Almost everywhere we turn, messages like “I am a child of the king,” “I am loved,” “I am chosen,” and “I am worthy” are plastered on t-shirts and water bottles. They are prevalent in many song lyrics, books, talk shows, and everyday conversations. These phrases of identity in Christ and worthiness in God’s eyes are attempts to replace despair, self-doubt, and feelings of inadequacy. Yet despite the plethora of positive messages we encounter on a daily basis, suicide rates are increasing, depression is widespread, and anxiety rages. While there are glorious truths held within Scripture telling ..read more

Self-love is an ideology that has taken our culture by storm. Messages of “you are enough,” “all you need is yourself,” and “to love others you have to love yourself first,” are plastered all over social media platforms. This idea sounds wonderful on the surface and appeals to the insecurities many of us face. But there are damaging worldview messages packed into these seemingly innocent phrases. The key problem is the idea of putting “yourself first.” Let’s dive into a few biblical contrasts: #1. The Purpose of Rest Taking time to recharge and not overextending yourself physically or emotiona ..read more

One night I dreamed a dream. As I was walking along the beach with my Lord, Across the dark sky flashed scenes from my life. For each scene I noticed two sets of footprints in the sand, One belonging to me and one to my Lord. After the last scene of my life flashed before me, I looked back at the footprints in the sand. I noticed that many times along the path of my life, Especially at the very lowest and saddest times, There was only one set of footprints. This really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it. “Lord, You said once I decided to follow You, You’d walk with me all the way. But I ..read more

Why is Waiting Important? Have you ever prayed for something and felt like God wasn’t listening? Have you ever wondered why God makes us wait for His answers? If you have, you’re not the only one. A few years back, I wanted to get a job. I had reached the age where I could legally work, and I wanted to get at it as soon as I could. But as my parents and I prayed about it, as much as I wanted a job, we sensed God telling us to wait. Many people struggle with the idea of waiting on God, especially in our fast-paced and impatient culture. But what if waiting is actually beneficial? What if waitin ..read more

Are you ever afraid God has abandoned you? It’s easy to fear that sometimes. When you see the depths of your own depravity and sin—when you give in to temptation again and search desperately for freedom—you wonder how God could still love you. How He could still be with you. Or maybe, for whatever reason, He just feels far away; doubts and despair come knocking on the door of your heart and you’re not sure what to hold on to. In Psalm 71, the psalmist is pleading with God for deliverance from his enemies. These enemies are filled with confidence—because they believe God has forsaken the psalmi ..read more

You scroll down on your phone or computer; sickening headlines make your gut clench. Stories of war, hatred, violence, bloodshed… the list goes on and on. You click away, your head spinning. Images flood your mind, blaring article titles seared in your brain. As much as you try to drown it out—the noise, the pain, the heartache, the shattered souls–it only intensifies. Because the hard reality is that today’s news isn’t what we want to hear, and try as we might, there is no way to escape or change it. This is the world we live in. Its brokenness is the result of the fall. And sometimes, even t ..read more

Do you ever find yourself retreating into yourself around your friends, watching everything you say, and only putting out what you feel will be accepted by them? Are you depressingly aware of your shortcomings and afraid to let go of your public persona? Are you afraid to let yourself be known fully? With Christ, we can be completely ourselves. In fact, He commands us to. The God Who tells us, “Come to Me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28) is the same God who comforts us with the promise, “Whoever comes to Me I will never cast out” (John 6:37). God doe ..read more

My heart breaks every time I see another story. The ones where pastors are let go because of integrity issues and moral failures. The ones where leaders are fired for not leading and acting in the way the Bible commands them to. Adultery. Greed. Sexual immorality. It feels like the stories will never end, and in my heart, I feel hopelessness and grief settling in. What about you? Through each of these stories, God has taught me a little bit more about walking in leadership in a way that honors Him. Now, I am in no way calling myself an expert on this topic. My heart is only to encourage, chall ..read more

“I can’t, but thanks for the invite.” The sentence echoes on my lips, spoken to more people than I remember. I don’t know about you, but I don’t like to say no. I thrive on adventure and exploration. I’m a social butterfly. And yet, I’ve said so many no’s I never wanted to. I wasn’t always this way. But when I first got sick as a young teen, I watched as “out of sight, out of mind” became a reality in my life. Friends slowly melted away. Part of it was because my lifestyle changed. My friends were going to dances and sports games. My community was gathered at church potlucks. But I lay in bed ..read more

“I can’t believe how light I feel.” These words were spoken to me by one of my co-workers after she found out that her sister’s cancer had been most likely completely removed. It had been burdening her for months. Burdens can weigh us down more than we know. They can come out of nowhere, or they can gradually build. Still, being “heavy laden” is more common to our shoulders than we might realize. But is lugging around heavy burdens what Christ desires for His children? Let’s consider Matthew 11:28-30 and see what it has to offer: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will g ..read more