Richard Ellis Talks

Just because a flame goes out doesn't mean the fire is done; a pile of ashes can be stoked, and embers can be relit. In the same way, even if our passion for our relationship with God has burned out, the excitement can be renewed. When we remember God's blessings toward us, big or small, it stokes the fire in our hearts to give Him thanks and praise for all that He's given us.

Brokenness, pain, and sin...men and women whose lives were in shambles...the Bible is filled with people's messy stories, but it's also filled with God's redemption. He's in the business of restoration, and He can take any mess and turn it around to be used for something better than we can even imagine. Not a single one of us is too far gone for God's grace and transformation!

Every action we take comes with a subsequent reaction; just read Samson's story in Scripture. The Bible warns us to flee from temptation, but, like Samson, we're susceptible to giving in. Even in those moments of consequence when we sin, God gives us strength if only we ask, so that we can pick ourselves up, move forward, and continue in His work.

When we choose to follow Jesus, we're also choosing to say, "I'm yours, God; use me." And it's not only the big decisions, but also the small, day-to-day choices that have an enormous impact on God inviting us to be part of His plans. The way that He orchestrated the coming together of Ruth and Boaz illustrates His sovereignty over all situations -- but it was because of their obedience to Him that they ultimately became part of the fulfillment of prophecy down the line.

The late theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer once said, "Christianity without discipleship is Christianity without Christ." As followers of Jesus, it's critical that we learn two things: first, what it means to be discipled, and second, what it means to disciple another person. The greatest "legacy" we can leave on this earth is the gift of leading someone else as they grow in their relationship with Jesus, in such a way that it equips them to lead others, in turn.

When we hear the term "The Olive Garden", the Garden of the Gethsemane probably isn't the first place that comes to mind. Yet there's perhaps no account in the Bible that more clearly reveals the humanity of Jesus. He prayed for His Father to let the cup pass from Him so that He would not have to die -- but He also prayed that His Father's will be done. Jesus' struggle in the garden is an example to us of what it means to surrender to the Lord: we have to be ready to give up our own lives, take up our own cross, and follow Him.

God might not always speak in words, but He always speaks. As Christians, the best way for us to hear His voice is to start every day by asking Him what He wants to say to us -- and then listen for His response. The more closely we walk with Him, the more attuned we'll become to His voice as we strive to walk in obedience.

The Bible's filled with examples of people who have made mistakes, big and small -- but those mistakes aren't what ultimately defined them. God loves using imperfect people perfectly, so He can restore them, transform their lives, and use them to change the world. When we choose to follow Jesus, we also need to choose to leave our past behind us and fight forward towards spiritual victory.

No matter how great our life is here on earth, it can never come close to how good eternity will be with Jesus. It's more than we can possibly fathom or imagine -- which is why we waste so much time chasing after all the things we think will bring us happiness in this temporary world. When we chase after God instead of earthly pleasures, we stop looking around at the things we think will satisfy us, and we start looking forward to forever with our Lord.

The evil we read about in the Bible is still around today. The danger is, our culture tries to normalize it, or to pass it off as something other than what it is. It's our job to call out evil as evil and to recognize that we're in a constant spiritual battle -- and then do our best to lead the people around us to the only One who can defeat the enemy.