Multigenerational family standing outdoors at sunset with glowing cross behind them

Digging in Deeper: 2 Corinthians 5:18

Leave a comment

“Everything is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

There are some movies that define a generation. For me, The Karate Kid was one of those movies. It had everything. Great action, a love story, a redemption arc, a fantastic soundtrack and score, and the acting was mostly pretty good. Oh, and like the name says, karate. Lots of karate. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen the first one. The second was always my favorite. The third one was even still good. So, when YouTube announced they were creating, and then Netflix picked up, a series rooted in the world of Karate Kid, but focusing on the bad guy dojo, Cobra Kai, I was intrigued. Eight years later, I finally got around to finishing the sixth and final season. I’ve been excited all week to talk about it. Let’s jump right in.

Read the rest…
Woman sitting cross-legged on a blanket meditating on a mountain overlooking a valley at sunrise

Morning Musing: Philippians 4:6-7

Leave a comment

“Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Our world is awash in anxiety. It’s popular in many places to have a therapist or counselor these days which is a good thing, but the very fact that so many feel like they need that help is an indication of the problem. The truth is that many more people could use it than actually get it. Yet while there is undoubtedly anxiety that is genuinely clinical, a great deal more of it is more situational in nature. It is the result of not having the worldview resources to deal with the challenges life throws our way from time to time. Christianity has such worldview resources, and one of the best of them is right here. Let’s take a look.

Read the rest…
Man carrying a box shaking hands with elderly woman outside her house at sunset

Morning Musing: Philippians 4:5

Leave a comment

“Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

If the end of the world was arriving tomorrow, how would you live today? Where would you go? What would you do? What would you say? Would you resolve relationships? offer forgiveness? Have an adventure? Or would it just sit around and do nothing because none of it would matter anyway? The nearness of Christ’s return should have all of us considering how we should respond to that. Paul offers a bit of advice here that’s part of how we should stand firm in our faith. Let’s take a look.

Read the rest…
Group of people standing in a circle outdoors at sunrise reading and singing from Bibles

Morning Musing: Philippians 4:4

Leave a comment

“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!” (CSB – Read the chapter)

It case you were living under a rock, the U.S. Men’s and Women’s Olympic hockey teams both won the gold medal in this year’s Olympic Games. The women’s team has literally always medaled, winning gold three times. The men’s team hasn’t won gold in 46 years. Their victory was particularly impressive, including one of the greatest performances by a goalie ever. On the news of their victory, the whole country rejoiced (well, most of the country rejoiced; politics got in the way of the whole country’s rejoicing). It feels good to rejoice. That’s part of why Paul called the Philippian believers to rejoice in the Lord always. Let’s talk about why else he did.

Read the rest…

Too Good Not to Share

Leave a comment

It’s common to get to the other side of a major event and wonder a bit about what we are supposed to do now. Easter is kind of like that. There’s all this build up and then…what now? What are we supposed to do in light of this incredible news that Jesus rose from the dead on the third day? As we wrap up our journey through Luke’s Passion Narrative, we are going to be talking about that very thing because that’s the very thing we find Jesus pointing the disciples to in the final conversation Luke records them having. Let’s take a look together at the “now what” of Easter.

Too Good Not to Share (Luke 24:36-53)
April 12, 2026 

Can I meddle just a bit this morning? Most college basketball observers figured that Duke was going to be the National Champion this season. But they didn’t. They actually wound up only making it to the Elite Eight. This is because UConn–who, of course, wound up getting smashed by Michigan in the championship this past Monday—had one of the most incredible, last-second, upset wins of the season. With just four seconds to go, Duke had a 2-point lead and the ball. All they had to do was inbounds the ball and hold it. But instead, a freshman UConn player intercepted an attempted pass at halfcourt. With time quickly ticking away, he frantically passed it to a teammate closer to the basket, but unable to do anything, he threw it back, and from near the halfcourt line, with under a second to go, this freshman threw up a prayer. The whole thing felt like one of those slow-motion moments at the climax of a sports movie even though, again, the whole thing played out in less than five seconds. With just four-tenths of a second remaining on the clock, the ball swished through the hoop and the game was essentially over. 

Read the rest…