Cool Hand Grace

Noah lived in a pretty difficult time. The current of culture in his day was thoroughly ungodly yet he walked with God and was unmovable by faith. We also live in difficult times . And we, like Noah, can walk with God and stay focused on Him. May we be encouraged by his faith! 

To be approved by someone is nice. And to be approved by your Creator and God is far more than nice - it is sweetness beyond compare. But our usual path to achieve this renders this approval impossible. But God's path toward this turns the impossible to the possible and hopefully our reality!

What we believe is really important. And there is nothing better than to believe and understand things according to God's reality. Faith in His words and ways allows us to rightfully understand our universe and how we are to approach God.   

The value of our faith is in the object of our faith and for Christians the object of our faith is God, who is ever worthy, ever able, and ever good. As He persuades us, we become convinced of things hoped for - in the future. Join us as we look at these things, which fall on both sides of eternity.

Grace is miraculous. To see it in action is delightful. To have forgiveness of all sins, and a new life and identity to traffic in, with a Savior who loves us, is worth more than our many earthly desires. May you respond with joy!

A recipe for contentment complete with ingredients to mix in and those to keep out. Spiritual foodies delight!

A call to praise complete with reasons and theology. Truth understood can put a bounce in your step and appreciation in your heart and give us healthy perspective from high to low.

We receive lots of calls but some are way more important and definitely should be answered. This episode looks at a very specific and personal call the Lord has for all everyone of us. An invitation is made that refreshes and brings hope to the weary!

You can learn a lot from someone's last words. This week we will see how Jesus' last words can be our last words in this post-Easter message. May you be filled with assurance!

After the woman received what she was craving but not expecting, she shared her conversation immediately with others. The invitation stands: Come everyone who thirsts, and receive freely that which satisfies! 

Why did Jesus have to go to Sychar? Why did this conversation even happen? What is the woman looking for? Can we worship the Father anywhere? How does this connect with us today? Give it a listen, and find out.

We continue to eavesdrop on Nicodemus and Jesus' conversation and we could subtitle this lesson "Let It Go." Listen in as Jesus explains how the new birth comes about and how you can have guaranteed assurance of eternal life. And it's a whole lot easier than one might expect!

We get to eavesdrop upon an intriguing conversation showing how a curious inquisitor got way more than he had bargained for. See how Jesus wisely uses His spiritual broom to sweep away our inaccurate notions of spiritual realities. And be sure to come back for the finale in part two!

There is nobody beyond the reach of Jesus and His love. He has come to seek and to save that which is lost. The story of Zacchaeus proves this. And your story could as well.

Jesus asks this question on two different occasions to different people and receives two strikingly different answers. How would you answer such a question?

A simple question, but a hard answer. A simple childlikeness, but many complications. The young ruler's question can be applied to all of us and is quite relevant today.

A biblical passage that ties all the things in the title together. Best if opened before Christmas!

More unexpected outcomes in this parable about a good guy and a bad guy. Good thing we are not the bad guy - or is it?

Learning from opposites in the Parable of the Unjust Judge. Something about the goodness of God, His perfect timing, prayer,and avoiding losing heart.

What an advantage to know the end of the story before you get there. God is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end and He is the master author weaving His story. How amazing is it that He weaves our stories into His and we get to know the ending ahead of time too! Eschatology made personal.

Why do we do what we do? What are our expectations before God for our service to Him? How easy it is to slip into a meritorious mindset. Jesus gives us perspective to help us avoid Pharsaiac expectations. And He does it through a short parable.

Routine or spontaneity? Ritual or reality? Recognizing God's grace or stale devotion? All of these come into play in this weeks story about 10 lepers.

Jesus tells another stull full of surprises, reversals, and the value of listening now. "I wish I knew then what I knew now." Jesus is saying "I am telling you now what you wish you knew now." The key is listening!

This parable in Luke 16 is a great reminder about how we can see life with a different lens, a grace lens, that enables us to see things with a new perspective and an eye for eternity - even pavement!

Take a fresh look at the the amazing love of the father as we review his love in this episode. We will note who the father is in the parable, clarify how God's love is defined, and observe 11 things about our Lord's love toward us.

Often overlooked, this portion of the prodigal story may hit closest to home. The Older Brother Syndrome is something we all are prone to and grace, as always, is the antidote!

What a celebration. Complete with music and the Grace Dance. The younger son is restored, the father and his love are honored, and a closer look at some grace and non-grace principles.

Sometimes plans that go south can be a really good thing! Such is the case for the younger son as he returns home. He realizes something he wasn't even considering and it changes everything!

We are starting an in-depth study of the famous parable of the father and his two sons found in Luke 15.In this episode we learn of how the younger son's plans led him astray on a downhill trajectory. There is a way that seems right to a man...

Continuing in the parables of Luke 15 we discover a woman who discovers a thing of great value picturing to us How God sees you and I - the sinner. Our intrinsic value is not diminished by lostness but it does compel a heavenly search!

The first of three parables in Luke 15 reveal encouraging truths about the faithfulness of our Shepherd, the privilege of rejoicing with Him, and the surprising truth about repentance.

A man after God's own heart takes a break from that legacy and drags young Bathsheba down with him and yet the story ends with God's forgiveness and David's renewed passion and with her honor slowly restored. God's grace all over the place!

More episodes from the life of David teaching us about honor and shame, spontaneous worship to encourage not buzzkill, and how we in the church age have amazing direct access to God.

Join us this week as we find spiritual leadership in an unexpected place, we see God's gracious intervention in the life of a sensitive-to-Him believer, and that guy that you can't tell them anything? Don't be that guy!

Distraction in our Christian life is something to avoid. Learning from the account of Martha and Mary will help shed light on learning to sit and listen. We will see real change and have hope for our walk in the process!

It seems there are those who follow Jesus and then there are those who really know Him as they follow. You will be encouraged to consider how to avoid the former and enjoy the latter. He is waiting for you!

Do you sometimes wonder if your eternal destiny is secure? Are you looking forward to Jesus' coming again for you? These things and more are discussed this week as we appreciate the value of seeing our identity in Christ as it relates to where we are going.

How we see ourselves plays a large role in how we live our lives. This week we will see how understanding our position in Christ helps to answer why we are here.

The importance of grasping our identity and position in Christ is explored this week, the first of three in a short series.What lenses are you viewing your life through and what does the narrator's commentary sound like?

Two common areas of life we all face, grieving and bitterness, are addressed in our passage this week. Perspective from the Word of God gives us encouragement in both areas and even hope for some relief.

Mother's Day can sometimes be complicated. It seems to bring on a "condemnation headache". And this headache can befall on any of us as we make our way in the Christian life, How to get rid of a condemnation headache is this weeks topic.

The peace of God correlates to our thoughts. Who knew? Our passage points us to things we can meditate on and things we can enjoy when we do.

How are we really going to not be anxious about anything? That's something we can't get our heads around. But there it is, stated in the Bible, which means it must be possible. Find out how on this weeks podcast!

Is it possible to find our hearts rejoicing in the Lord in the midst of trials or just being in a funk? Our passage gives encouragement to the Christian on how to address difficulties and anxieties in our life and even find ourselves rejoicing!

The Easter story is the best story ever told. It serves as ground zero for all our future hope. Why does God create the world knowing how sin will bring such destruction? What motivates Jesus to go through the agony of the cross? How should believers view and value their relationship with God? The Easter Story reveals all.

The Lord wants us to give all our anxieties to Him which we can do when we risk ourselves to His mighty control. The key to this is humility and the key to our humility is Him.

Finding courage in the midst of the coronavirus. And finding encouragement in light of what what God has already given us to rise up and stir up our gift. Text is 2 Timothy 1:5-7.