It seems like the world is full of horrible news these days. I can’t turn on the television, listen to the radio, or read a newspaper without learning something is seriously going wrong. If it isn’t the weather, it’s terrorism, the economy, crime, or politics. At times, it seems like the whole world is just falling down around us.Continue reading→

It’s a good thing I’m not God. There are some days when I would let everyone into Heaven. But there are other days when I wouldn’t let anyone into Heaven, no matter how saintly they are.Continue reading→

It’s easy to get excited about celebrities. Most of them are amazingly talented, and most have done things the rest of us could only dream of. The Bible has its own “celebrities,” and it’s easy to get excited about them too. Guys like Moses, David, Peter, and Paul were truly gifted. Women like Rahab, Ruth, Mary, and Martha were astounding. But God also gives me a glimpse of the way He’s been using “regular folks” throughout history.Continue reading→

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
(Galatians 6:9, NIV)

I am going to be honest. I found the apostle Paul quite annoying recently. First, he tells the Galatians to “not become weary in doing good.” Then he tells the Thessalonians something similar: “And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good” (2 Thessalonians 3:13, NIV). When I was reading these passages, I wasn’t “tired.” I was exhausted! I didn’t want to do or be good. I didn’t want to be kind. I didn’t want to be loving nor patient, nor any of those other fruity things of the Spirit.Continue reading→

The other day while on my way to work, suddenly the flow of traffic on the freeway slowed to an agonizing crawl. My phone informed me there would be a 90-minute delay because of an issue further up the road. I was stuck with no way off the freeway. Forced into “observation mode,” I began to notice things that are normally a blur as I speed down this same stretch of freeway day after day.Continue reading→

In the movie, Blade Runner, replicants are genetically engineered biological machines that look like, talk like, and act like human beings, which people use essentially as slaves. The designers of the replicants have advanced these machines to the point that they are for all intents and purposes, living beings. They are capable of independent thought, they learn, they reason, they create, and most significantly, they are self-aware—they are conscious of the reality of their own impending death.Continue reading→

I tend to forget who God really is. When I think of God, the first thing that comes to mind is a really big human. What I don’t always remember is how truly great He is.

The other day after a Bible study, I was reflecting on what I had learned. The topic of the Bible study had something to do with the end of time and Jesus coming back. My mind wandered and wandered, and I came up with so many questions that I couldn’t help but do some research.Continue reading→

There is a story told in the Gospel of John about a time when Jesus fed a crowd of several thousand people with just a few loaves of bread and a couple of small fish. Amazingly, even after everyone had eaten their fill, there were twelve large baskets of leftovers.Continue reading→

“Jesus wept” (John 11:35). This has been called the shortest verse in the Bible, and yet it is one of the most profound. In these two short words, the nature of Jesus is captured in a beautiful and profound way. He is both God and human.

Jesus’ dear friend, Lazarus, had died. Weeping is how Jesus responded when he arrived in the town of Bethany and encountered the heartbreaking scene.Continue reading→

A season of sadness seems to be rolling through our church family. It happens every second of every day somewhere in the world, but it seems to have gathered and taken a toll on our little community of believers right here at Touchstone. Death. Crisis. Illness. Loss. I am incredibly grateful for my church family and the prayers of the saints. I am not sure how people do life without God and the support of the people He sends to us.Continue reading→