Beltway Weekend Services (Video)

As we begin a new year, we can agree that we all want our proverbial house to be strong and secure WHEN the storms come, not IF the storms come. A house that stands strong and secure in the midst of a storm relies on a strong foundation. A strong...

“Will I have enough?” is something we all ask throughout life. We struggle to believe that we will have everything we need, much less what we want. Yet the majority of us, like most Americans, already have too much stuff. This Christmas season isn’t about asking what else we need, but what gift are we placing our hope and satisfaction in. There’s a lie we believe that as we acquire more possessions, gifts, and resources we have less fear. But studies show just the opposite. As we gain resources, not only does more fear arise, but we start placing our trust in the provision rather than the provider. God reveals to us through the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem that God provides.

“Will I have enough?” is something we all ask throughout life. We struggle to believe that we will have everything we need, much less what we want. Yet the majority of us, like most Americans, already have too much stuff. This Christmas season isn’t...

Isn’t it interesting that in a country and culture with the amount of freedom we have that most of us find ourselves still walking with the weight of bondage? It is irony that we feel so enslaved although we are the freest people and nation in the world. God desires that we experience true freedom. However, freedom is not choosing what we want when we want. Freedom is actually the power to live as God designed us to live and to have the abundant life that He promises. Just as God brought the Israelites out of Egypt to experience true freedom, God, through Jesus, brings us out of Egypt—out of slavery so that we might live with true freedom.

Isn’t it interesting that in a country and culture with the amount of freedom we have that most of us find ourselves still walking with the weight of bondage? It is irony that we feel so enslaved although we are the freest people and nation in the...

In Jesus, God promises comfort in the midst our imperfect and painful world (Matthew 2:13-18). The real Christmas story in scripture is anything but perfect and dreamy. After Jesus was born, He fled to Egypt while all the boys two years and younger in Bethlehem were killed by order of King Herod. It was a fulfillment of an Old Testament prophecy found in Jeremiah 31:15 (Matthew 2:17-18). But this prophecy also is a promise of hope and comfort. In the midst of our difficulties, Jesus understands physical pain, grief and loss, family issues, sin issues, and financial needs. He struggled with God’s will (Luke 22:42), and even felt abandoned by Him (Mark 15:34). Christmas shows us that Jesus understands because He lived it. And because He lived it, He is our source of hope and comfort.

In Jesus, God promises comfort in the midst our imperfect and painful world (Matthew 2:13-18). The real Christmas story in scripture is anything but perfect and dreamy. After Jesus was born, He fled to Egypt while all the boys two years and younger in...

We were not created to control our own lives. Instead, we are called to trust God and surrender ALL to Him. Bad things happen when we control any aspect of our lives instead of giving God the power to move and act as He wills. It's hard to fully submit control to God, but we find in scripture that He calls us to trust Him with all of our heart and to acknowledge Him in all our ways. It is in our surrender and trust in God that He turns our crooked paths straight (Proverbs 3:5-6).

We were not created to control our own lives. Instead, we are called to trust God and surrender ALL to Him. Bad things happen when we control any aspect of our lives instead of giving God the power to move and act as He wills. It's hard to fully...

Can we be honest enough to admit that we as 21st century Americans know in our heads that we should be the most grateful people ever but may actually be the least grateful? It is one of the great ironies of our current existence—we who have so many reasons to be grateful will struggle with gratitude not just this Thanksgiving holiday, but in life. However, when we choose gratitude over complaining, we choose the fullness of life God desires for us.