Can God Really Help You?
Believing in a God who delivers and rescues you from your problems is wishful thinking. It's an emotional crutch for those who need it. If you're a Christian, you will inevitably hear condescending sentiments and objections like these. But stop for a moment and think through these statements. On who does the burden of proof lie? Believers can confidently say there is a God because they have experienced his help. We just have to know that on a desperate day in
The Walk Podcast: Dr. John Lennox with Pastor John Snyder
In an age of skepticism, what is truth? Dr. John Lennox, Emeritus Professor of Mathematics at Oxford University, stands firm in the view that “properly understood, the evidence inexorably points to the existence of a creator God.” A film about his amazing life and career called Against the Tide is about to be released. Against the Tide is the story of one man’s stand against the tide of contemporary atheism and its drive to relegate belief in God to society’s catalogue of dead
Not Going to Church Is Killing Your Faith
Have you noticed that when you feel discouraged and think that God doesn’t care about you or answer your prayers, or that your faith is meaningless, one of the first things you do is disconnect yourself from his people? Being in church is a bitter reminder of God not paying attention to you and your needs. You don’t want others’ prayers. You don’t care about their encouragement or their advice. You want to be left alone. You turn inwards, and at
How Do I Know God Hears My Prayers?
And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests that we have asked of him. –1 John 5:14-15 How do we really know that God hears our prayers? God’s answers to many of our prayers are a complete surprise! I think that is the reason we sometimes feel like he
Forgetting God: A Titanic Lesson
Remember, "Not even God himself could sink this ship!" We never seem to lose our fascination with the story of the sinking of the Titanic. Since boyhood, I’ve watched all the oldest films made on the disaster, and I’m ready for every new version of it that comes to TV or the movie theater. A while back, I was watching a special about it on PBS, leading up to the 100th anniversary of the tragic event. In it, the narrator explained that
Warning: Complaining Is Bad for Your Health
Ask yourself: How many times today did I complain or think negatively about someone or something? I’ve heard that people complain at least once in any conversation. The average person complains between 15-30 times a day. So if it’s not you, someone around you is complaining, and that complaint is affecting your brain and your health. Let’s put it another way. We don’t complain. We vent. We share. We point out. We’re being frank. We’re hurt. We’re not understood. We need a
I Believe in Resurrection: Ten reasons to consider…and caterpillars fly!
If you don’t believe in resurrection, here are ten reasons why you should rethink your position: 1) The New Testament Claims It The New Testament claims that Jesus arose from the dead on Easter morning and that one day his followers will too. The New Testament has already been demonstrated to be head and shoulders above all the other Greek and Latin documents ever to come out of the ancient world. It has been subjected to the hottest fires of criticism devised
Holy Week: Let’s pray for the impossible!
“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” -1 Corinthians 15:55 This week is Holy Week or Passion Week. Let us prepare our hearts to celebrate the high point of our faith—the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Hymns of praise then let us sing, Alleluia! Unto Christ, our heavenly king, Alleluia! Who endured the cross and grave, Alleluia! Sinners to redeem and save. Alleluia! But the pains which he endured, Alleluia! Our salvation have procured; Alleluia! Now above the
Welcome! You’re Home
I'm sure everyone has a story of attending church somewhere for the first time! As church "professionals," our family has often been called to assess congregational situations and provide solutions to help with church growth or the healthy functioning of the church. Our training enables us to recognize potential challenges to the ministry or how a visitor walking into a church may feel. Some churches know how to welcome and greet newcomers with warmth and assimilate them into the church family.
Seek God’s Presence
In my Bible reading today, it was a blessing to read Psalm 105: Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the peoples! Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works! Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice! Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually! (vv. 1–4) Psalm 105 calls us to praise God! We have so many reasons to thank God, and so does David.
