“After six days Jesus took with him Peter, James and John the brother of James, and led them up a high mountain by themselves. There he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light.” Matt 17:1-2 (NIV) If only life was a perpetual mountaintop […]
“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they […]
“Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.” Romans 12:11 (NIV) What are you passionate about? What are you giving your time, energy, and resources to? What gets the best of you? You answer unveils your zeal. God placed zeal in you. Your passion is an expression of your spiritual […]
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Mt. 11:28-30 (NIV) Jesus […]
“But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have Pilate release Barabbas instead.” Mark 15:11 (NIV) Have you ever encountered injustice? Have you ever been treated unfairly? I think we have all been there. It hurts! The scars serve as a constant reminder. In our verse today, we find a word that compels us […]
“’Why were you searching for me?’ he asked. ‘Didn’t you know I had to be in my Father’s house?’” Luke 2:49 (NIV) Diffused light does not have much power to impact the environment it is placed in, but focused light can cut steel. Your life is most powerful when it is most focused. Our proclivity […]
“When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was upon him.” Luke 2:39-40 (NIV) Can you name the people God used to […]
“While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn.” Luke 2:6-7 (NIV) What does Christmas mean to you? What will you […]
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Mt. 11:28-30 (NIV) Jesus […]
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10 (NIV) Are you living the life God has for you? Have you come to experience life to the full? Jesus came to give you that kind of life. However, […]
“Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.” John 17:24 (NIV) Where is Jesus right now? Jesus is at the right hand of God making intercession for […]
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, […]
“Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” Col 3:13 (NIV) Motion causes friction. Doing life with real people can generate feelings of irritability and agitation. Real people in real life can get on your nerves at times. Our self-absorbed society elevates relational […]
“Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.” Rev 2:4-5 (NIV) The church at Ephesus had a […]
“I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” Phil 4:13 (NIV) Jesus is the person God uses to empower us. You can do all things through Christ. He is your strength. He is your sustenance. He is your energy. Your relationship with Jesus is the most vital relationship you will ever have. Your […]
“One who was there had been an invalid for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, ‘Do you want to get well?’” John 5:5-6 (NIV) We know more than we are doing. We know that we are to […]
“Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.” Heb 7:25 (NIV) Jesus values intercessory prayer. You are covered in prayer. There is One who lives to intercede for you. Jesus became like you so that you could become like Him. He […]
“And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.” John 17:5 (NIV) Jesus valued returning to heaven. The Priestly prayer of Jesus in John17 demonstrated His passion to return to heaven to be glorified in His Father’s presence. Jesus served, preached, healed, and prayed with […]
“I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do.” John 17:4 (NIV) Jesus values completing God’s mission. How do you bring glory to God? By doing God’s work God’s way! Jesus brought glory to God by fulfilling God’s mission God’s way. Jesus was sensitive to the activity of […]
“For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him. Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” John 17:2-3 (NIV) Jesus values reaching lost people. As Jesus was praying in […]
“After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: ‘Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you.’” John 17:1 (NIV) Jesus values bringing glory to God. There are 650 prayers in the Bible and the Gospels record nineteen occasions upon which Jesus prayed. The longest prayer we have […]
“For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.” Col 1:16 (NIV) God made you. You were His idea. Before God formed you in the womb, He knew you (Jer. 1:5). […]
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.” Col 1:15 (NIV) God has set eternity in your heart (Ecc. 3:11). As a result, there is a longing for humanity to discover their true identity. There is a compulsion to find God. God has revealed Himself through nature (Rm. 1:20) and […]
“Some men came, bringing to him a paralytic, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. When Jesus saw their faith, he said […]
“‘Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.’” John 4:23-24 (NIV) In His interaction with the woman at the […]
“Jesus answered, ‘I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.’” John 14:6 (NIV) Often I have heard people insert their belief that “we are all trying to get to the same place, just taking different paths to get there.” Scripture does not affirm that belief. […]
“I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” John 10:11 (NIV) Because He is the Good Shepherd, you are valued. Your value is not determined by your portfolio. Your value is not determined by your performance. Your value is not determined by your personality. Your value is determined […]
“Jesus said to him, ‘Today salvation has come to this house, because this man, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.’” Luke 19:9-10 (NIV) Zacchaeus demonstrated the same kind of faith that Abraham evidenced in the Old Testament when he was willing […]
“When Jesus reached the spot, he looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, come down immediately. I must stay at your house today.’ So he came down at once and welcomed him gladly. All the people saw this and began to mutter, ‘He has gone to be the guest of a “sinner.”‘” Luke 19:5-7 (NIV) […]
“Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through. A man was there by the name of Zacchaeus; he was a chief tax collector and was wealthy. He wanted to see who Jesus was, but being a short man he could not, because of the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree to see […]