TEMPTEDSCRIPTUREThen Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.-Matthew 4:1 NIVWhen Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, he used his experience to settle the trajectory of his life and confirm his mission to be the bridge to bring people to his Father. False accusations didn't distract him. Debate didn't unnerve him. Misunderstanding and betrayal from his followers...  Read More

INTO THE WILDERNESSSCRIPTUREJesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness.-Luke 4:1Some translations of this scripture say "desert" instead of "wilderness." My personal deserts aren't hot, sandy expanses where a merciless sun threatens and thirst could kill me. My deserts are places where I feel alone in all the wrong ways. Illness that drags on or a...  Read More

COME FASTINGSCRIPTURECome fasting and weeping, sorry for your sins!Change your life, not just your clothes.-Joel 2:12b-13a (MSG)We don't like to do without things. We live in a culture that pushes getting more in every category we can think of.But the call to the cross is to set something aside that our heart does not need, in order that we may grow. God invites us to get rid of whatever makes it ...  Read More

RETURN TO MESCRIPTURE"Even now," declares the LORD, "return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning."-Joel 2:12No voice should ever take priority over God's voice. However, we often prefer our own thoughts and perspectives, even as we long to hear what God has to say. God's invitation to return to him is crucial because God invites us to return to who he knows we can be in...  Read More

A BURNING INVITATIONWORSHIP FOCUSJust Come!SCRIPTURECome, let us bow down in worship, let us kneel before the LORD our Maker.-Psalm 95:6What increases our desire for everything God wants to give us?What makes us recognize how God delights in rescuing us from a self-reliance that will never save us?What understanding, gratitude, or obedience will this realization birth?This week, listen for God's v...  Read More

JUST COMESCRIPTURECome to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.-Matthew 11:28Rest is the biggest unmet need in our get-it-done culture. We push and exhaust ourselves with the useless goal of finishing what we think we need to get done.Jesus isn't inviting us to a nap--at least not most of the time. He is inviting us to hear his heart. He whispers this invitation. Maybe ...  Read More

No More HidingSCRIPTUREFor I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. -Psalm 51:3David is confessing his sin against Bathsheba and God. David tried to ignore that he had done something against God. He wouldn't admit his wrong motives and actions. He was hiding I imagine him during those days as a worried, troubled man who was sick of himself and more afraid than he admitted. He knew...  Read More

Have MercySCRIPTUREHave mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. —Psalm 51:1We are not quick mercy givers in the United States. Our courts aren't known for giving mercy, and our corporate and political systems distribute even less. Instead, power rules. The more power, the better, and mercy is locked out.I have learned tha...  Read More

Today we begin a purposeful journey to the cross. We pray that we will receive everything God intends with the gift of his Son, Jesus. Without him, we are paupers unnecessarily. We can't give ourselves a pep talk worthy of the journey we need to make. We must come before God and humbly acknowledge that we are emptier than we want to be and weaker than we should be. We need a fresh coal of fire in our hearts that begins to blaze for what God wants to do in us, through us, and for us. We want to burn with a desire to grow in Christ.  Read More

SCRIPTUREREVELATION 22:20-21He who testifies to these things says, "Yes, I am coming soon." Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God's people. Amen. It's often been observed that Christians live in the tension of the now and the not yet.Death has been swallowed up in victory--but for now we still live in a broken world.God has won, is winning, and will win--but for now we st...  Read More

SCRIPTUREGENESIS 3:14-15So the LORD God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are you above all livestock and all wild animals! You will crawl on your belly and you will eat dust all the days of your life. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel." It seems utterly, painfully dark....  Read More

SCRIPTUREMATTHEW 2:1-2, 7, 12, 16After Jesus was born in Bethelehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him."... Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared.... And having been warned in...  Read More