Blog
In the late 90s, Jan and I were visiting missionaries in Tirana, Albania. We attended a Sunday church service held in a large multi-story government building. Outside, unknown to us, was a large crowd estimated by CNN to be over 30,000 people. They were protesting...
Where we are willing to stand in our life of faith will reveal the condition of our hearts. In that place, if our heart is aligned with the heart of God, we will come to realize we would rather serve God in a place of humility than pursue the things of this world and...
When it appeared that wickedness was on the rise without restraint and limitation, the Lord has always been faithful to make Himself known: “We thank you, O God! We give thanks because you are near” (Psalm 75:1). The Lord has always been near to His people. He will...
We all deny the Lord in different ways. The worst kind of denial comes when we are overconfident in our faith, relying more on our strength than on the Spirit. This is what happened to Peter when he denied the Lord three times. The setting for Peter’s denial is...
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...