How do we respond when you get the dreaded call? Perhaps the call comes from your boss in the middle of the morning—the job we’ve relied upon for years is being taken away. Perhaps the call comes in the middle of the afternoon from our doctor—the health we’ve taken for granted for years is in jeopardy. Perhaps the call comes from our dad in the middle of the night—the sibling we’ve known and loved our whole life is fighting for their life after a car accident.

In those moments, how do we respond?

How do we grow in our trust of God’s plan for our lives? More to it, how do we grow in our trust of God?  While we may say with our lips that we believe God is working out all things for our good, often our hearts believe something very different.

In the same pews, at the church at which I’m privileged to minister, sit people of different races, ages, and political parties—all confessing their sins, singing of God's grace, and taking the Lord's Supper together. In a culture too often broken up into rival factions, what could explain such a diverse, loving community? The short answer is Jesus is King.

We can spot family members because they share common characteristics. In chapter one of 1 John, the apostle identifies three traits shared by those in God’s family. John says they listen, walk, and confess.

Is life a gift to be received or a puzzle to be solved? Paul answers this question in Colossians chapter 2. What does it look like to view life as a gift?

How can one know God the Father? That’s the question John answers in 1 John 1:1-2.

Sin comes from our hearts and leads to ruin, while righteousness comes from God and leads to restoration. This is the message of Scripture, clearly taught in the first chapter of James. In James 1:13-14, we see the source and result of sin.

Dustin Messer is Pastor for Faith Formation at All Saints Anglican Church in Downtown Dallas, TX.

The author of this homily from the fourth century is unknown, but this gem of spiritual exhortation has survived despite all odds and continues to encourage, edify and strengthen the Christian's life of prayer and our calling to live in the light of Christ and in loving union with God.

This anonymous second-century homily is among a handful of Christian sermons that have been preserved from the very earliest days of the Christian church.  It is bold in its proclamation of salvation through the passion and death of Jesus Christ, and its strong encouragement for Christians to stand firm in the faith and to live holy lives as a testimony to the power of God's saving grace and eternal forgiveness.