Message: Jesus gave us a visual picture of what it means to “remain in him”. He describes himself as the vine, us as the branches and the Father has the vineyard keeper. The branches that don’t produce fruit are removed,... Continue reading →

Message: We instinctively know that we were created to submit to God. The desire is built into us by design. The problem is when there is no relationship established that built-in instinct has the capacity to turn to anything in... Continue reading →

Message: This morning I saw something in John 13 a little differently than I had ever seen before when I read about Jesus washing the feet of his disciples. I feel like it’s an act that we struggle to understand... Continue reading →

Message: Jesus spoke of the grain of wheat in the field saying “unless a grain of wheat  falls to the ground and dies, it remains by itself.” But if it dies it produces a large crop. The one who loves... Continue reading →

Message: As I read John 11 I really paid attention to what was going on with Mary. We previously read how Martha was caught up in serving and was frustrated with Mary for sitting at the feet of Jesus instead... Continue reading →

Message: We have lots of things in this world competing to rule over us and trying to lure us in to follow other voices. They don’t lead us from the heart though because they don’t HAVE a heart for us.... Continue reading →

Message: Once again I find John chapter 9 both fascinating and maddening! I think it’s interesting that in this story the blind man was just minding his own business and not asking for a thing! It was the disciples that... Continue reading →

Message: John 8 is both fascinating and maddening to read. When Jesus went to the temple complex to teach and they brought the woman caught in adultery the intent was to corner Jesus by using the law which called for... Continue reading →

Message: John 7 shows the division between religion and revelation and in chapter 7 it literally starts close to home with his brothers. I found it interesting to see his brothers advising Jesus here because we don’t see a lot... Continue reading →

Message: Proverbs 26 has quite a bit to say about the fool. As I was reading it, it occurred to me how much I read that and think it’s about other people. Nobody wants to be “that guy”, yet we... Continue reading →

Message: I’ve read the story in John 5 about the man by the pool of Bethesda quite a few times and I’ve heard plenty of sermons on it as well. The common theme here is that some people just don’t... Continue reading →

Message: I saw a huge contrast in John 4 between those who believed Jesus at his word and those who believed because of the signs. When Jesus spoke to the Samaritan woman I thought it was interesting that he first... Continue reading →

Message: In John 3 a Pharisee named Nicodemus came to Jesus at night and acknowledged that Jesus had to have come from God as a teacher because nobody could perform those signs unless they were from God. A few things... Continue reading →

Message: When Jesus performed his first miracle it was not in his plan at all. In fact he clearly told his mother it wasn’t his time yet but to honor her he did. He told the servants to fill the... Continue reading →

Message: In Exodus 20 Moses gave the ten commandments to the people. The people saw the thunder and lightning and smoke around the mountain and it terrified them and they stood back at us distance. They told Moses “you speak... Continue reading →

Message: Luke 24 tells one of my favorite stories about Jesus after he resurrected walking and talking with some men on the seven mile walk down the road from Jerusalem to Emmaus. They were discouraged as they argued and discussed... Continue reading →

Message: Reading both Exodus 18 and Luke 23 really was really revealing of how much we try to view and understand God on our own terms. God was taking care of Israel in the wilderness and teaching them to obey... Continue reading →

Message: In Exodus 16 the people of Israel had just left the land of Elim, where there were the 12 springs of water and the 70 date palms. They were in the wilderness between Elim and Sanai. They were only... Continue reading →

Message: Exodus 16 seems to be the first praise and worship song documented in scripture but also probably THE longest and wordiest song I have ever seen. Sarcastic me couldn’t help but wonder how they were all able to sing... Continue reading →

Message: In Luke 20 Jesus was just minding his business teaching the people in the synagogue and “proclaiming the good news.” I thought that little detail was important because it showed he wasn’t in there starting stuff or correcting anyone.... Continue reading →