Not the Answer I Expected

Difficult situations can push us to our knees in prayer, pleading to God for relief. Yet how many times does God answer that prayer in a way we did not expect or desire? I wondered this about Ananias in Acts 9. I could see him, like other followers of Jesus at the time, praying to […]

Surviving Life Storms

You set out for your day and then it hits. Menacing clouds appear on the horizon of your life and quickly overtake you with an unexpected trial. The powerful winds of uncertainty threaten to overtake you. Tears fall like rain. Doubts rise as to if you will pull through. Storms have a way of challenging […]

Opposing God’s Call

At times we are asked to respond to God’s call with little information and despite our apprehension. Jonah and Ananias demonstrate the consequences of fleeing God’s call or responding despite our fears.

Letting God Transform You

Paul resisted the Spirit’s leading and sought to destroy the early church. However, a powerful encounter with Jesus transformed him into a fervent follower. This illustrates how God’s new work may require a change in our lives. Are we open to God’s transformative power when he leads us in a new direction?

The Miracle Standing Before Them

How do you respond to people who reject Jesus one day, then suddenly become a Christian the next day? Do you receive the news with skepticism or with celebration? Do you believe in the power of Jesus to miraculously transform a life to follow Him? In Acts 21, Paul is in Jerusalem in the temple […]

Washed by Faith

What happens next is amazing. The jailer takes Paul and Silas to his house, washes their wounds and shares a meal with them. It is reminiscent of Jesus washing the feet of his disciples and sharing a meal with them.

Fearing Transformation

There he stands in your doorway, the man who had been threatening you and your friends now wants to join your group. Would you trust him and take him in? This is the situation the disciples of Jesus faced when Saul of Tarsus appeared at their doorstep. His reputation of making murderous threats against the […]

The Threat of Jesus

There are times faith in Jesus will require difficult choices that may affect your livelihood. In Acts 19:23-41, there is a “man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of Artemis, was bringing no little business to the craftsmen (verse 24, NASB).” It’s a pretty good racket. People come to worship at the temple […]

Comfort From Affliction

When we are in the middle of struggles in life, it is hard to see any purpose in it. From my own experience a few years ago, when I felt trapped in a very traumatic situation with no evident end in sight, it all felt pointless. Day after day, as the trauma continued, it was […]

The Fruit of a Clean Heart

In Psalm 51, David is expressing a repentant heart after he had “gone in with Bathsheba.” He seeks “a clean heart” and “a steadfast spirit (10, NASB).” David knows what his predecessor Saul experienced after he repeatedly sinned against God. “Now the Spirit of the LORD departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the […]