Leave it to a funeral to make me once again understand the beauty of salvation. Though we will not always be here on this planet, we will always live. There will be life after this short trip, and because of what Christ did with His time on earth, we are able to spend a beautiful eternity in His presence.

I don’t think God only wants hotshot journalists or big-time music artists or powerful business executives “on his side.” God wants people who are willing to be daring enough to be all that He asks of them no matter where they live or what they’re getting paid to do.

Maybe a role of the Church will increasingly be to help us slow down and emphasize being present in person to person interactions. To create sacred spaces where we can unplug, listen, be still and pray.

Dear Lord, please comfort my in my sadness. Remind me that You have conquered all things on this earth. Thank You for defeating sadness and giving me hope and joy.

As Christians, it is beneficial for us to be reminded of where those feelings and longings for a place to be known and loved really come from. These difficult emotions were placed there by God, prompting us to realize that He is home and, it is in fact we who are in a far country, not vice versa.

If you’re attending a church where the Word of God is being accurately proclaimed, where the Bible is being taught, where the fellowship of the believers is present, where the Body of Christ is being the Church and still, somehow, you’re not being fed … could it be you just haven’t learned to use your own fork?

I used to get overwhelmed by the needs of other people. God has taught me that He is in control. He’s the ultimate list-maker; He has a plan and purpose for every person, and it’s all included in His perfect list.

With God, destruction never holds center stage. God always moves toward redemption.

The people we worship with are also a part of our story, a greater story that is timeless and runs deeper than we can know; a story that truly defines us not just for who we are or who we have been, but for who we are becoming.

Rather than presenting humanity merely as a maintainer of God's finished creation, Genesis sketches a picture of God placing Adam and Eve in the middle of His primitive garden with the task of working it, loving it, carrying creation forward.