What is Faith?
Let’s talk about faith. What even is faith? Pastor Jentezen Franklin wrote an excellent article on faith and I want to share with you all!. There are a few different kinds and different kind of levels of faith. People will so often say and believe that they are “people of faith” but their attendance at the church events does not translate to their personal lives outside of the church walls. There is a faith that is movable—and it’s called transferrable faith.
Read full storyFree Chapel College
Do you have a passion to grow and a heart to learn more about leadership? Free Chapel College may be a good fit for you. Free Chapel College is a biblically and experientially-based leadership training program for those who are high school graduates to 26 years old under the leadership of Pastor Jentezen Franklin. We strive to develop students to live a life of excellence to make the greatest eternal impact through the global church.
Read full storyREMEMBER WHY YOU STARTED
We never have to be concerned about something not working or something not going how we planned. If we are relying on our human hands then that means we are standing on our own skill-set instead of waiting on His timing with His hands. I learned that we do not have to clean up to show that we can be trusted. Why?
Read full storyThe God Who Knows Us
In a world full of the mentality of ‘What’s next and who’s next’ — I feel my human bones inside my skin begin to soften at the thought that there is a God who can count the beat of my heart from a million miles a way. A God who has this zeal of awakening our hearts to the quiet truth that we are so known even in a crowd that is so obscure. And my bones are softened to know that in a noisy room of comparison and expectation, He could pick me up out from the crowd just from hearing my sigh.
Read full storyTo The One Who is in Full-Time Ministry
I think if we are not careful we can miss out on some important things because we caught up in our selfishness. Or we caught up in the rhythms of life. A full-time job in ministry is not just a job. I am sure you have heard of that before. But it is not. And that is where we can miss out and get frustrated if we do not have the right perspective on it. If we don’t have the right heart posture in it. No one is forcing you to be in ministry. Ministry is a choice that we willingly say yes to. So, in this short post, I want to bring you back to remembrance of what it means to be full-time in. a vocational ministry position. And if you are looking to get into a full-time ministry position, I hope this brings some clarity to you and encourages you. At the end of the day, it is always only about Jesus. Always Him. No us.
Read full storyDo I Matter?
I love you. My sweet friend, you are more. And there is more. You matter. I would never dare to tell you that what you’re feeling is diminutive. That what you’re feeling is of no worth. I would never dare to tell you that I understand your heart and your life even the least bit. I understand we are different and that I may never understand every piece of what you have felt or what you have walked through. I understand that our lives may look entirely different.
Read full storyWhen We Know What We Value, We Know What Decisions To Make
Let’s talk about falling short. Because it happens and we all have done it. But here is the thing. Sin is not just a one time thing. Because when we are caught in a cycle of repetitive sin, it never just stays in one lane. Sin is expansive. Sin does not maintain itself in only one specific area. Sin owns one specific area then moves its way to another. Then before we know it, sin can rule the entirety of our lives.
Read full storyGod Doesn't Work on Our Timing
Have you ever been frustrated with how your life has been going? Or upset at God because what you thought you wanted, you didn’t get? Or the timeframe that you had planned… didn’t work out. Have you ever been mad at God because He didn’t do what you thought he was suppose to? Sheesh. I have been in seasons like that. But this is what I learned that changed my whole life. And I believe it can change yours too if you let yourself understand this truth.
Read full storyThe Art of Reflection
16-20 Because of this decision we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don’t look at him that way anymore. Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins. God has given us the task of telling everyone what he is doing. We’re Christ’s representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God’s work of making things right between them. We’re speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he’s already a friend with you.
Read full storyOur Individuality Isn't Deserving To Be Conformed.
At fourteen, I felt like humanity hated me. So naturally, I began to hate them, too. I was drowning in condemnation, but looking back it was all in my head. Because never once did anyone shame me other than myself. Which if many of us look back, that seems to be the case for a lot of us. I was in a very lonely season at the time in my life. I had the boyfriend, but at a distance and in secret. I was in church every Sunday and Wednesday, but my mom paid me to be. Just because you are in church does not mean anything. Which is why I’m a firm believer on noticing the fruit of someone’s life and not just their words or even presence. The happy about life girl had disappeared and I didn’t recognize who I was becoming to be. At fourteen, marijuana became my only friend, alcohol became my escape, and that boy became my identity.
Read full storyBuilding Your Life On The Rock
How beautiful is it that the God of the universe cares about us so much that he would take the time to intervene and prompt us to do something or more importantly, to not to something. Think about it. The God who breathed life into every lung, the God who is the creator of all things, the God who we know as Lord and as friend — if He takes the time to get our attention about something, it MUST be because He has a purpose in it.
Read full storyIDENTIFYING AND UPROOTING
We all have a root or even multiple roots. The crazy part is so many us get frustrated with ourselves in how we react and how we behave, but then we don’t time to backtrack and ask the Lord to show us where it all began. So many of us don’t understand why we do some of the things we don’t want to do. Why certain responses set something off inside our souls. Why some words that seem so small hurt so deeply. Why we run towards things that we know aren’t good for us. You know who understood this? Paul.
Read full storySingleness Is a Gift
I was suppose to be married two years ago. What? I was flipping through old journals this morning when my jaw dropped because I realized that two years ago today I was suppose to be married. SO much life has happened between then and now, but yes. When I was 20, I got engaged. And at 21, I did the most uncomfortable and in my eyes, most embarrassing thing in the world and called it off.
Read full storyHow to Publish Your First Book
Before you even think of editing your book once you type your final word... don't. I mean it, don't. Take a breath. Go celebrate. And let your book sit for a week or so. In this week, consume yourself with anything but writing. Take a break, seriously. Your work has finished and it is time to celebrate it! This gives your mind time to refresh and your eyes something to do other than stare at the words you've spent months typing. After you have celebrated, before you take another step we need to go over this. Formatting your manuscript.
Read full storyLife.Church Information
Life.Church is a part of The Evangelical Covenant Church (ECC)—a rapidly growing multi-ethnic denomination in the United States and Canada with ministries on five continents of the world. Founded in 1885 by Swedish immigrants, the ECC values the Bible as the Word of God, the gift of God's grace and ever deepening spiritual life that comes through faith in Jesus Christ, the importance of extending God's love and compassion to a hurting world, and the strength that comes from unity within diversity.
Read full storyWhy Entertain Something God Is Not In?
I feel like we all shout this at the beginning of every new year, but truly. 2018 paved the way for my life to be entirely different than how it was lived before. 2018 dug deep, and held hands with my core. 2018 broke my backbone of the feeble things that were holding it up, but now I see it had to be broke so that God could put his hand up behind it. As it was originally suppose to be.
Read full storyTake a Step
There comes a time in your walk of life to put all of your cards on the table. And put all of your dreams beside them. To place down your options and give them a good stare. In the midst of being pulled one way and snatched the other. In the midst of your heart screaming yes and your mind screaming no. In the midst of your eyes racing over all that you've placed down. In the midst of everything, there's choices to make, decisions to conquer. Things to do, places to go and people to meet.
Read full storyA Study of Psalms 42
Let’s talk about Psalms. I have personally defined David in one word. In the book of Psalms, many different attributes David holds, but overall he is so human. And that I admire. Through his whole life he demonstrated the true battle of flesh and spirit all while being a clear glass wall to look into. He never held back and he never put on a mask to cover up what he was feeling. David was genuine. David was real. David is relatable.
Read full storyI'm Sorry If You Hate Jesus Because Of Me
“People may hate us because of Jesus. but they should never hate Jesus because of us.”. Sometimes, people suck. Honestly. We all do. And some days, it’s extremely hard to walk into a room and say ‘Hi, this is me. Take it or leave it.’ Because unfortunately, a lot of people will choose to leave it. And as humans with hearts that were made breakable - we have to remember that the people who leave are people with their own insecurities, too. That the people who leave, are still people who need love and acceptance, too.
Read full storyThe Second Table (Chapter 6)
“When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?” 61 But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, “Do you take offense at this? 62 Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? 63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. 64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.) 65 And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”
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