The Resting Place Podcast

What do we do when our circumstances seem to contradict God’s character? In John 11, we find the story of Jesus raising Lazarus from the dead—a powerful reminder that God’s purposes are often greater than what we can see in the middle of our pain.

Through the grief of Mary and Martha, we discover that Jesus welcomes our honest questions, meets us in our sorrow, and remains present even when we don’t understand His timing. But this story points to something even greater than a miraculous healing: Jesus is the resurrection and the life.

Our hope isn’t that Jesus will always change our circumstances the way we want Him to. Our hope is in the One who has defeated death itself.

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What does it mean to hear the voice of Jesus? In John 10, Jesus reveals Himself as the Good Shepherd—the One who knows His sheep, calls them by name, leads them, and lays down His life for them.

Through the story of the man born blind, the heart of God revealed in the Old Testament prophets, and a personal testimony of encountering Jesus, we explore how we learn to recognize His voice. As we spend time in His Word and allow the Holy Spirit to shape us, we grow in our understanding of His character, His heart, and His leading.

What is forming you? Are the voices of fear, trauma, and expectation drowning out the voice of the Good Shepherd?

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What does it mean to truly abide in Jesus?

In John 15, Jesus describes Himself as the true vine and calls us to remain connected to Him. But abiding in Christ is more than reading our Bibles or praying—it’s learning to live every moment aware of His presence and allowing His Word to transform our hearts, desires, and lives.

Apart from Jesus, we can do nothing. But as we abide in Him, He produces fruit in us, shapes us to become more like Him, and leads us into the fullness of His joy.

The invitation is simple: Be With Jesus Now.

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What if Jesus is so much better than the version of Him we’ve created in our minds?

In John 7–8, Jesus reveals Himself as the Living Water and the Light of the World—fulfilling what God’s people had been celebrating and pointing toward for generations. This message challenges us to see Jesus for who He truly is, not who we want Him to be, and to consider whether we genuinely believe He is who He says He is.

Jesus is the fulfillment of every promise, the source of our hope, peace, joy, and freedom. He is better than you think.

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In John 6, we see Jesus meet His disciples in the wilderness, in the storm, and in their hunger—and in every situation, He reveals that He Himself is enough. Through the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus walking on water, and His declaration that He is the Bread of Life, we discover that Jesus isn't simply the One who gives us what we need—He is what we need.

When the storm doesn't stop, when we can't see Jesus, or when life feels impossible, can we trust that He is still with us and still sustaining us? John 6 ultimately points us to the truth that Jesus is at the center of everything, and like Peter, we can say, “Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

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John 5:1-17

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What does it mean to truly encounter Jesus, not just know about him? In John chapter 4, the story of the woman at the well unfolds as one of the most layered and personal encounters in all of Scripture. This woman arrives at Jacob's well at noon, an unusual hour that quietly signals her social isolation, and she meets a man who has no bucket and yet offers her living water. The well itself becomes a powerful symbol of every human system we construct to draw life, meaning, and satisfaction from the world around us. We bring our buckets, our strategies, our plans, and our routines, working hard to pull up from the depths what we believe we need. But Jesus reframes the entire picture. The source, he tells her, is not below and external. It is something that springs upward from within, freely given, requiring no bucket and no human effort. The story moves through four distinct scenes that mirror our own spiritual journeys: introduction, contemplation, submission and repentance, and finally duplication. Each stage is deeply relevant to where we find ourselves today. Some of us have been introduced to Jesus but are still weighing the cost. Others have submitted but have never moved into the transformative work of sharing what we have found. This encounter at the well is an invitation to examine which stage we are in and to take the next step forward, leaving our own water jars behind.

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What does it look like when God shows up in the middle of our worst moments? In Matthew 14, we find the disciples battered by wind and waves in the dead of night, far from shore, and utterly exhausted. Then something extraordinary happens. A figure approaches across the water, and when Jesus identifies himself, he uses words that carry far more weight than a simple reassurance. The Greek phrase "ego eimi", meaning I am, is nothing less than the divine name of God himself, Yahweh. This is not just Jesus saying it is me, this is the great I Am declaring his presence in the storm. That single truth reframes everything. When the storms of life press in, whether a devastating medical report, a broken relationship, or a financial crisis, the message is the same: I Am has shown up. We are also invited to look closely at the moment Peter steps out of the boat, and what it reveals about the nature of faith. Faith is not a white-knuckled certainty that everything will go our way. It is trust in a person. The distinction between a small quantity of faith and a poor quality of faith is one that challenges and liberates us at the same time. We can be full of doubt and still walk on water, as long as our eyes remain fixed on Jesus rather than on the waves surrounding us.

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Nicodemus, a powerful and respected Pharisee, came to Jesus under the cover of night, afraid of what following Him might cost. Jesus cut straight to the heart of his need, declaring that no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born again, a complete spiritual transformation made possible only by the Holy Spirit. This new birth is not something anyone can earn through discipline, church attendance, or good works. It is received through faith alone. John 3:16 reminds us that God sent His Son not to condemn the world but to save it, and our response to a broken world should reflect that same posture of compassion. John the Baptist modeled the heart of a true disciple when he said that Jesus must increase and he must decrease. The Christian life is not about building our own kingdoms but about faithfully pointing others to His. That faithfulness often looks less like grand moments and more like daily choices made at home, at work, and in community.

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John 2 is far more than the story of a miracle at a wedding. When Jesus turned water into wine using Jewish purification jars, He was making a profound statement: true purification comes from Him alone, not from religious ritual. The miracle is a picture of transformation, moving from what was to what is, from the old to the new. Transformation requires our participation. Jesus told the servants to fill the jars, and only then did He perform the miracle. Just as He cleansed the physical temple in Jerusalem, He desires to cleanse us, because our bodies are now the temple of the Holy Spirit. True growth happens through intentional time in prayer, Scripture, worship, and community with other believers. The water can become wine, but it starts with filling the jar.

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