I heard Emma Stark recently say, “You can’t just pray for yourself and call it “intimacy with God.”

To draw close to Him is to hear Him and to participate in His omnipotent heart of raging love for people, cities and nations. While He’s concerned for us as individuals (which I emphasize a lot), a crucial part of real intimacy (as in with any healthy marriage) is to listen to what’s on His heart and…

“Jesus, you’re worth it.” These are the words I managed to whisper through tears in the the darkness—not one time—but countless times over the past 16 years.

Notice the title reads “The Deserts” (plural), not “The Desert.”

One desert, even if it’s large, is never enough to refine us and purify us in the way He deserves…

Have you ever run a long distance race? Endurance is no joke.

I ran cross-country in high school, and the last kilometer of races was always the most difficult. And the apostle Paul likens the Christian life to a race.

What’s the point of this day, Passover?

A simple yet profound question.

As we reflect on the slain Lamb, who shed His blood for us this day, why did He go through with it? What drove Him, in His heart, to bear the most excruciating death imaginable and hang naked on a tree for crimes he never committed?

I hear the Lord saying, “I am restoring wonder to My bride - the very wonder that exists around My throne!”

I keep hearing Him say, “Those who meditate and focus on Revelation 4 & 5 will…

Studies have shown that approximately 80% of New Year’s resolutions fail. Many people have written about techniques to achieving our big goals, including naming them differently, approaching them differently and viewing them differently. But I believe we need to look at this issue through a different lens.

Three thousand miles. Five thousand miles. Your car can travel pretty far—often several months or more—without an oil change. Vehicles are wonderful gifts and have remarkably developed over the past century.

But I have a newsflash for you…

That day started so slow yet ended so sweet

A beautiful message a child could repeat

But two roads diverged in a yellow wood

And I was placed on the narrow one that is good

You’re climbing Everest.

You’ve been training for years. Dreaming about it for decades.

A wealth of information has been devoured.

Now, after two months of climbing…

“Persecution in America and Canada? That’ll never happen!” said millions of people ten years ago.

Now that it’s taking place in a limited fashion, people are shocked. “But this is an hour of glory!”

For sure! But…

Imagine yourself in this scenario for a moment. You have been wandering through the wilderness for 40 years, no one except Joshua and Caleb are still around that walked through the Red Sea as on dry ground, and you have been hearing your whole life that you will get to this place called “The Promised Land.”…

As I pulled out some stickers for my toddler to play with today, I cut off a small section and gave it to him so he wouldn’t use them all at once. He’s very observant, and this was not going to easily slip past him. Immediately, he threw the stickers on the ground…

Grumpy conformity to disciplines and regulations is not very effective. It doesn’t exist in God’s kingdom. Jesus is, and always will be, a man of happy holiness. I know that may sound like an oxymoron…

Where did the stars go this morning? Did someone put them in their pocket and carry them away?

They’re fully present in the sky all day, but they become visible…

It’s the best of times. It’s the worst of times.

While 2020 has been, undeniably, challenging for most of us, don’t miss the powerful invitation to display God’s glory in this hour.