Episode 15: Strength Without Domination

Series: Week 3 — Surrendered Strength

 In this episode, Pastor Eric reflects on how surrendered strength changes how we relate to others. Power that is no longer self-centered becomes a source of blessing.In the Kingdom, strength is not used to dominate—but to serve, protect, and restore.

 Scripture:

Matthew 11:29

 Quote Featured:

Richard Foster – “Power is always dangerous. Power attracts the worst and corrupts the best. But power that is surrendered to God can be used for good.”

 Music:

Bumper music: “Mercy Flows” (original instrumental composition, 2006)

Encouraging Word for Today:

Strength shaped by grace does not dominate—it serves.

 Reflection Prompt:

Where might God be reshaping how you use your strength in relationship with others?

Episode 14: The Inheritance of the Gentle

Series: Week 3 — Surrendered Strength

 In this episode, Pastor Eric reflects on the promise that the meek will inherit the earth. This inheritance is not seized through force but received through trust.God’s way of giving is different from the world’s way of taking—and it leads to a deeper, lasting kind of fulfillment.

 Scripture:

Matthew 5:5

 Quote Featured:

N.T. Wright – “When God’s kingdom comes on earth as in heaven, the meek – those who renounce violence and self-assertion – are the one who will truly inherit it.”

 Music:

Bumper music: “Mercy Flows” (original instrumental composition, 2006)

 Encouraging Word for Today:

What is surrendered to God is never lost—it is received differently.

 Reflection Prompt:

How might your understanding of “inheritance” change if it is received rather than achieved?

Episode 13: Trusting Rather Than Grasping

Series: Week 3 — Surrendered Strength

 In this episode, Pastor Eric explores the tension between grasping and trusting. The instinct to control often comes from fear, but the Kingdom invites us into trust.Letting go is not loss—it is the beginning of freedom grounded in God’s faithfulness.

 Scripture:

Psalm 37:8-9

 Quote Featured:

John Ortberg – “Hurry is not just a disordered schedule. Hurry is a disordered heart.”

 Music:

Bumper music: “Mercy Flows” (original instrumental composition, 2006)

 Encouraging Word for Today:

You don’t have to grasp for what God has already promised to give.

 Reflection Prompt:

Where are you striving to secure something God is asking you to trust Him for?

Episode 12: Power Under God’s Control

Series: Week 3 — Surrendered Strength

 In this episode, Pastor Eric reflects on what it means for power to be shaped by God. Strength is not removed in the Kingdom—it is reoriented.When our strength is surrendered, it becomes a force for good rather than control, reflecting the character of Christ.

 Scripture:

James 1:19-20

 Quote Featured:

Richard Foster – “Gentleness is not a lack of strength, but strength under control.”

 Music:

Bumper music: “Mercy Flows” (original instrumental composition, 2006)

 Encouraging Word for Today:

Strength becomes life-giving when it is surrendered to God.

 Reflection Prompt:

What areas of your life feel driven by control rather than trust?

Episode 11: Blessed are the Meek

Series: Week 3 — Surrendered Strength

 In this episode of The Encouraging Word, Pastor Eric introduces the third Beatitude and reframes the meaning of meekness. Far from weakness, meekness is strength that has been surrendered to God.It is power under control—not self-assertion, but trust. The Kingdom belongs not to those who grasp, but to those who rest in God’s provision.

 Scripture:

Matthew 5:5

 Quote Featured:

Dallas Willard – “The meek are those who no longer have to assert themselves in order to secure their place in life.”

 Music:

Bumper music: “Mercy Flows” (original instrumental composition, 2006)

 Encouraging Word for Today:

True strength is not grasped—it is surrendered.

 Reflection Prompt:

Where might God be inviting you to release control and trust Him more fully?

Episode 10 (50): Living with Tender Hearts

Series: Week 2 — Honest Grief

 In this episode, Pastor Eric reflects on what it means to live with a heart that remains open. This devotional explores how grief, when received through grace, produces tenderness rather than hardness.A tender heart becomes more responsive to God, more compassionate toward others, and more alive to the work of the Kingdom.

 Scripture:

Ezekiel 36:26

 Quote Featured:

Henri Nouwen – “Compassion asks us to go where it hurts, to enter into places of pain, to share in brokenness.”

 Music:

Bumper music: “Mercy Flows” (original instrumental composition, 2006)

 Encouraging Word for Today:

A tender heart is not fragile—it is formed by grace.

 Reflection Prompt:

How might God be shaping your heart through the grief you have experienced?

Episode 9 (49): Comfort as Divine Presence

Series: Week 2 — Honest Grief

 In this episode, Pastor Eric reflects on the nature of God’s comfort. This devotional explores how comfort is not always the removal of pain, but the presence of God within it.Jesus promises that those who mourn will be comforted—not eventually, but personally. God meets us in our sorrow with His presence.

 Scripture:

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Quote Featured:

C.S. Lewis – “God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains.”

 Music:

Bumper music: “Mercy Flows” (original instrumental composition, 2006)

 Encouraging Word for Today:

God’s comfort is not distant—it is present.

 Reflection Prompt:

Where do you need to recognize God’s presence in the midst of your pain?

Episode 8 (48): The Healing Power of Lament

Series: Week 2 — Honest Grief

 In this episode, Pastor Eric reflects on lament as a spiritual practice of honesty before God. This devotional explores how lament allows us to bring our pain, confusion, and questions into relationship with Him.Rather than turning away, lament turns toward God with raw honesty. And in doing so, it becomes a place where healing can begin.

 Scripture:

Psalm 13:1-2

 Quote Featured:

Walter Brueggemann – “The Psalms of lament are acts of bold faith...they insist that God attend to our pain."

 Music:

Bumper music: “Mercy Flows” (original instrumental composition, 2006)

 Encouraging Word for Today:

Lament is not a lack of faith—it is faith that refuses to give up.

 Reflection Prompt:

What might it look like to bring your honest lament before God today?

Episode 7 (47): Grieving Sin Without Despair

Series: Week 2 — Honest Grief

 In this episode, Pastor Eric reflects on the role of grief in confronting sin. This devotional explores how recognizing brokenness can either lead us toward despair or toward healing.The gospel invites us to grieve honestly—but not hopelessly. When sorrow is held within the mercy of God, it becomes a doorway to transformation rather than condemnation.

 Scripture:

2 Corinthians 7:10

 Quote Featured:

Henri Nouwen - "The great challenge is living your wounds through instead of thinking them through."

 Music:

Bumper music: “Mercy Flows” (original instrumental composition, 2006)

 Encouraging Word for Today:

Grief over sin is not the end—it is the beginning of healing.

 Reflection Prompt:

How can you bring your awareness of sin into God’s presence without falling into shame?

Episode 6 (46): Blessed are Those Who Mourn

Series: Week 2 — Honest Grief

 In this episode of The Encouraging Word, Pastor Eric reflects on the second Beatitude and the surprising blessing found in mourning. This devotional explores how grief, when brought honestly before God, becomes a place of healing rather than despair.Jesus does not call us to suppress sorrow, but to enter it truthfully. Mourning is not weakness—it is evidence of a heart that is alive to what is broken. And in that place, God promises not distance, but comfort.

 Scripture:

Matthew 5:4

 Quote Featured:

John Chrysostom – “He calls those blessed who mourn, not for their own sins only, but for the sins of others.”

 Music:

Bumper music: “Mercy Flows” (original instrumental composition, 2006)

 Encouraging Word for Today:

God meets you not by avoiding your grief—but by entering it.

 Reflection Prompt:

Where in your life do you need to allow yourself to grieve honestly before God?