Is He pruning you?! I mean, seriously! Look around at your life—in a human condition where we’re all about stacking up belongings, treasures and riches…is God…taking some of that away, for the betterment of your soul?

Just like a soldier preparing for battle, we have to be ready to face life’s trials with full expectancy that there will be a battle. A trial! A challenge of our faith that pushes us past the previous edge where our faith was tested before. It’s just the way sanctification works!

Forgiveness…wow. What a blessing to live in! You can’t think of that word, without imagining being released from something…a debt, a wrongdoing…a lifetime of guilt...

Trials…don’t ya just love trials? … Yeah, that’s what I thought…nobody. Trials will come, in the life of a Christian! No, the existence of these trials does not mean that God has ever abandoned you…but rather the opposite.

How do we know when we’ve repented of a sin? … Is it when you’ve cried your eyes out at the altar, or to whomever you’ve hurt otherwise? Is it when you buy a gift basket to apologize to your best friend, loved one, or coworker? Is it when you’ve finally bent down on one knee, pushed your head to the floor, and said to the Lord, “I’m sorry”. ? Friends, the funny thing is...Scripture would exposit, that true repentance is none of these things!

“Following your dreams” can be a dangerous thing. Sure, Disney, and every Billboard music hit told us otherwise, but that doesn’t make this statement any less true...

Let’s begin today’s lesson with a lesser-quoted scripture, from the book of Matthew. In it, Jesus rebukes the actions of the Pharisees before the multitudes, declaring this...

Many of us have fallen into this rhythm…and it could be a semi-modern development...