The Strength of Jesus

I can do all things through [Jesus] who strengthens me.   (Phil. 4:13) Paul wrote today’s scripture while in prison.  Every time he was behind bars, he was facing death. Being chained to a Roman guard, he would’ve been deprived of any privacy.  Under such conditions you might think Paul would’ve been daunted or depressed—but read …

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Seek First the Kingdom of God

Jesus said to the disciples, ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear.’    (Luke 12:22) I don’t consistently live by today’s scripture.  Whenever I read Jesus’ admonition to not worry, I cringe when I remember the nights I’ve been awake at …

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Cast Your Burden Upon the Lord

Cast your burden upon the Lord, and he will sustain you…    (Psalm 55:22) About a year after starting to serve at the church, I was invited to participate in a golf tournament that was raising money for our outreach ministries.  After praying to begin the day, someone said, “Please join me in my cart.  I …

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Jesus is Our Peace

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.  For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups one….  (Eph. 2:13-14) The man was dragging his wife to church.  It was clear she didn’t want to be there.  I didn’t …

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“Jamie, who are His People?”

An account of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham….   (Mt. 1:1f) If Jesus had lived in the neighborhood where I grew up, my grandmother would have been worried about me playing with Him.  She would have wanted me to shy away from Jesus because He came from …

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A Time and Place to Sing ‘Silent Night’

And the Word became flesh and lived among us… (Jn. 1:14) It was mid-December and my friends at the jail asked if I would bring them a Christmas songbook.  The following week I brought one with several choices.  They immediately began to argue over which one to sing first, until one guy said, “Stop wrangling.  …

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Jesus, Our Good Shepherd, Finds You

Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd.” (Jn. 10:11) It was my first sermon. I was doing an internship after my first year in seminary, and one of our duties that summer was to lead a service at an assisted living home. When it was my turn, I choose to talk about Jesus the Good …

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Our Own Path to Faith

They said to the woman, ‘It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the Savior of the world.’    (Jn. 4:42) The Samaritans had first believed in Jesus because of the woman’s testimony.  What exactly they believed about …

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Forgiving Someone From Our Heart

So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.    (Mt. 18:35) The man was a respected leader in town. The man also had a secret life.  During business trips he indulged in risky behavior.  In time, he contracted a …

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Answering God’s Call

During the night Paul had a vision: there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, ‘Come over to Macedonia and help us.’  (Acts. 16:9) Paul dreamed about the “man of Macedonia pleading” with him while he was in Asia Minor. Although the distance between Asia Minor and Macedonia was only a few …

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