"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me."  - John 10:27 Recently, my wife and I were at the drive-in theater where...

Yesterday I prayed about my frustration, asking God to change my attitude. A split second later, I was mentally onto the next problem. I realized I was like those people who dominate conversations—I wasn't letting God get a word in. Our minds operate like radios stuck between stations, full of static. True prayer means learning to listen after we speak. Jesus modeled this by withdrawing to quiet places. This week, try sitting in silence for 30 seconds after praying.

Thomas à Kempis warned that delaying prayer blocks heavenly consolation. Like a desert traveler who drinks immediately upon finding water, we should turn to prayer without hesitation when our souls feel parched. Scripture calls us to seek God while He may be found. When we postpone prayer, we choose spiritual dehydration while living water flows nearby. Prayer should be our first response, not our last resort, positioning us to receive divine comfort and strength.

In our achievement-driven world, rest feels like luxury. But what if the rest our souls crave isn't found in stopping work, but something deeper? Jesus invites us beyond recreation to restoration through relationship with Him. True Sabbath rest comes not from vacation but from His presence. When we trade our heavy burdens for His light yoke, rest becomes worship, stillness becomes strength. This summer, discover how God's presence transforms downtime into devotion and recreat

When Jesus cleared the temple, He wasn't just angry about corrupt business - He was reclaiming God's house as a place of prayer for all nations. This transforms how we understand worship and daily faith. Prayer isn't the opening act; it's the main event. Your life can become a portable sanctuary where heaven meets earth through conversation with your Father.

Something extraordinary happened between the Old and New Testaments - God revealed His father heart. Through Jesus, we discovered that the Almighty's essence had always been fundamentally fatherly. Every law, every consequence, every call to repentance was actually an invitation to come home. When earthly fathers fail, they're falling short of the heavenly standard, not defining it."

In a world of increasing uncertainty, we all search for stability. Economic challenges, health issues, and cultural shifts can leave us feeling exposed and vulnerable. As Pastor Brad reminded us in his sermon, the critical question isn't whether storms will come, but what foundation we've built upon. The resurrection of Jesus provides that unshakeable foundation—validating His identity, demonstrating His power over death, guaranteeing our future, and transforming our present.

What looks like defeat may be God's pathway to victory. Discover how Jesus redefined triumph and what it means for your struggles today.