Folks, let me begin today by sharing one of my favorite psalms with you—Psalm 130 (NLT), that speaks of God’s incredible gift of forgiveness… From the depths of despair, O LORD, I call for your help. 2 Hear my cry, O Lord. Pay attention to my prayer. 3 LORD, if you kept a record of our sins, who, O Lord, could ever survive? 4 But you offer forgiveness, that we might learn to fear you. 5 I am counting on the LORD; yes, I am counting on him. I have put my hope...
Do you remember having birthday parties when you were younger? Do you remember how it felt—the time leading up to those celebrations? You were both excited and anxious. You knew that you would receive gifts or other special treats, for sure; but, there would also be some surprises. Birthdays combine both … assurance & anticipation! And, so does our faith… When we live a life of faith, we’re assured of the reality of God’s presence; our experience has taught us that God’ll be there for us… as we put our...
Dr. E. Stanley Jones, that great Methodist preacher & missionary, once said, “I am inwardly fashioned for faith, not for fear. Fear is not my native land; faith is. I am so made that worry and anxiety are sand in the machinery of life; faith is the oil. I live better by faith and confidence than by fear, doubt and anxiety. In anxiety and worry, my being is gasping for breath, these are not my native air. But in faith and confidence, I breathe freely, these are my native air....