Slowly but surely, we’re making some progress towards returning to a more normal life. We’re not entirely “out of the woods,” so to speak, but we’re taking some encouraging steps – as a church, a city, a state, and a nation. In a previous study, we learned how to handle the fears we may have in light of God’s love and care in our lives. This is a very important lesson to embrace as we emerge on the other side of this COVID19 pandemic. In this study, now, we’re going to learn another timely lesson. We’re going to learn the importance of remembering what we’ve learned through this unusual pandem ..read more

At last, communities throughout the United States are gradually beginning to emerge from COVID19 hibernation. Even so, a host of lingering fears remain. Many people – even Christians – will continue to worry that they might still contract the virus. Then among those who’ve been through that ordeal already, some will worry about catching it again. On top of this, we may also be a little nervous about what’s going on with the social instability we’re facing in various communities throughout the nation. Though we need to use our heads, we need to use our hearts as well. What I mean to say is that ..read more

If we’re asked to describe the way we feel right now, a lot of words may flood our minds, but “comfort” is probably not one of them. Anger, impatience, frustration. Pain, anxiety, stress. Weakness, sadness, fear. Confusion, concern, nervousness. Words like these may be more accurate in describing the way we’re tempted to feel right now. Would you agree? Pandemic and social injustice aside, there’s no way to eradicate hardships from our lives. Afflictions and trials, questions and mistreatment, sickness and sorrow will always come our way, in one form or another. So, as followers of Christ, we ..read more

No matter how long you’ve lived in this world, you’ve probably noticed that there’s plenty of bad news to go around. Now, we shouldn’t be ostriches who bury our heads in the sand when a whiff of bad news comes our way, pretending as though it doesn’t exist. We need to be knowledgeable and we need to be aware. Yet have you also noticed that it’s the bad news that always seems to get the attention, the spotlight, and the press. Seriously. When’s the last time you saw some good news plastered on the frontpage of the newspaper, headlining the evening news, or trending on Twitter? That’s a rare occ ..read more

Well, now that we’ve successfully (or not so successfully) endured more than two long months of social isolation, here in New York City, I have a very important question to ask. “Are we happy?” I’m asking this because long, extended periods of seriousness and sadness, sorrow and stress can have a negative, harmful effect on our spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical health, Now I’m not joking when I say that we need to laugh sometimes. Seriously! Laughter, gladness, dancing, and wholesome entertainment are gifts of God that enable us to balance out the difficult, harsh, and negative things ..read more

When it comes to making plans, there are at least two kinds of people in the world (though this may be an oversimplification to some degree). Like me, some are afflicted with the malady of perfectionism. We want to make plans and we work hard at making them, yet we struggle to actually put them into action because we never feel we have enough information or perspective to make good plans. There’s always another angle, detail, or possibility to consider. Then there are people with the opposite problem. They don’t really make plans at all, or at least they don’t think much about the plans they m ..read more

In this episode, Thomas Overmiller provides a brief overview of the children's picture book, "Where is Wisdom?" by Scott James. This book provides an artistic, delightful, and insightful look at Job 28, a hidden treasure of the Old Testament ..read more

We all stormed (or rolled) into the year 2020 with big plans, serious resolutions, and high expectations. The American economy was booming, colleges were marching towards commencement ceremonies, our jobs were chugging along as usual, and the NBA and NHL were making a mad dash for the playoffs. Some of us even smiled as we joked about having a “2020 vision” for the year ahead. Then COVID happened and our hopes and visions vanished into thin air. As we slowly emerge from the dust of this dilemma, like black bears or groundhogs emerging from hibernation after a frigid, furious winter, what will ..read more

As we go through this pandemic together, a common tendency surfaces among us. We turn to popular Bible verses that seem to apply to our situation or appear to say what we really want to hear – verses that sound positive, poetic, and uplifting. Jeremiah 29:11 a verse like this: “For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” We jump to the conclusion that these soothing words mean: “If I pray to God, then I’ll be healed from my sickness, get a good job, and enjoy a happy marriage.” However, that’s not what thi ..read more

Our minds are an especially important place. What happens there affects the outcomes of our lives. Though our thoughts don’t determine what happens to us directly, they do determine how we respond to the information, people, and circumstances we encounter, which leads to certain responses, results, and consequences, whether good or bad. As we wait out the shelter-in-place guidelines given for this COVID19 pandemic, we may be aware of our inner thoughts now more than ever. So, let’s pause to consider what we’re thinking about these days. We may be allowing ourselves to think about the wrong thi ..read more