Hardwired with Jeff Wickwire

When I think of surrendering my life to God, I think of Carrie Underwood's song, “Jesus Take The Wheel”. I imagine myself letting go of the steering wheel of my life, and trusting in Him to steer me through the trials I face. But life isn't a highway, and giving the Lord control over everything is a lot more complicated than just letting go of the steering wheel. In today's message, Pastor Jeff is going to teach us about what it means to truly surrender to the Holy Spirit and let Him control every aspect of our lives.

The easiest way to get discouraged from the difficult path you are on is to look back. After all, if the road ahead is so hard, wouldn't it be easier to go back to where you were before? But Pastor Jeff encourages you today to stay on the straight-and-narrow path God has called you to! Abraham knew that God's promises ahead were greater than the challenges he would face on his journey. He was able to stay the course and become the father of a great nation, all because he didn't look back!

There are thousands of foreign missionaries serving around the world, doing work God has called them to do to bring the Good News to people who might not hear it otherwise. But let me tell you from experience, it takes a great amount of sacrifice to fully uproot your life and follow after God's calling. Pastor Jeff wants to teach you today that Abraham didn't just have to say “yes” to follow God. He had to depart from the only home he had ever known and leave his friends and relationships behind!

Paul understood that the Jewish people would be stubborn and unlikely to accept Jesus as Lord. After all, he had similarly resisted Jesus and persecuted Christians all over Israel! Pastor Jeff wants us to understand today that the Gospel is available to all people, but the people who got to witness Jesus' ministry firsthand were the ones quickest to reject His gift of salvation. Paul isn't trying to pit Jew against Gentile, because we are created equal in God's eyes. Jesus' salvation is for all of us!

Have you ever looked at the night sky, hoping to see a shooting star? They're only visible for a brief moment, so imagine how disappointing it would be to blink or get distracted by something nearby, only for that distraction to cause you to miss the thing you've been waiting for! Pastor Jeff teaches you today that the Jewish people have been waiting on the Messiah for so long, they don't even realize that the Messiah has already come! Jesus has been waiting for His people to open their eyes and witness His glory.

A few years ago, I read a book called One Thousand Risks, by Chad Johnson. The author talks about defeating his anxiety in sharing the Gospel by setting a goal to share the love of Jesus with one thousand people, and he saw God do great things through those small conversations! Pastor Jeff teaches you today that God has already planted seeds in the hearts of the unreached; all that is needed is for someone to come water those seeds. Will you take the risk to share the Gospel with someone today?

Can you imagine going bowling for the first time and getting a perfect score of 300? Now, imagine throwing a perfect game after perfect game for a week straight. The odds of that happening are one in a trillion at best! But Pastor Jeff teaches you today that those odds are still better than your odds of perfectly following the Law of the Old Testament throughout your entire life. You can't be saved by your good works, because even one slip-up is enough to disqualify you from God's presence. You need His grace!

In a monarchy, the royal crown is passed down from parent to child. It's not a position the child earns by merit; it's passed down to them by birthright. But in today's message, Pastor Jeff reminds you that salvation isn't something that is passed down like a birthright. The Israelites did inherit the blessings that God gave to Abraham, but that did not buy them access to God's throne room. They had a front-row seat to what God was doing in this world, but each person has to choose to follow God for themselves.

The book of Hebrews shows us that there is a throughline connecting the stories of Abel, Enoch, and Noah. We've learned that the safest place for us to be is walking right alongside God, obeying Him and following in His footsteps everywhere we go. This world around us has been plunged into chaos, but Pastor Jeff wants us to remember that we have a loving Father who knows exactly what to do. If we are faithful to obey His instructions, He will grant us His blessings and peace.

Atoning for your sins is an area of your life where you don't want to take shortcuts. After all, in God's eyes, you are either guilty of sin, or you're not. There are no half-measures. In today's message, Pastor Jeff teaches you about Cain and Abel, and about how Abel's offering recognized God's requirement of blood to atone for sins. However, Cain wanted to take a shortcut by sacrificing the fruit of his fields, but in doing so, he rebelled against God. The Lord doesn't accept insincere offerings. 

Some promises come with an expiration date. A coupon is usually only good for a few months, a check is typically void after 90 days, and a job offer needs to be signed and returned in order for you to start your new role. Now, there are many Jews today who haven't yet accepted the gift of Jesus, even though He meets all of the Bible's prophecies surrounding the Messiah. However, Pastor Jeff teaches you today that the Israelites still have time to recognize Jesus as Lord. But their time is running short!

People love to hear stories of time travelers! Whether their vehicle of choice is a phone booth, or a car with a built-in flux capacitor, their brave pilots go back and forth across the timeline, fighting monsters and preventing history from erasing itself. Well, Pastor Jeff teaches you today that God is even more powerful than a time traveler! He knows the entire story of humanity, and He knew it before He even created the world. He knew to choose you to be part of His Kingdom, before you were even born!

It's easy to think of salvation only in spiritual terms. After all, who needs a body if your soul will live forever in God's presence? However, Pastor Jeff reminds us today that our bodies won't just be left to decompose in the ground when we go to meet the Lord. When Jesus returns for His bride, He will also bring resurrection for the dead! Our old bodies will be raised up out of the ground, and remade into new and perfect creations! We will become truly perfect in God's sight.

When you see that a loaf of bread has gone moldy in your pantry, do you assume that only the moldy slice is affected, or do you toss the whole loaf? Well, seeing visible mold on the loaf means that the entire loaf is likely contaminated. Pastor Jeff reminds us today that the depravity we see in this world today is the outward symptom of a world that has fully given itself over to sin. This darkness should bother our consciences, because the Holy Spirit is concerned about the state of the world.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm a fan of free samples at the grocery store. Sometimes, the product being offered at the sample station is one that I already planned on buying! When that happens, I know that the sample I'm tasting now will only get me excited for the full portion I will enjoy later! Pastor Jeff reminds us today that even though we are filled with the Holy Spirit's power, we have only experienced a fraction of what we will see when we receive our full portion of God's presence!

The valley of the shadow of death may be the darkest valley that you ever cross in your life. It's a place where the fear of loss can cause as much damage to your soul as the loss itself. But God doesn't leave you to face that valley alone! In today's message, Pastor Jeff wants you to recognize that the Lord is your good shepherd, and He is always looking out for you! It's not hard to find His hand reaching out to guide you. Knowing that His hand is there in the first place is the hardest part of the battle.

We all need a GPS at some point in our lives. Maybe we're traveling to someplace new and need directions, or our usual route isn't available because of a road closure. Well, Pastor Jeff is here today to remind us that God wants to be our guide, helping us through life, and leading us into peaceful pastures. That doesn't mean that there won't be difficult times to go along with the calm moments, but we can be equally assured that there is no safer place than walking right by His side.

Whenever I get up in the morning, my mind races to check my phone. Whether I'm checking my unread messages or looking at the weather so I know how to dress for the day, that little rectangle holds so much information that will be important to my day. But when I choose to start my day in prayer rather than flooding my mind with noise, I notice a difference in my spiritual life! Pastor Jeff reminds us today that we have a choice to make every day: will we make God more important than our flesh?

Have you ever been on a boat that got so far from shore that you could no longer see dry land? It can be scary to be in the middle of a vast ocean, with no shelter in sight besides the boat keeping you above the surface. Well, in today's message, Pastor Jeff reminds you that just as the ark protected Noah and his family from the condemnation of sin, God protects you from the waters of condemnation by sealing you within His grace. You don't have to be afraid of judgment, because it will never reach you!

The world loves to label evil things as good, hoping that you won't be paying attention! All kinds of greed and corruption are perfectly legal under the law of the land, but are condemned by God! Pastor Jeff teaches you today that the Law we find in the Old Testament plays an important role, because it lays out God's standards for life. Something that may be legal in the law of the land may be sinful in God's eyes, and it's important to remember to follow God's commandments over man's laws.

Living up to the perfect standard of the law is like being asked to recreate the Mona Lisa perfectly. Sure, you can try to be super diligent and recreate every brushstroke as closely as you can, but your recreation will not live up to Da Vinci's standard. Pastor Jeff reminds you today that you cannot perfectly follow the Law, and that the marriage that bound you to the Law was never going to save you. Instead, it is the grace of God that saves you, by releasing you from your captivity, and giving you new life in Christ.

There's a difference between knowing something and believing it. When you just know something, the fact may live in your mind, but it doesn't affect the way you act or the way you interact with the world. If you believe something, it begins to influence your actions and your other beliefs. Pastor Jeff reminds you today that you can't just know that your sins are forgiven. You must believe that they are forgiven, and allow that truth to permeate into every corner of your heart and mind.

Did you have an irrational fear of quicksand growing up? Most of us have seen at least one movie where our brave heroes find themselves sinking into a dangerous trap. But the way you sink in quicksand is by standing still. If you walk quickly and don't freeze, you can avoid the worst danger. In today's message, Pastor Jeff reminds you that you must keep moving when you're in a dark valley. You can trust in the Lord to make a way for you. All that He asks is for you to keep walking, one step after another.

Did you know that coffee can taste different when grown at different altitudes? As you go higher in elevation, the air becomes thinner, and the temperatures become cooler, creating a coffee cherry with more acidity and sugar content. Well, Pastor Jeff isn't trying to tell you that you're a coffee plant! But what he does teach you today is that when you're facing a season of pressure, it's not because God wants you to suffer! Instead, God wants to give you the opportunity to grow stronger in your faith!

How many times have you asked God to make you courageous, or kind, or forgiving? Maybe you pray that prayer, expecting God to just snap His fingers and change your personality, but that's not how He operates! In today's message, Pastor Jeff reminds you that the fruit of the Spirit is something that grows out of you as the result of life transformation. It's not the result of instant transformation, but it's the manifestation of a long and slow process that the Holy Spirit is working within you, day by day! 

At the end of Rocky, the title character is in a boxing match against his rival, Apollo Creed. Even though he gets knocked down, Rocky gets back up and continues the fight, and he finishes the fight with his head held high. Pastor Jeff reminds you today that the difficult trials you face now are helping you build the endurance to face stronger challenges later on. If you're still standing, still breathing, and still praising God, the outcome of your trial doesn't matter! You are victorious in Christ!

I remember seeing a viral video of a grocery store whose entire computer system went down. Instead of sending all of the customers home without their groceries, the manager informed the customers in the store that their groceries would be given free of charge. They couldn't have paid for their groceries, even if they wanted to! Now, your salvation isn't given to you by some cosmic glitch, but Pastor Jeff teaches you today that it is given to you as a free gift, and you cannot earn it by any other means.

There's always going to be someone trying to buy their way into Heaven. They think that if they just give enough money and say enough prayers, Jesus will accept them into His heavenly family.  But Pastor Jeff is here today to remind you that none of those religious rites can earn Jesus' gift of forgiveness! The Bible teaches that salvation only comes by grace through faith. Salvation is a gift, and the only thing you have to do to receive it is to allow Jesus into your heart and enter into a relationship with Him! 

In Old Testament times, the only way to receive atonement for your sins was to sacrifice an animal. The shedding of its blood was sufficient to atone for your sin, but only until the next time you sinned. God knew that this was an imperfect system, so He sent His only Son, Jesus, to be a perfect sacrifice! Pastor Jeff reminds you today that Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of the Old Testament traditions, and His atonement isn't temporary. It brings you forgiveness for the sins of your past, present, and future.

Have you ever thought about how much work went into designing spacecraft and spacesuits? Outer space is in a vacuum, completely devoid of air, and mankind has developed ways to sustain human life in the most hostile of environments. Well, Pastor Jeff teaches you today that the Holy Spirit acts like a spacesuit to sustain you in the valleys that you face in this life. Without His protection, you wouldn't even be able to breathe! But with the Spirit's covering, you can thrive in the wilderness.

Have you ever met someone with a one-track mind? Once they've settled on a task, they will not stop until they see it to completion. Well, even though this trait can be a sign of stubbornness, it can also be a virtue to be admired! In today's message, Pastor Jeff teaches about the valley of Baca and how it represents the sorrow that we will face in this life. But instead of being paralyzed by it, we are to fix our eyes on Jesus and treat sorrow as an obstacle that we have already overcome.

Sometimes it feels good to receive a little bit of recognition! After all, you've been working hard, and it's about time something went your way. But in today's message, Pastor Jeff warns you against people who compliment you with ulterior motives in mind. A good spiritual leader is someone who will challenge you just as much as they build you up. Showering someone with praise without challenging them to reach higher can be an unhealthy practice if it encourages them to become stagnant in their faith.

Every action you take in this life makes a deposit in your Heavenly savings account. You can build up an account full of sinful actions, but eventually, you will have to answer for the balance when you face God on the day of final judgement. But Pastor Jeff reminds you today that if you build a savings account full of good and Godly deeds, the Lord will look on you with favor! The Bible reminds you that the things you sow in this life will one day be reaped. Are you planting good seeds today?

Have you ever watched Pinocchio? In that movie, Jiminy Cricket is tasked with becoming the titular puppet's conscience, reminding him of right and wrong. But, spoiler alert, Pinocchio eventually chooses to ignore Jiminy Cricket, and he eventually faces consequences for his sins. Well, Pastor Jeff isn't trying to make you picture your conscience as a cricket in a top hat! But he does teach you today that when you ignore your conscience, its voice will become more and more muted in your mind.

It's much easier to do evil than it is to do good! After all, our selfish impulses are usually our first ones, especially if we didn't grow up with self-control or discipline. That's why Pastor Jeff reminds us today that the good works we do cannot earn our salvation, but they can be indicators of the transforming work of the Holy Spirit inside of our souls! We're reminded that when we follow after God, we're prompted by the Holy Spirit to set aside the desires of our flesh, and to instead do good works for His Glory.

Walking in righteousness is like painting something with spray paint. No matter how hard you try to stay within the lines, you will probably get some paint on other surfaces that you weren't trying to paint. But Pastor Jeff reminds you today that when you drift outside of those lines, you're supposed to course correct and get back on the right path! When you're following God, you shouldn't mistake His mercy for an endorsement of your sinful behavior. Instead, His grace is meant to drive you to repentance.

There is an ancient Japanese pottery technique called kintsugi, where a potter will take a chipped or shattered piece of ceramic and repair it using precious metals instead of simple lacquer. The repaired piece doesn't hide its imperfections; instead, they are highlighted in gold, silver, and platinum. In today's message, Pastor Jeff encourages you by reminding you that God has a plan for you, even when you're stuck in a dark valley. He can take that broken time in your past, and turn it into a symbol of hope! 

I'm sure you can think of a time when you've felt isolated from God because of your sinful behavior. Despite our best efforts, we as humans are prone to giving in to the desires of our flesh from time to time. But Pastor Jeff is here to remind us today that that separation isn't permanent. All that God asks of us is to repent of our sin and turn back to Him. Even if we are walking through a difficult valley, God will be faithful to turn that darkness into a wellspring of hope when we return to His loving arms! 

What is something that you worship in this life besides God? Some of us worship our favorite musical artists, our favorite sports teams, or even our favorite hobbies. Honestly, anything that can be worshipped has the potential to get between us and God. Pastor Jeff reminds us today that we will end up worshipping something. We can worship God, our Heavenly Father and the Creator of the universe, or we can worship the things of this world that will inevitably turn to dust. 

Psalm 19 says, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” God has left His fingerprints all throughout this world He created, and the wondrous things we see in this world point towards His divine purpose. Pastor Jeff teaches you today that God has revealed Himself to humanity through creation, but that alone cannot bring you into a relationship with Him. Creation can point you in the right direction, but you must choose to answer His call.

Did you know that you have the tools to save someone's life? Pastor Jeff reminds you today that the Gospel is a message of good news for all people, and it is literally a matter of life and death! It's your responsibility to share the Good News with people who need to hear it, without worrying about the consequences you may face in this world. Have courage, because this world cannot take away your salvation or compromise your relationship with Jesus if you are obedient to Him! 

When a home inspector is preparing a report on a home, they will check for signs of rot or water damage that warn of a huge problem! You can cover up small stains with paint, but they will only cover over the deeper problem. In this message, Pastor Jeff teaches you that sin is an evil form of rot, and it works its way into the core of your soul. The sacrifices of the Old Testament were only able to cover the stain of sin, but the blood of Jesus can fully cleanse and restore what has been corrupted by sin.

When you rent a car, you are expected to return it in the same condition it was in when you rented it. That means you shouldn't leave trash behind, and any scratches or dings on the body of the car may be held against you. Pastor Jeff teaches you today that you are also technically a rental! Your entire being belongs to God, and that includes your physical body! By taking care of your body and not corrupting it with unhealthy substances and habits, you bring glory to your Father in Heaven!

Before we came to know Jesus, our default human nature tended to be more selfish. Sure, we might have moments of sympathy and compassion, but our first impulses are usually to serve our own interests first. Well, Pastor Jeff is going to teach us today that when we come to know Jesus, we become filled with the same compassion that He has for us. Now we are able to share the love that Jesus first shared with us. Even the hardest and most stubborn of hearts are softened by His compassion.

In order to make pure gold, a refiner will heat impure gold, or gold ore mined from underground, to extremely high temperatures, and then use a chemical process to make those impurities float to the surface so that they can be scraped away. In today's message, Pastor Jeff teaches you that God doesn't put you through storms and trials to punish you for your sins. Instead, that difficult process is intended to strengthen you and to produce a purer faith. The Lord wants to make you stronger!

Throughout the Bible, God has judged people for their sinful ways. He has used floods, fire, brimstone, and earthquakes to cast down those who stand in defiance against His authority. But Pastor Jeff reminds us today that God will cast one final judgment on the Earth during the last days, and the things of this world that don't glorify Him will be destroyed and reduced to dust. If we don't follow the Lord, we risk getting cast aside in that final judgment, and losing out on His presence forever.

In my adult life, I've learned to be grateful for the discipline I received not just from my parents, but from other leaders and mentors who were placed over me. While I may not have enjoyed being disciplined, even when I knew I had done something wrong, that discipline made me into a better person today. Pastor Jeff reminds us today that the Lord also subjects us to discipline because the constant refinement that takes place in our souls will make us into better reflections of Christ in this world.

The next time you watch a tightrope walker, take a second to notice where their eyes are. They're not looking down at the view below them, or at other things in their surroundings. They have their eyes set on the other side of the tightrope because that is how they maintain their focus on the task at hand. In today's message, Pastor Jeff reminds you that this life is like a very long tightrope that all of us are walking on. If we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, we won't be distracted by the things of this world.

In 1873, Horatio Spafford wrote the words to the hymn, It Is Well With My Soul, in response to a tragedy that resulted in the death of his four daughters as they journeyed across the sea to England. Even though he was a faithful man, Spafford faced great tragedy! In today's message, Pastor Jeff reminds you that your faithfulness to God doesn't make you immune from difficult situations in this world. But your faithful attitude enables you to seek Jesus in your trial, so that you don't get lost in the waves.

Abraham Lincoln's presidency was defined by his leadership of the Northern states during the Civil War. But five days after the Confederate generals surrendered, President Lincoln was assassinated. He didn't get to see the states reunited, but that doesn't mean that his leadership wasn't worth it! In today's message, Pastor Jeff tells you that the heroes of the faith did not live to see all of God's promises fulfilled. But He still used them to do great things in this world for centuries to come!

When we get into an emergency situation, we know that the first number to call should be 911. The longer we wait, the longer it will be before help arrives. Well, in today's message, Pastor Jeff reminds us that the same thing happens when we face a storm in this life. God is ready to guide us through the storm, but we need to keep our focus on Him to make it through. The sooner we can fix our eyes on Him, the sooner we can get out of the troubled waters. God is always ready to guide us to safety.