to be a place of rest. At times it feels like we’re being pulled in every direction. Circumstances and schedules are one thing; people-pressure is … Continue reading What Does It Take To Deal With The Pressure Of Being A Good Leader? →

Are We Motivated By Faith To Act In Love, Even When It Involves Risk?

Good Morning Friends, We often put too much weight on numbers—what we’ve done, what others haven’t done—when the real focus of the Christian life is love, the Spirit, and what God has done for us. Counting our good deeds or the failures of others can lead us to misjudge God and make false assumptions. The … Continue reading Are We Motivated By Faith To Act In Love, Even When It Involves Risk? →

Are We Rejoicing in Belief as We Watch God Keep His Promises?

Good Morning Friends, Doubt often reveals itself in how we live. Advent reminds us that some welcome God with joy while others resist His presence. Yet Scripture shows us that God is not threatened by our questions—He uses them to draw us deeper into faith. Are We Rejoicing in Belief as We Watch God Keep … Continue reading Are We Rejoicing in Belief as We Watch God Keep His Promises? →

What Are You Looking Forward To In 2026 That Will Truly Last?

Good Morning Friends, As we settle into this season—more peaceful than recent years—I find myself wondering what wisdom God will grow in us in the coming year. Many religions try to make bad people better, but only Christianity makes dead people alive. We worship Jesus, the only founder who is still living, and we remember … Continue reading What Are You Looking Forward To In 2026 That Will Truly Last? →

Do You Know What The Devil Does Not Want Us To Hear This Thanksgiving?

Good Morning Friends, On a Thanksgiving Day 72 years ago I was born so today on this Thanksgiving Day, the assigned Anniversary of that story of grace in the face of possible starvation that is said to have happened more than 400 years ago I have much for which to be thankful. Appropriately we read … Continue reading Do You Know What The Devil Does Not Want Us To Hear This Thanksgiving? →