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What an encouraging truth that the LORD is always working His good plan through His servants, even when their labor seems long and unfruitful! Listen to this week's chapel message from Dr. Mark Vowels as he encourages us with this simple yet wonderful truth from God's Word.

Why would a woman anoint Jesus for burial while he was still alive? And was it a wise use of a year's wages? In Mark 14:1–8, we encounter an unnamed woman who breaks an alabaster jar of extremely expensive perfume and pours it over Jesus. The disciples are outraged. They see waste. Jesus sees something beautiful. In this expository sermon, we explore why this woman understood something the religious leaders and even Jesus' disciples were missing: Jesus was going to the cross, and His death was worthy of extravagant worship. This passage introduces the passion narrative in Mark and brings us into what can be called the "holy of holies" of the Gospel—the unfolding story of Christ's death and the meaning of the cross. If you enjoy the episode, please consider subscribing to the podcast and leaving a 5-stars rating. This helps others find the podcast. My sermons are the fruit of nearly 30 years of pastoral ministry, biblical counseling, formal seminary training, and a lifelong passion for God's Word. Since childhood, I've been drawn to the beauty and power of expository preaching—opening Scripture verse by verse and applying it to real life. After graduating from Moody Bible Institute, I spent the next 27 years serving as a youth pastor, senior pastor, church planter, and host of the Food For Your Soul radio broadcast. Along the way, I also earned a Master of Sacred Literature and a Doctor of Religious Studies. For more content from D. Richard Ferguson, visit TreasuringGod.com. Follow on social: • Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@DarrellFerguson • Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/darrell.r.ferguson/ • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Dr.DRichardFerguson

Meet Bereans in Action Faith Debate: Sunday, October 4th, 2026 (10/11/26 on 930 WFMD in Frederick, Maryland) Should "Artificial Intelligence" be called Algorithm Processing? Do we know GPT means Generative Pre-trained Transformer; or are we "old man yelling at cloud" with "smart phones" making us dumb? Is AI controlled by populism (majority rules), tyrants (authoritarian rule), conventional wisdom (lowest common denominator), or someone else? Does technocratic central command make feedback loops based on majority input instead of the best input? Was AI made only for a moral/religious people, wholly inadequate to the use of any other? How's the gospel stay central thru authentic Spirit-led study & known sources, not a souped-up Wikipedia? Are sermons/counseling affected by what the Ethernet presents as prevailing wisdom, with posers pretending to know what they don't? In the battle of Christ & culture, people are being trained by simulacra designed by post-moderns believing we can't know anything for sure. So, be suspicious. Trust, but verify. Don't trade God-given intelligence for low-information slop- or jobs will be lost, lives sacrificed, & truth surrendered. Thus ends a final plug for the recent series on this topic. Now, here's part 3 of a 4-part discussion on the topic of spiritual apparitions. Find The Faith Debate at wfmd.com, ChristianPodcastCommunity.org, & podcast platforms like SermonAudio & Odysee. Find videos in places such as Rumble. Links for all this are at householdoffaithinchrist.com. Panel: Troy Skinner. Faith Debate Daniel Razvi. Conquered By Love Elijah Dirksen. Whitfield Theological Seminary Kevin Schwartz. Man with dramatic visitation stories

What makes a church draw people in before they can say why? In this plenary address from the 2026 Center for Missions & Evangelism Conference, Greg Bylsma explores what he calls "cultural apologetics": the biblical truth that God uses the visible life of his church as a witness to the gospel. Building on Eric Watkins' talk on hospitality, Bylsma turns to Acts 2 and asks how a church becomes that kind of people. Drawing on Matthew 5, Isaiah 60, and 2 Corinthians 2, he shows that this is not a program to implement but a culture that God himself forms. His answer is threefold: through the faithful preaching of the Word, through prayer, and through the power of the Holy Spirit. Learn more about Mid-America Reformed Seminary and support the training of pastors, evangelists, and missionaries: https://www.midamerica.edu/

Can a meal be an act of evangelism? In this plenary address from the 2026 Center for Missions & Evangelism Conference, Eric Watkins makes the case that it can, and that it is a calling for the whole church. Moving from Deuteronomy 26 to Acts 6, Watkins shows that mercy ministry flows from the heart of God, and that the establishment of the diaconate was followed by "a great many of the priests" becoming obedient to the faith. From there, he asks if Jesus ate with sinners, what's stopping us? Learn more about Mid-America Reformed Seminary and support the training of pastors and evangelists: https://www.midamerica.edu/