Do you like surprises? God’s Word is full of them. We’re not talking about fortune cookie predictions drawn from the Bible by randomly opening and placing your finger on God’s Word for today. Today a divinely planned Word will be applied to your life.

What makes something a miracle? Do you still see them today? Read Luke 7:11-17 as we seek to understand the power of Jesus’ words that make the dead come alive again.

Trials. Family vacations have been described as ‘plans to induce Stockholm Syndrome.’ God is not abusive, but he redeems the pain of life to form in us a stronger attachment.

Study. Study is more than being studious. We lean into the Word for sustained, joyful reflection upon the object of our devotion: God. And this Word nourishes and sustains our faith. AND today we will celebrate the God inspired FAITH STEPS of various members of our faith family.

Prayer. We spell it: T.A.L.K. We could spell it S.E.E.K.I.N.G. Or we could spell it: K.N.O.C.K.I.N.G. However you think about prayer, for most of us it is God-ward looking. Jesus says that’s a good perspective to have.

Life experiences are frequently used by God to form and fashion us as disciples. Often these determine our interests and passions. What do you take for granted that may actually be a unique qualification for living out your calling in life?

Square peg, round hole? You know what that means: not fitting in. But we all have a fit. We all have people and places we are meant to be. On the flip side, there are gonna be people and places we do not fit. And that’s ok.

One person’s treasure is another person’s trash? Yikes! Can Christians value different things so vehemently as this adage sounds? Apparently we can. But, after a couple thousand years, we’re learning how to better relate, right?

Just in Missouri, 390 birds flit from yard to yard, from bluff to plain. God certainly expressed Himself through diversity. So why do we struggle so much with conformity to a cookie-cutter model of discipleship? Let’s not.

Christians are not hamburgers. Ray Kroc leveraged assembly line technology to improve fast-food and then franchised McDonald's. God didn’t assembly line you. If God made everybody different, let’s not.