Many people seem to experience a mental disconnect regarding who they spend time with and the resulting situations in which they find themselves. A person who spends most of their time with negative people may wonder why they are so depressed. A person who spends a lot of time around heavy drinkers may wonder why they can’t stay sober. Someone who spends a considerable amount of time around the chronically unemployed may wonder why they can’t get motivated to get a job...

Everyone will come upon difficult times in their lives: Emotional difficulties, financial difficulties, relationship difficulties, difficulties with sin, and more. When these difficulties come, many people ask, “Why would God let this happen to me?” However, in most cases, these troubles don’t just materialize out of nowhere. They come about because of decisions we, or those around us, have made. Sure, there are situations where a person faces difficulties that they had no pa

Have you ever known someone who was afraid of commitment? Perhaps when his or her relationship starts to get more serious, and conversations about marriage come up, suddenly this person gets “cold feet” and quickly jumps out of the relationship. The relationship was great, but an increase of commitment is not what they wanted from it. Something similar can happen in people’s spiritual lives...

We often talk about the dangers of intoxication. However, for the person who is struggling with substance use, they may feel that there is no benefit to coming off the substances. Many people who resort to substance use do so because they are trying to escape the painful realities of their life. For that person, being sober is scarier than the inability to think straight when intoxicated. With that in mind, let's examine some of the benefits of sobriety...

Life is full of distractions: They may be pleasant or unpleasant, but they are distractions never-the-less. Interestingly, what constitutes a distraction differs for people greatly since it is based on an individual’s goals. What a motivated, goal-oriented person sees as a distraction could be the perceived purpose in life for an unmotivated, aimless person. What a righteous person sees as a sinful distraction, an unrighteous person might see as the only thing worth pursuing.

When people go through hard times, they will often ask something like, “Why is God letting this happen to me?” They may even state it as an accusation: “How dare God put me through this?” These questions and the ideas behind them can easily shake or even topple a person’s faith. You may notice that these questions are phrased as though the person is a victim in the situation. The accusation is that God is acting unfairly against them...

“Anything that makes me this happy could not be bad for me.” “Surely, God wants me to be happy, right?” “It feels too good to be wrong.” From a humanistic point of view these comments sound accurate, and are common among people trying to justify sin. But, are these statements biblical and correct? To answer that question, let’s look at what John the apostle says...

The beginning of a new year is a fascinating time. Many people optimistically make plans and resolutions for the coming year, deciding what they want to accomplish and feeling excited about what the year may bring. Others might feel indifferent about the new year, anticipating another year of the same old grind. Some people may even dread the new year, fearing some unknown event or dreading challenges it may bring, and feeling concerned that they will not live up to some stan

It was the night before Christmas, when all through the house people were grumpy, even Aunt Gail. Uncle George brought up politics without any care, grandpa lost his temper right then and right there. Grandma hid in her room consumed with dread, while visions of disaster danced in her head. Aunt Jill and Uncle Tom were fuming that James brought that girl to dinner, and his sister was stoking the fire with her sarcastic ire...

According to certain theologians, some of God’s commands seem to unequally impact those who have been harmed by cruel people. Because of this the argument is made that God’s commands don’t pertain in certain situations. These are often presented in hypothetical “what if” statements. These statements are formed in such a way where following God’s commands looks like the cruel option, and going against God’s law seems like the merciful option...

We live in a very negative and pessimistic society. Doom and gloom permeate every aspect of culture. Unfortunately, that pessimism has also permeated the church. Many Christians will only look at the negatives of any given situation. They see how hard it is to resist sin, so they despair of ever being able to overcome their bad habits. They see how difficult evangelism is, so they start to think that the church can never grow...

There was a time in the not-too-distant past when members of the church of Christ were known as people who knew the word. Sadly, that cannot be said quite as confidently about us in more recent decades. Too many people make excuses for not memorizing Scripture. They may say that they are not smart enough or that it is too difficult. They may say they are too busy. Regardless of which excuse someone uses, they are refusing to put the work in - but it can be done...

Most religious groups want to be holy. And God’s word teaches us how to be holy (c.f. 1 Peter 1:15-16). If those desiring to be holy simply did what God says to do, then the world would be a much better place. But for many, just “doing what the Bible says” seems oversimplified and they feel that there must be more to it than that.

How quickly can one fall away or become ensnared by the temptations and lusts of the world and step outside the security of the Kingdom?

Some might despair at what the passage asks of us: rejoicing all the time, even when we’re down; being reasonable all the time, even when we don’t feel gentle or reasonable; being anxious for nothing when we in fact feel anxiety. However, this is an application passage: the application of a foundation. We need to develop a mind set on peace, a mind that is focused on and dwelling on peace of Christ.

Who will carry the torch for you once you have gone to your eternal reward?

God, in His perfect wisdom, knows what makes a good leader: character, faith, and wisdom.

Someone somewhere in your life has made, or still makes decisions toward the care and benefit of your wellbeing.

No matter how many times you may read the Sermon on the Mount over a lifetime, it just keeps giving, providing spiritual sustenance...

Not only do the elders and evangelist help us grow, but each member of the body has a part in helping us mature.