Pastor Gene 
OK, OK. I know ‘convince-tion’ isn’t really a ‘word,’ so to speak, but all words at one time weren’t words, right? When you get to the age where a bit of snow begins to gather on the roof, you may find it a challenge to keep up with all the new words and phrases that … Read more
I think it’s always instructive to look back to the life and teachings of the early church – to draw inspiration from them and, perhaps, to see whether or not we’ve wandered from some of the values that were important to the first Christians. Obedience to God was very important to believers of the first … Read more
Most warnings are pretty important to take seriously. They alert us to the potential danger of following a certain course of action. ‘Icy road ahead.’ ‘Do not climb ladder with wet feet and hands full.’ ‘Do not breathe in asbestos.’ ‘Do not eat moth balls!’ I’ve never tasted mothballs, but they do look pretty tempting. … Read more
“Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it” (John 14:13-14). In all our praying, however, it is important that we keep in mind that God will not alter His eternal purposes at … Read more
“I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy. Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as long as I live” (Psalm 116:1-2). I think that some of the greatest prayer is prayer where you don’t say one single word or ask for … Read more
“But when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:6). Among the enemies to devotion none is so harmful as distractions. Whatever excites the curiosity, scatters the thoughts, disquiets the heart, absorbs … Read more
“My heart became hot within me. As I mused, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue” (Psalm 39:3). Prayer among evangelical Christians is always in danger of degenerating into a glorified gold rush. Almost every book on prayer deals with the “get” element mainly. How to get things we want from God occupies … Read more
The Hebrew and Greek words that underlie the English word hope in our Bibles combine two important ideas: waiting and confidence. Biblical hope, as has been said many times, is more than a wish for how things could be. Biblical hope is an absolute confidence that things really are the way God says they are. … Read more
Dream with me. Dream of the day when God will make everything right. Isaiah 9 looks forward to the true Christmas day, the day the Savior of the world would be born in Bethlehem. He would come to remove gloom from those who were in anguish. “The people who walked in darkness,” he said, “have … Read more
Tertullian was an early Christian apologist who lived in ancient Carthage, what is now Tunisia. Mary and I spent a few weeks in Tunisia a while back taking in the history and beauty of this important center of early Christianity. Tertullian lived from about A.D. 155 to A.D 240, but his influence continues to reverberate … Read more