Welcome to Daily Growth Point, Pastor John Bingham.

One of the most fascinating events is the transformation of a caterpillar to the regal butterfly. As children we would capture these dopy little insects with hopes that we could watch this transformation process.  

Though his little cocoon is very unassuming on the outside, the inside is where the real excitement takes place. It is there on the inside that this dopy caterpillar is transformed to a magnificent example of beauty and grace.  

God’s plan for our life is that we would be transformed from the inside out. He says in Romans “be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.” As we give our minds to the renewing power of God’s Word, our lives are transformed from the inside out. With each passing day, the evidence of God’s renewing in our lives is seen by how we act and live in this life. 

Welcome to Daily Growth Point, I’m Pastor John Bingham.

I recently read a story of a woodcutter whose dog was such a good companion that he would follow him anywhere.

One morning, he left the animal in a clearing and gave him a command to stay and watch his lunch while he went into the forest. 

Unfortunately on one particular day, a fire started in the woods, and soon the blaze spread to the spot where the dog had been left. But in perfect obedience, the dog stayed right where he was.

This kind of devotion to obedience is a beautiful picture of what God wants from our lives. James says we ought to be doers of the Word and not hearers only. He drives home for us the need to not just know what the Bible says, but to live what we know. What we learn from the Bible ought to be adopted into our lives in total obedience. Let’s choose to be doers of the Word.

Welcome to Daily Growth Point, I’m Pastor John Bingham.

In 1914, Ernest Shackleton and a team of explorers set out to cross Antarctica. But disaster struck when the team’s ship, was crushed by ice and sunk.

In a desperate effort to get help, Shackleton and five others set out in a lifeboat across some of the most dangerous and storm-filled waters in the world. Using only a compass and a sextant, they safely reached land and found help.

All of us are making our way through a stormy world. The only way to ensure that we do not go astray is to have an objective source of truth that will guide us. Just as a compass acts as a guide, God’s Word can guide us through uncertain and difficult circumstances.

We must simply trust it. Because the Bible is inspired by God, it is without error, and we can always trust it.

Welcome to Daily Growth Point, I’m Pastor John Bingham.

Parents universally understand the frustration of having their words go in one ear and out the other. This is especially a problem when your child is in their teen years. If they are preoccupied while you are talking to them, your words may not take root. The result is frustration.

In our Christian life, we can be guilty of the same problem. God is often trying to speak to us through His Word and we miss His message because we are busy, or distracted.

They key to hearing God’s Word is to meditate or to think on it so we can obey it. Psalm 1 says of the blessed man that “…his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.”

The end result of hearing and heeding the Word of God is a life full of the fruit of the Lord.

Welcome to Daily Growth Point, I’m Pastor John Bingham.

If you ever watched Sesame Street as a child, you may remember learning to count with “Count Von Count.” Throughout the hour long program, he would make his periodic appearance to teach numbers and counting by the process of repetition.

Repetition helps us remember things by strengthening the neural connections in our brain making it easier to recall that information later.

Repetition is especially important when learning the truths of the Bible. Romans 10:17 teaches us that by continual exposure to the truth of God’s Word, it increases our faith. When we repeatedly read, discuss it, memorize or hear it preached, the truths of the Bible are hidden in our heart so that it is easier to recall when we need it.

Welcome to Daily Growth Point, I’m Pastor John Bingham.

In the midst of his tremendous trial, Job testified about the help he found in the Word of God: “I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food.”

For the Word of God to have this kind of impact in your life, you must encounter it regularly. One of the best habits you can develop to help your spiritual growth is to set aside time to read the Word of God every day.

Here are a few tips:

• Set a time and place to read regularly.

• Follow a Bible reading plan.

• Ask God to guide you before you read.

• Ask questions about what you read.

• And write these thoughts down in a journal.

As you give yourself to a daily diet of God’s Word, it will become more meaningful to you than food.

Welcome to Daily Growth Point, I’m Pastor John Bingham.

This year, God has given our church several new babies. Each baby, without exception, has needed one thing: milk. In fact, within the first few minutes after birth, the doctor will encourage a mother to feed the baby milk. Milk is so important that a baby cannot go home until he is able to drink on his own because milk is essential for growth.

The apostle Peter compares this essential need for a baby to the need of the Bible in the life of a Christian. Daily time in God’s Word is essential to all spiritual growth.

One man wrote:

Every hour

I read you, kills a sin

Or lets a virtue in

To fight against it.

Genuine, lasting growth in a Christian’s life can only come through the transforming power of God’s Word.

Welcome to Daily Growth Point, I’m Pastor John Bingham.

The Bible is the greatest book in the world. Though millennia old, it remains the most consistent and faithful guide for our lives today. There is no other book which provides answers to guide us in every area of life.

The Bible offers us:

• Doctrine—It teaches us what to believe.

• Reproof—It shows us where we are wrong.

• Correction—It tells us how to get back on track when we are wrong.

• Instruction—It gives direction for daily living the truth.

One man wrote :

Not for one single day

Can I discern my way,

But this I surely know—

He who gives the day

Will show the way,

So I securely go.

When you desire for God’s leadership in your life, there is no greater place to be than to be in God’s Word, led by God’s Spirit.

Welcome to Daily Growth Point, I’m Pastor John Bingham.

A few months ago, I bought a 1954 Ford tractor. Although it is old, it has great potential to be used once again. And each day I tinker on it it gets a step closer to seeing it run once again. It is fulfilling to see something that was once broken come to life and be useful again.

Many Christians miss out in deepening their relationship with God because they haven’t taken time to pray. The Bible says there are three things that hinder our prayer life: unconfessed sin, unforgiveness, or disregarding God’s Word.

Just as there are steps that can be taken to repair an old tractor, there are also steps we can take to fix a prayer life that has been hindered. The Bible says, “If we confess our sins…” When we come to God for forgiveness, we can see new life breathed into our times of prayer.

Welcome to Daily Growth Point, I’m Pastor John Bingham.

One of my favorite promises of God is the promise of His nearness.

Psalms 145 says, “The LORD is nigh unto all them that call upon him…”

Anthony Showalter was helping two friends to carry the grief of losing their wives. He found in Deuteronomy that God is a place of refuge and He offers His “everlasting arms” for comfort. Through his desire to help his friends find comfort, he penned the words to “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms.”

What a fellowship, what a joy divine,

leaning on the everlasting arms;

what a blessedness, what a peace is mine,

leaning on the everlasting arms.

There is peace and security in God’s enduring love and presence. A presence that is made real through fellowshipping with God through prayer.