Again and again, God reveals that what He desires most is not the kind of strength the world applauds. He is not searching for people who can impress Him with their capacity. He is looking for hearts that will trust Him. He is not drawn to self-made power. He delights in faithfulness.

America has become a people more eager to unite against an enemy than to unite around God. We know how to identify threats, expose corruption, denounce error, defend our tribe, and sharpen our outrage. We know how to speak with fire about what is wrong with the world. But too often we have forgotten how to burn with the love of God. Too often we have mistaken suspicion for discernment, hostility for holiness, and public anger for spiritual courage.

The Beatitudes are some of the most beautiful words Jesus ever spoke, and they are also some of the most disruptive. In Matthew 5, Jesus begins the Sermon on the Mount not with commands, but with blessing: “Blessed are the poor in spirit.“Blessed are those who mourn.”Blessed are the meek.“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.” These words are familiar to many of us, but they should still surprise us.

To do so would have been dangerous to my own soul because I would have believed that my truest self had arrived. Nothing would be further from the truth. My credentialed self would have arrived, but my true self would have remained lost. To wrap one’s identity in that which is fleeting is the beginning of the illusion. The truest profession you can have is your own self, with all the joys and flaws that come with it.

Explore Philippians 3's insights on enemies of the Cross and their characteristics. Discover why Philippians 3 emphasizes reconciliation.

I want to make it clear that I have no problem with traditional local churches. Even though my own spiritual journey seems to be moving away from them, it might have never began without them. If the least that can said is that I gained an awareness of Jesus from those places, then that is enough. There may be no better foothold than that. No matter where our paths have taken us since then, many of us who have emerged from such spaces cannot deny we owe the traditional local c

If I had to describe this experience, or even define it now, I would say that church is the awareness of all people as image bearers of God, manifested in the intentional practice of God’s economy among them. The currency of this divine economy is love-given freely, not as transaction but as transformation, so that in each person, a creative personhood might be built up. One that reflects Christ while remaining wholly itself.

What if suffering isn’t proof that God is absent, but evidence that the Lord Jesus Christ is present in a deeper way, allowing us to experience His love amid the evil in the world?

Our relationship with God is designed to flow out into the world and community around you. However, it starts between YOU and GOD...

Prayer, in all its forms, is an invitation into relationship. It is less about saying the right words and more about drawing near to God.

The story of Hezekiah, I have argued, may be the most important story of all the kings of Judah for us to learn from...

Prayer is one of the most powerful tools given to believers, and Jesus Himself demonstrated its significance through the Lord’s Prayer.