We know we need faith, because it is by grace we are saved through faith. A good question therefore is, “how can we increase our faith?” Sunday we learned that our faith is rooted in God’s faithfulness. In other words, we can have faith in God because He has been faithful.

My childhood blanket had a satin binding. As a child, it would comfort me to fall asleep. I carried it around for a long time. The satin was soothing. I can admit that | still like that binding on my blankets today. Realizing this leads to thinking about why it comforts me. When my fingers are rough from a cut or washing dishes, it creates a pick in the satin. For some reason it is something that I do with the lining of a coat and anything that would pick when I do it.

In the beginning the Trinity created the world knowing all that would happen. Knowing that Adam and Eve would sin and humanity would fall to sin. The story could have ended at the fall. The Trinity could have said they were done and gotten rid of humanity, however the story doesn't end at the fall. On the contrary the fall is at the beginning of God’s story. God has spent every day reaching out to His people trying to have relationships with them. Jesus came to die for our sins so that God could have an intimate relationship with us. Before Jesus goes to the cross (knowing what was going to happen), he prays this for believers.

The countdown to Nazarene Youth Conference has begun. Students are excited about worship, new friendships, and the possibility of encountering God in a life-changing way. But for an adult volunteer, the weeks leading up to the trip can feel overwhelming.

Sometimes when God calls us to do things, it can seem impossible. This can be something as little as inviting a friend to church, or to preach to congregations of hundreds. This can be scary! For some, even being in front of a group of people is spine chilling. God calling us to do things could be scary for multiple reasons…

At the beginning of Family Worship Praise Team practice, I had the kids pair up with two of our regular team members to talk about why they serve in this ministry. The kids shared first, followed by the teens and adults.

During my years spent hiking in the Appalachian Mountains, I have regularly sensed God’s presence and witnessed His creation. From birds singing beautiful and inspirational songs to spectacular views from atop mountain peaks, it has become obvious that this is not an accident or happenstance, but rather something crafted by the hands of our mighty God.

This was a question I asked the kids during children’s church this week. Many of them said yes — they feel alone often. They shared that when their friends are absent at school, when no one sits with them at the lunch table or plays with them at recess, or when they’re being ignored after an argument, they feel alone. One child said, “Sometimes I have to walk the track at school all by myself because no one wants to go with me. I feel very alone when that happens.”

Dear One Hope Church of the Nazarene…

After I graduated from high school I had a friend once tell me that he and several of our friends would hang out and play Dungeons and Dragons. He told me the reason they never invited me was because they thought I would refuse because of my faith. Honestly, he was probably correct. I also know that wasn’t the only time I was left out of something because of my faith.

Waiting can be one of the hardest seasons of life. Waiting can sometimes feel uncomfortable. Whether you are waiting for healing, restoration, financial breakthrough, direction, peace, or answers to prayer, the waiting season often stretches your faith in ways nothing else can.

For the past couple of weeks, I have gotten back into doing a daily devotion. It had been years, too many to count really, that I had done a devotional. Me getting back into doing devotionals really came as a question from Pastor Lou. He asked, who is someone I would be willing to mentor?

Life feels so busy right now. Busy schedules, busy minds, busy hearts. The lists seem endless, the sticky notes pile up, and the to dos never quite seem to get done. Just the other day, I was sitting at my desk right in the middle of all the busyness. Papers spread out, lists running through my mind, trying to keep up with everything. And then I heard a little giggle at my door.

There is a name unlike any other and that name is Jesus. The same voice that spoke to the storm and calmed the waves is the same voice that called the dead out of the grave. His name doesn’t just comfort us. It saves us, completely and eternally. And because of who He is, He alone is worthy of all our praise.

The true meaning of Easter is that Jesus sacrificed himself over everything and got crucified on the cross for our sins only to be resurrected 3 days later reconciling with God.  He has given himself over to us to celebrate eternal life within him. This is a new covenant between God and humanity giving us rebirth into the spiritual realm.

Holy Week begins by shouting, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David! Hosanna in the highest heaven!” It ends with shouting, “He is risen! He is risen indeed!” We as Christians love to celebrate and glorify the King of kings, our Resurrected Savior. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that! But what happens when we jump from the heights of Palm Sunday to the even higher heights of Easter Sunday is we forget the in between.

Have you ever thought anymore about St. Patrick’s Day other than a day of green, green and oh – more green!  I hadn’t until this week and decided to check into it a little more.

t’s already such a cool experience having a child show you something they’re proud of. The quick speed as they race toward you, the excitement and spark of joy in their eyes, the eager anticipation expressed in fidgeting fingers and tapping toes. That, to me, is such fun to witness. It’s even cooler to see this kind of enthusiasm surrounding their faith.

Change is difficult, this can be any kind of change, from something as simple as a change in where you sit at work or school, to having a pastoral change. As you all know we are going through a huge change as Pastor Lou has come in as our brand new pastor. God consistently brings up how good change is in the world.

We live in an imperfect world where some “things” are just as imperfect. Unfortunately, sometimes, there are simply no just answers. When bad things happen to good people, as a society we often say, “Why would God allow this?” This is a saying I have struggled with in my own life. When we buried our son Jonathan, after being born with a fatal birth defect, I struggled with this a lot.