by Garris Elkins | May 20, 2017 | Death, Deliverance, Freedom, God, Holy Spirit, Jesus, Peace, Relationships, Resurrection
As a 28-year old police detective, I thought I had seen it all until I was handed the homicide case of an 18-month old little girl named Savannah. I will never forget her name because God used her death to bring me life. Savannah was murdered by the drunken, live-in...
by Garris Elkins | May 6, 2017 | God, Jesus, Teaching
God is far more merciful than the theology we use to describe Him.Be careful as you attempt to interpret God. At its best, your most confident understanding is only a small slice of a much larger theological pie. This is why the Father sent Jesus to represent His love...
by Garris Elkins | May 3, 2017 | Church, Courage, Culture, Discipleship, Discipline, Forgiveenss, Identity, Jesus, Kingdom of God, Power, Relationships
The second chapter of John is filled with contrasts. It starts out with Jesus changing water into wine and ends with Jesus using a whip to clear out the moneychangers from the Temple. There seem to be two camps in the Church. On one hand, you have those who love a...
by Garris Elkins | Apr 17, 2017 | Gifts, Intimacy, Jesus, Prayer, Redemption, Thankfulness, Trust
There are people who make a living as professional line sitters. These line sitters stand in place for people who don’t want to wait in line for the release of a new product or for tickets to an upcoming Broadway performance. One man in New York who was waiting in...
by Garris Elkins | Mar 18, 2017 | Intimacy, Jesus, Love, Marriage
I was awakened in the middle of the night hearing the 1964 blues song written by Tommy Tucker titled, Hi-Heel Sneakers. The opening lyrics are, “Put on your red dress, baby, cause we goin’ out tonight.” As the song played on, instead of the words, “Put on your...
by Garris Elkins | Mar 16, 2017 | God, Jesus, Vision.
There have been a few times when I listened to people share their concept of God that I come away from those conversations seeing an image of a god who is so damaged that I want to hand the person a bottle of anti-depressant pills to help medicate their stressed out...