Blog
Each Christmas, my father and Jan’s father received a single gift. It was an orange. Nothing more. Just an orange. In the Depression, some kids received no gifts on Christmas. Life was hard in those days. There were no toys or special vacations like we have...
There are two words that indicate the depth and specificity of Jesus’ love in a simple yet profound way. Those words were “including Peter.” Those words were spoken by the angel who waited in the empty tomb after Jesus rose from the dead. Those words were spoken to...
There are two spirits that work together against the Spirit of God – a religious spirit and a political spirit. In unison, they can do evil things. It was true in Jesus' time, and it’s true today. After the arrest of Jesus, a spirit of religion and politics began to...
We don’t like to consider the fact that the world hates us because we believe in Jesus, but it does. Jesus said the world would hate the message of His salvation and those who carry it. This sounds very strident to our tenderized ears, but it’s true. When Jesus told...
One of my favorite holiday treats comes from the leftover pieces of pie dough that Jan forms into little rolls filled with brown sugar and cinnamon. They are an anticipated joy that appears each year at this time when Jan makes the crusts for her holiday pies. She has...
Years ago, in a formative season of ministry, Jan and I were wronged by another pastor. We were betrayed. I remember the night we got the phone call telling us what this person was doing and saying about us publicly. We were hundreds of miles away. We felt helpless....
We become evidence of God's transforming power when we believe in Jesus and His teaching. That alignment marks us and will take our faith into dangerous territory because hell does not want us to become a living advertisement of Jesus’ power. Hell will do anything to...
Jesus wasn’t just a kind humanitarian. He was God in the flesh. Declaring that truth offends an unwilling hearer and those who have a compromised understanding of Jesus. We have nothing to offer if our message does not include both an understanding and a demonstration...
Jesus was on a mission that was not popular, even among His earliest disciples. His mission and the timing of its revelation were based on the Father's will, not on people's needs or expectations. The Father confirmed Jesus who through signs, wonders, and miracles...
Demanding to have the last word in a disagreement is not evidence of God’s wisdom. It only proves we still have work to do in our hearts before we can experience and release the wisdom of God. “If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable...
Our living room window has a bullet hole in it. The shot was aligned to hit precisely where Jan normally sits on our couch. The impact happened overnight a week or so ago, so we did not notice the bullet hole immediately. It had become as they say, “a cold crime...
From time to time, the prophetic community will experience controversy within its ranks. That controversy happens because we think we need to always reveal the latest revelation each time we open our mouths. That assumption can lead us into error, even for proven...
Solomon, the wisest and richest man in the world said several times in Ecclesiastes that there is a pursuit of life that is as futile as someone chasing after the wind. It is striving for and pursuing things that cannot bring us fulfillment. They will only deplete us...
As I sat in silent prayer this morning, I saw an image of the Last Supper. It did not look like Da Vinci's famous painting where all the disciples were lined up on either side of the Lord. It was a busy and noisy gathering. Conversations occurred between clusters of...
Last night in the Tyson-Paul fight, I heard the referee point at Jake Paul, and warn him, “Don’t measure.” I had never heard a referee give that kind of warning. “Measuring” is placing your leading arm on the opposing fighter’s head to measure them or obstruct their...