Focal Passage: James 3:1-5a; 9-10, 13-18 You may have heard the saying, “Whoever controls the narrative is in control.” This is another way of saying that language is important. Words matter a great deal. If we don’t know what words mean then we cannot communicate, i.e. that a man is a man and not a women. In his classic work, 1984, George Orwell warned of “doublespeak” where words are used
Focal Passage: Amos 5:4-15 In the past two lessons we were introduced to the Old Testament prophet that one writer calls “Amos, the country cousin — a backwoods ‘cowboy’ from the barren hill country some six miles southeast of Bethlehem, overlooking the Dead Sea.” His early messages were strong rebukes of the sinful nations around Israel, to which God’s people could say “Amen!” But then Amos began to
Focal Passage: James 2:14-26 The relationship between saving faith and good works has always been a source of controversy. Some would argue that we must work for our salvation, demonstrating to God that we are worthy of His love and grace. On the contrary, Scripture teaches that saving faith is a Spirit-empowered gift from God through and in Jesus Christ. We do good works not to be saved but because
Focal Passage: Amos 4:1-13 In the 1929 Rose Bowl, the California Golden Bears squared off against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and provided one of the most famous plays in college football history. In the second quarter, California player Roy Riegels recovered a fumble, but instead of advancing it, he got confused and began running backwards toward the opposite end zone. California barely lost and this mistake would
Focal Passage: James 2:1-13 There’s a great deal of attention being given to equality these days. How the world speaks of equity is neither correct nor accurate. Worldly equity only leads to further division because it divides people by outward appearances and false identities rather than by the content of their character. God is an impartial God in that He does not favor one ethnicity over another due to skin
Focal Passage: Amos 2:4-16 I’m the grocery shopper in our family and an aisle that I frequent is the coffee aisle. I wouldn’t designate myself as a coffee snob, but I do enjoy rich coffee. One brand that always stands out is Kona coffee. It catches my eye because I know it’s origin story. The beans are farmed, milled, roasted and brewed all within a 10-mile radius from
Focal Passage: James 1:1-12 Everyone hates them, but everyone has them — hard times. But why is it that when the grass is green, and all is well that we learn little about God and ourselves? We seem to learn more about life when we go through difficult times than we do when all is well. God has a way of using hard times to mold and shape us into
Focal Passage: II Kings 22:8-20 I hear business and leadership gurus often say CEOs are really CPSs. Cheif Problem Solvers. People are confident when their leaders are optimistic. For every problem, there can be a good outcome. We can either (1) solve the problem, or (2) learn a lesson. As we come to the conclusion of I-II Kings, it ends with a glimmer of hope and a lesson for us.
Focal Passage: John 1:40-49 The greatest thing we can do for another person is to share Christ with them. If you’re reading this, it is my hope that you already understand that people without Jesus are counted as enemies of God, are dead in their sins, and are under the condemnation and wrath of God. No matter how kind, benevolent or religious, they will surely die and go to hell
Focal Passage: II Kings 19:10-19, 32-34 A friend of mine began a new diet and asked for accountability when we went out for meals. After a couple of weeks, I ran into him with a dozen donuts. I grinned and asked if donuts were part of his diet. He said, “Well, I came around the corner of the donut shop and I told God, if He wanted me to buy
Focal Passage: James 3:1-5a; 9-10, 13-18 You may have heard the saying, “Whoever controls the narrative is in control.” This is another way of saying
Focal Passage: Amos 5:4-15 In the past two lessons we were introduced to the Old Testament prophet that one writer calls “Amos, the
Focal Passage: James 2:14-26 The relationship between saving faith and good works has always been a source of controversy. Some would argue that we must
Focal Passage: Amos 4:1-13 In the 1929 Rose Bowl, the California Golden Bears squared off against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and provided
Focal Passage: James 2:1-13 There’s a great deal of attention being given to equality these days. How the world speaks of equity is neither correct
Focal Passage: Amos 2:4-16 I’m the grocery shopper in our family and an aisle that I frequent is the coffee aisle. I wouldn’t
Focal Passage: James 1:1-12 Everyone hates them, but everyone has them — hard times. But why is it that when the grass is green, and
Focal Passage: II Kings 22:8-20 I hear business and leadership gurus often say CEOs are really CPSs. Cheif Problem Solvers. People are confident when their
Focal Passage: John 1:40-49 The greatest thing we can do for another person is to share Christ with them. If you’re reading this, it is
Focal Passage: II Kings 19:10-19, 32-34 A friend of mine began a new diet and asked for accountability when we went out for meals. After
