Podcasts about Savior

In the wake of national tragedy, God has ensured the Gospel will continue to go forward—using Charlie Kirk's assassination as a catalyst for renewal. Earlier this month, my dad—Franklin Graham—challenged those gathered at the annual Samaritan's Purse Prescription for Renewal Conference to boldly preach the Gospel, just as Charlie did. Today on Fearless we're bringing you his full talk from the medical missions conference—an encouragement for believers to be bold in standing for the Gospel during these pivotal times. My dad opened his message by highlighting Secretary of State Marco Rubio's call to salvation for all those gathered at (and the millions watching online) Charlie Kirk's memorial a few weeks ago. Senator Rubio's willingness to be so bold in his faith was incredible to watch, and should embolden us to do the same. My dad also shared pieces of his own testimony, plus stories working in the field with Samaritan's Purse—from our COVID-19 response in New York City to preparing to enter Gaza with lifesaving aid. Through it all, his message is clear: We no longer have a choice when it comes to proclaiming Jesus as Savior—now is the time to fearlessly preach what we believe, to everyone we meet. 

Reach Out: Please include your email and I will get back to you. Thanks!Good morning! Thank you for taking a few minutes to listen. If you are interested in the Daily Bible Devotional, you can find it at the links below:Amazon - (paperback, hardcover, and Kindle)YouTube Video Introducing the ContentFeel free to reach out with any questions: emersonk78@me.comPhilemonIn the letter to Philemon, Paul writes on behalf of Onesimus, a runaway slave who has become a believer while Paul is in prison. Paul appeals to Philemon not as an apostle demanding obedience, but as a brother in Christ urging love. He asks Philemon to receive Onesimus back not merely as a slave, but as a beloved brother. Paul offers to repay any debt Onesimus owes, reminding Philemon of the spiritual debt he owes Paul. The letter models Christian forgiveness, reconciliation, and the transforming power of the gospel in relationships. Paul expresses confidence that Philemon will do even more than he asks, showing trust in his character and receiving encouragement from his actions. The letter ends with greetings from fellow believers and a blessing of grace to Philemon. Philemon challenges us to see people through the lens of the gospel. We are not defined by our past roles, failures, or status. In Christ, we are family. We must forgive as we have been forgiven. Reconciliation is not always easy, but it reflects the heart of God. We are reminded that love must lead our decisions, even when justice feels complicated. Paul models how to be a helpful advocate between others. We are invited to do the same: to stand in the gap for others, to restore relationships, and to live out the unity we claim to believe. This short letter challenges us that the gospel changes how we see others and how we respond in moments of conflict. Forgiving Father, we thank You for the astounding grace that restores and the abiding love that reconciles. Teach us to see others not by their past, but by their place in Your family. Please help us to forgive as we have been forgiven. When conflict arises, help us develop the humility to seek peace and the courage to extend grace. Show us how to love beyond obligation, and to act with compassion even when it is difficult. Let the gospel shape our relationships and heal what is broken. May our words and actions reflect the mercy You have shown us. Thought Questions: Are there any relationships in your life where God calls you to pursue reconciliation rather than remain divided? How should you proceed? Why is a mediator sometimes valuable in relationship rebuilding? Who could be useful in helping you mend a strained relationship in your life?  How must the gospel and God's grace shape how you see others, especially those who are fellow followers of Jesus Christ?

Send Us Your Prayer Requests --------Thank you for listening! Your support of Joni and Friends helps make this show possible. Joni and Friends envisions a world where every person with a disability finds hope, dignity, and their place in the body of Christ. Become part of the global movement today at www.joniandfriends.org. Find more encouragement on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube.

Any attempts at finding joy, satisfaction, and fulfillment apart from God always leave us empty. Yes, there may be temporary moments of happiness and perceived satisfaction, but it is never lasting. Millions of people can testify that they never knew real joy until they knew Jesus as Savior and Lord.Main Points:1. As real as our physical hunger is, we have another type of hunger that is just as real. It's spiritual hunger. There is an emptiness that we will attempt to satisfy. Often, we will not recognize that this hunger is spiritual in nature.2. There is satisfaction found in Christ that cannot be found elsewhere. The sweetness of God's presence, the richness of His grace, and the fellowship with the Holy Spirit bring us to a place of being complete in God. There is no lack. Our needs are being met. Our hearts are full of joy, and our lives are at peace with God.3. Jesus did not simply die and rise again so we could gain Heaven. He gave His all so that we could know him and live in a relationship with the living God. It is in this pursuit of knowing and serving God that we find fulfillment.Today's Scripture Verses:Psalm 37:4 - “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”John 6:35 - “Jesus said to them, 'I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”Psalm 63:1-5 - “You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water.  I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory.  Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.  I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.”Quick Links:Donate to support this podcastLeave a review on Apple PodcastsGet a copy of The 5 Minute Discipleship JournalConnect on SocialJoin The 5 Minute Discipleship Facebook Group

“Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again—my Savior and my God!” (Psalm 42:5–6 NLT) The Christian life is full of difficult questions. Many of them begin with “Why, Lord?” or some variation thereof. The Old Testament prophet Habakkuk asked, “How long, O Lord, must I call for help? But you do not listen! ‘Violence is everywhere!’ I cry, but you do not come to save. Must I forever see these evil deeds? Why must I watch all this misery? Wherever I look, I see destruction and violence. I am surrounded by people who love to argue and fight” (Habakkuk 1:2–3 NLT). The psalmist Asaph asked, “Has the Lord rejected me forever? Will he never again be kind to me? Is his unfailing love gone forever? Have his promises permanently failed? Has God forgotten to be gracious? Has he slammed the door on his compassion?” (Psalm 77:7–9 NLT). I have my questions for God that I’ve asked many times. I’m sure that you have yours, too. But we must see these questions for what they are: temporary sources of pain, discouragement, or confusion. The apostle Paul wrote, “Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely” (1 Corinthians 13:12 NLT). Our earthly perspective and understanding are limited. All our questions will be answered someday. God answered Habakkuk. “Look around at the nations; look and be amazed! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it” (Habakkuk 1:5 NLT). And passages such as Ecclesiastes 3 give us context for our questions. “For everything there is a season, a time for every activity under heaven. . . . A time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance” (verses 1, 4 NLT). A well-lived life is one in which we keep our questions in proper perspective. One in which we refuse to allow them to cause bitterness or resentment toward God—or to live “out of season,” in the context of Ecclesiastes 3. In 2 Corinthians 12, Paul recounts praying for God to remove a “thorn” in his flesh—some kind of affliction that caused him difficulties. God chose not to. Paul didn’t understand why, but he didn’t let it slow him down. A well-lived life is one that embraces the challenge of faith—that is, trusting God without having all the answers. A well-lived life is one in which we cling to the words of the psalmist in Psalm 42:5–6: “Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again—my Savior and my God!” (NLT). Reflection question: What will you do with your unanswered questions for God? Discuss Today's Devo in Harvest Discipleship! — The audio production of the podcast "Daily Devotions from Greg Laurie" utilizes Generative AI technology. This allows us to deliver consistent, high-quality content while preserving Harvest's mission to "know God and make Him known."All devotional content is written and owned by Pastor Greg Laurie. Listen to the Greg Laurie Podcast Become a Harvest PartnerSupport the show: https://harvest.org/supportSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There are some things that are just tough to advertise - like things people need but don't want to think about. Like insurance to pay your funeral expenses some day. Well, a local insurance agency gave it a good try in the newspaper ad they ran. In bold letters it said, "FINAL PAYMENT." It went on to make a case for doing something now to take care of the last obligation of your life. Of course, that ad had a serious inaccuracy. I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Your Bill With God." According to the Bible, there is still one more bill to pay after the funeral. It's the payment for all those me-first life choices that the Bible calls "sin." In God's words, "Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment" (Hebrews 9:27). The payment for running our own lives is an eternal payment. But like that final payment for your funeral expenses, you can do something now to take care of that awful obligation once and for all. Our word for today from the Word of God comes from 2 Thessalonians 1:8-9, and it graphically explains the terrible final payment for sin, and it suggests the way to remove it. These are sobering words from the One who will be your Judge and mine. It says, "The Lord Jesus will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the Gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of His power." Everlasting destruction - shut out from God's presence. I know we don't like the idea of hell, but it doesn't change the reality of it. If you don't have life forever, there's just one alternative-living death forever. But that's not what God wants for you. It's not what He wants for anyone. He says in the Bible, "This is how God showed His love among us: He sent His one and only Son into the world that we might live through Him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins" (1 John 4:9-10). In other words, God loves you so much that He sent His Son to take on all the punishment for every sin you have ever done. Your final payment was paid by Jesus Christ on His cross! That's the "Gospel," the good news. God said the ones who would never see Him (never see heaven) are those who "do not obey the Gospel (the good news) of our Lord Jesus." That Gospel calls upon us to grab Jesus as our Savior like a drowning person would grab a lifeguard to save them. That's why the Bible bottom lines the most important decision you will ever make in these words, "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved." That's "believe" as in totally trusting Him as your only hope for having your sins forgiven, for going to heaven someday. Have you ever consciously given yourself to Jesus to be your Savior from your sins? If not, does it make any sense to wait any longer? Not when eternity's at stake, and eternity can begin any time. If you want to trust Jesus as your rescuer from your sin and from its penalty - the One who died for you - would you tell Him you're His from this day on - that you're pinning all your hopes on Him to forgive your sins and to guarantee you eternal life someday? Only He can rescue you. That's why we've really dedicated our website to helping you know and be sure that you have begun this life-saving relationship. It's ANewStory.com. Please go there today. The final payment is one God doesn't want you to pay. He sent His Son to pay it for you. But He leaves the choice in your hands, and that choice will determine your eternity.

Savior, you not only see me, but you know who I was always meant to be.  Keywords: Faith; miracle; Matthew; called; home; disciple.Scripture: Matthew 9:9 Visit www.tsuzanneeller.com/books to find my book, Come With Me: Discovering the Beauty of Following Where He Leads AND a free small group video study/guide

Welcome to the Christmas series! Underneath the starlit sky, surrounded by hay and animal filth, the Savior of the World and Hope of Heaven is born. The climax of creation and crescendo of the cosmos takes place in the most humble of contexts.  Sign up for special devotionals at StoriesoftheMessiah.com. As we dive deeply into iconic Bible heroes' enthralling narratives, we find more than just stories of faith and miracles. We discover a recurrent theme, a spiritual undertone that connects each tale to the grandeur of the Gospel. They're not just standalone legends; they're threads in a divine tapestry, weaving a story that foreshadows Jesus Christ, the ultimate hero, the promised Messiah who brings light to the darkest corners of history. For more Bible stories download the Pray.com app.  To learn more about Rabbi Schneider visit https://discoveringthejewishjesus.com/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As we spend these weeks reflecting on The Mysteries of the Rosary, it is helpful to begin with something so familiar that we rarely stop to ponder it . . . the very names of the sets of mysteries themselves. Each conference will center on these sacred mysteries, inviting us to notice how the Church, in her wisdom, presents them to us in a particular and meaningful way. Join us for three Conferences offering prayerful reflection and fresh insights into The Mysteries of the Rosary, deepening our understanding of this treasured devotion. ------------------------------------------------------------------- Meditations on the Mysteries of the Rosary The Joyful Mysteries: The Heartbeat of the Rosary As we reflect over these three conferences . . . three weeks . . . on The Mysteries of the Rosary, it's important to begin with something obvious that we seldom simply pause and consider in itself, and that is the names of the sets of mysteries. Today we are focusing on the Joyful Mysteries, and it's important to recognize that in giving these five mysteries, this particular name as a set, the Catholic tradition is presenting them to us in a certain way. The Joyful Mysteries remind us that our faith begins with joy . . . the joy that the Savior has come. At the heart of the Rosary is the Hail Mary, not a prayer written by man, but a heavenly greeting that began salvation history: “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.” Every mystery rests on this divine message. The Rosary starts with The Mystery of the Annunciation . . . the Incarnation . . . the moment the Word became flesh in Mary's womb . . . containing within it all of Christ's life, death, and resurrection. When We ray the Rosary, We do so with Mary When we pray the Rosary, we do so with Mary, who helps us understand and treasure the mysteries of her Son. Her humility in the Annunciation leads to charity in the Visitation, where she “sets out in haste” to serve Elizabeth. There, joy overflows: the unborn John the Baptist leaps, Elizabeth rejoices, and Mary sings her Magnificat, the Church's first hymn of praise. These mysteries invite us to share Mary's joy, humility, and love as we draw closer to Jesus through her. Listen to this Meditation Media. Listen to The Joyful Mysteries: The Heartbeat of the Rosary ------------------------------------------------------------------- Art Work Madonna of the Rosary: Spanish artist: Esteban Murillo: 1650

Dr. David Holland examines Doctrine and Covenants 121-123, exploring how persecution and personal choice distinguish  between being called and being chosen.SHOW NOTES/TRANSCRIPTS English: https://tinyurl.com/podcastDC243EN French: https://tinyurl.com/podcastDC243FR German: https://tinyurl.com/podcastDC243DE Portuguese: https://tinyurl.com/podcastDC243PT Spanish: https://tinyurl.com/podcastDC243ESYOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/zcGqYwKkYCsALL EPISODES/SHOW NOTESfollowHIM website: https://www.followHIM.co2021 Episode Doctrine & Covenants 121-123 Part 2https://youtu.be/tOESaKomzPI2021 Episode Doctrine & Covenants 121-123 Part 3https://youtu.be/Ynp-cNSCk4sFREE PDF DOWNLOADS OF followHIM QUOTE BOOKSNew Testament: https://tinyurl.com/PodcastNTBookOld Testament: https://tinyurl.com/PodcastOTBookBook of Mormon: https://tinyurl.com/PodcastBMBook  WEEKLY NEWSLETTER https://tinyurl.com/followHIMnewsletter  SOCIAL MEDIA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/followHIMpodcast Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/followhimpodcastTIMECODE:00:00 Part 2 - Dr. David Holland02:58 Does God have favorites? 06:48 Rats love Oreos09:49 Unrighteous dominion12:29 Section 121 is like an accordion16:28 If God is repeating Himself–pay attention!19:13 The Savior has descended below22:34 Some are kept from the truth26:08 Religious persecution the early 19th century30:19 Joseph's statement about religious freedom36:23 Head into the wave38:36 The power of being cheerful40:58 Being a billboard for the gospel45:41 Dr. Holland shares his testimony of the Savior and His Restoration51:31  End of Part 2 - Dr. David HollandThanks to the followHIM team:Steve & Shannon Sorensen: Cofounder, Executive Producer, SponsorDavid & Verla Sorensen: SponsorsDr. Hank Smith: Co-hostJohn Bytheway: Co-hostDavid Perry: ProducerKyle Nelson: Marketing, SponsorLisa Spice: Client Relations, Editor, Show NotesWill Stoughton: Video EditorKrystal Roberts: Translation Team, English & French Transcripts, WebsiteAriel Cuadra: Spanish TranscriptsAmelia Kabwika: Portuguese TranscriptsHeather Barlow: Communications DirectorSydney Smith: Social Media, Graphic Design "Let Zion in Her Beauty Rise" by Marshall McDonaldhttps://www.marshallmcdonaldmusic.com

We always hear that pioneer stories exist all around the world but on this week's episode we are thrilled to share the awe-inspiring true story of Gurcharan Singh Gill, the first Latter-day Saint convert to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from the Sikh faith. Born in India, Gill's search for truth led him to a stake conference in the United States—a moment that would forever change his life and the lives of generations to come. 2:10- A Brief Intro to the Sikh Faith 6:40- “Gill” 10:50- Similarities and Differences 16:36- Where Did We Come From and Where Do We Go? 24:44- The Bonds of the Gospel 28:28- The Message of a Savior 31:45- Patriarchal Blessing 39:49- A Love Story 51:30- Lifelong Conversion 1:00:36- Honoring Heritage 1:09:22- What Does It Mean To Be All In the Gospel of Jesus Christ? “The whole story is a lesson to me about the beauty of simplicity of the gospel and the importance of trusting in inspiration. We don't have to figure out everything intellectually…sometimes there is no grand secret.” Links:  Latter-day Sikh

It's Witness Wednesday! In this episode of Wretched Radio, Todd Friel, Todd interviews a student named William at Kennesaw State University. William, a political science major and Marine, engages in a thought-provoking conversation about his faith, value system, and the significance of the gospel of Jesus Christ. The discussion explores theological beliefs, the nature of God, human sinfulness, and salvation. Segment 1 • William describes his background, military service, and vague belief in "God and country." • Todd challenges William's notion of subjective truth. • William identifies as a Christian but admits to being unsure of the gospel and distant from church. Segment 2 • Todd presses William to articulate the gospel; William fumbles, focusing on general morality and Jesus' teachings. • Todd walks him through God's justice, sin, and the necessity of a Savior—not just moral improvement. • William acknowledges the significance but admits he rarely thinks about spiritual matters. Segment 3 • Todd walks through God's standard of holiness, exposing sin through thought life and the Ten Commandments. • William admits guilt and agrees he'd deserve punishment if judged by God's standards. • Todd explains penal substitution: Jesus took the wrath William deserves so he could be declared righteous. Segment 4 – What Does It Mean to Be Born Again? • Todd clarifies being born again: not baptism, but spiritual rebirth through repentance and faith. • William expresses openness but says he needs time; Todd warns delay is dangerous and urges urgent repentance. • Todd challenges William to respond to the gospel—not just ponder it. ___ Thanks for listening! Wretched Radio would not be possible without the financial support of our Gospel Partners. If you would like to support Wretched Radio we would be extremely grateful. VISIT https://fortisinstitute.org/donate/ If you are already a Gospel Partner we couldn't be more thankful for you if we tried!

Reach Out: Please include your email and I will get back to you. Thanks!Good morning! Thank you for taking a few minutes to listen. If you are interested in the Daily Bible Devotional, you can find it at the links below:Amazon - (paperback, hardcover, and Kindle)YouTube Video Introducing the ContentFeel free to reach out with any questions: emersonk78@me.comTitus 3Believers are reminded to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, and to be ready for every good work. Paul encourages gentleness, peace, and humility toward all people. Paul then reminds Titus of their past, how they were once foolish and disobedient, but emphasizes the kindness and mercy of God, who saved them not by works but through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. Justified by grace, believers are called to devote themselves to doing what is good. Paul warns against foolish controversies and divisive individuals who reject correction. These people are to be rejected. The letter closes with personal instructions and a call for believers to be productive and to meet urgent needs, ensuring that their lives reflect the fruit of grace. We were once lost, ruled by pride, anger, and selfish desires. We remember this not to shame ourselves, but to remain humble. God saved us through His astounding mercy. He washed us clean. He gave us new life through the Holy Spirit. We did nothing to earn it. We now live differently. We speak with kindness, choosing peace over arguments and divisive impulses. We pursue what is good, caring for others with urgency. We meet needs without delay, showing the world what grace has done in us. We remain devoted to good works, reflecting the goodness of God not only in belief but in action. We live purposefully, expecting others to be loving unifiers, because we have all been changed. Ever-present God, thank You for saving us, not because of what we have done, but because of who You are. Your kindness changed everything. You washed us clean. You gave us new life through the Holy Spirit. Help us to live in a way that honors that mercy. Teach us to speak with grace, to act with compassion, and to pursue what is good. Keep us from arguments that divide and distractions that weaken our identity in Jesus Christ. Let our lives reflect the beauty of Your grace and Your powerful renewal. May good works flow from hearts transformed by You. Thought Questions: How does your attitude toward the governing authorities and powerful entities show others the value of Jesus and His kingdom in your life?  Has the Holy Spirit renewed you, and has He been poured upon you richly through Jesus Christ? How will your life show this beautiful truth? Do Christians sometimes dispute and divide in ways that displease Jesus? How do you handle disagreements to ensure unity and love endure? 

Will Pokemon save us from the Ai? Stormgate, you remember Stormgate right? Tim Morten had a rather honest rundown of where he feels the post-Blizzard design team went wrong and brings up the changing landscape of Venture Capital. The episode can't help but get real on the eve of Pokemon's release. Love em or hate em, Nintendo is about to drop another massive Poke'drama'pocalypse into the world as reviews come in around 8/10. Xbox continues its cursed run by talking about an upcoming “ad supported” tier of Xbox Game Pass. We're both playing Megabonk. Emails and more.

In honor of Joni's birthday, join us in spreading the Gospel around the world to people with disabilities who really need the hope of Christ. Help us celebrate here! --------Thank you for listening! Your support of Joni and Friends helps make this show possible. Joni and Friends envisions a world where every person with a disability finds hope, dignity, and their place in the body of Christ. Become part of the global movement today at www.joniandfriends.org. Find more encouragement on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube.

This episode invites us to reconsider our understanding of salvation as we sit with the words we find in 1 John 2:1-2.Got Bible questions? You can still leave a voicemail at 305-290-1190! We may even put you in the show

Send us a textIn this episode of the Latter-Day Ladies Podcast, I share how the hardest parts of our journey can become sacred trails that lead others back to Christ.It's about a dear friend who, even through deep health challenges and infertility, chose love and compassion—and showed me that Christ can use every struggle to bless others.

Elder Ricardo P. Giménez shares how the Savior has become his source of motivation. https://speeches.byu.edu/talks/ricardo-p-gimenez/my-why-is-my-love-for-the-savior/

In a world shadowed by tragedy, violence, and loss, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed by darkness. As our daily prayer and devotional remind us, when natural disasters, injustice, or senseless suffering fill the news, we can begin to wonder what difference one person can make. Yet Scripture reminds us that even in the darkest seasons, God’s people are called to shine His light. Sophia Bricker reflects on recent real-world tragedies like the flooding from Hurricane Helene, where devastation and hope existed side by side. Amid heartbreak, volunteers, ministries, and churches showed up—feeding, clothing, and comforting those in need. Their acts of love became living testimonies of God’s presence amid pain. Jesus calls us to be like lamps set on a hill (Matthew 5:16), shining brightly for all to see. Our faith is not meant to be hidden but lived out through compassionate action, forgiveness, and sacrificial love. When we live honorably among others—especially in times of crisis—we reveal the heart of our Savior. Even when the world mocks or misunderstands us, our lives can testify to the hope and peace found only in Christ. Being a witness amid the shadows means being willing to enter the hard places, to sit with the hurting, to forgive those who offend, and to love those who seem unlovable. This is how the light of Christ pushes back the darkness—through ordinary believers who let their faith shine through daily acts of obedience and grace. Today's Bible Verse: "Be careful to live properly among your unbelieving neighbors. Then even if they accuse you of doing wrong, they will see your honorable behavior, and they will give honor to God when he judges the world.” – 1 Peter 2:12, NLT Key Takeaways Our actions and attitudes can draw others to Christ, even when our words fall short. True light shines brightest in dark places—times of crisis often reveal God’s people at work. Living honorably and loving sacrificially are powerful testimonies of the gospel. Every good work and every act of compassion points back to Jesus, the Light of the World. Let’s Pray Together Lord of all, You see the brokenness and sorrow in our world. Thank You for sending Jesus, the Light who drives out all darkness. Help me to reflect Your love and compassion to others, even when it’s hard. Teach me to serve selflessly, to love deeply, and to walk in Your ways so that others might see You through my life. Let my light shine brightly for Your glory until the day You make all things new. In Jesus’ name, Amen. Related Resources How to Be a Light in a Dark World – Crosswalk.com What It Means to Live as a Witness for Christ – BibleStudyTools.com Explore more devotionals like this on Your Daily Prayer. Discover more Christian podcasts at lifeaudio.com and inquire about advertising opportunities at lifeaudio.com/contact-us.

The REAL Reason ONLY 5 Jobs Will EXIST in 24 Months and Trump Goes for Payback Artificial Intelligence could end humanity and take away nearly every job. Dr Roman Yampolskiy, one of the world's leading experts on AI safety, explains why AGI could arrive as soon as 2027, why 99% of jobs could disappear, and why governments are completely unprepared for what comes next. Dr Yampolskiy warns that AI will not only cause mass unemployment but could also bring about a humanity-level collapse. From the singularity to superintelligence, he reveals why we may be facing the last invention humans will ever make, and why simply “turning off AI” is not an option. Discover: • Why AGI could arrive by 2027 and what that means for the world • How AI could take 99% of jobs, leaving no plan B for workers • Why retraining will not save us in a world of superintelligence • The terrifying truth about why AI cannot just be unplugged • What the singularity is and why it means the future is unpredictable • Why AI could become the last invention humanity ever makes Watch this clip at- https://youtu.be/FRUTFGtPeVc?si=pfJpT7Oea0dcCciL The Diary Of A CEO Clips 1.54M subscribers 518,935 views Sep 9, 2025 #doac #thediaryofaceo

In the final part of Abide in His Love, we enter the hardest (and holiest) chapters of John's Gospel.John 18–21 takes us through betrayal, denial, suffering, death… and then, astonishingly, restoration and resurrection. It's the story of a Savior who steps into pain; not to avoid it, but to redeem it.Together with Beth and Steph, we'll uncover:How Jesus meets us in our darkest momentsWhy even failure (like Peter's) can become a doorway to missionThe hope embedded in every wound surrendered to ChristThe promise that pain is never the end of the storyIf you've felt weary, wounded, or waiting for redemption... this session is for you.Join us every Tuesday at 1pm ET in the BIS Member Community for The Weekly Visit!

Reach Out: Please include your email and I will get back to you. Thanks!Good morning! Thank you for taking a few minutes to listen. If you are interested in the Daily Bible Devotional, you can find it at the links below:Amazon - (paperback, hardcover, and Kindle)YouTube Video Introducing the ContentFeel free to reach out with any questions: emersonk78@me.comTitus 2 Titus is directed to teach sound doctrine and guide various groups within the church in how to live godly lives. Older men are to be temperate, worthy of respect, and self-controlled. Older women are to live reverently and train younger women to love their families and live pure, kind, and submissive lives. Young men are urged to be self-controlled, and Titus himself is called to be an example in integrity, seriousness, and sound speech. Slaves are instructed to be trustworthy and respectful, so that the teaching about God will be attractive to others. Paul reminds all believers that the grace of God has appeared with a tremendous promise of redemption and salvation, teaching disciples to say no to ungodliness and to live upright lives as we await Christ's return. Christians are reminded that sound teaching is not only about knowledge but also about how we live each day and reflect Jesus in relationships. We are part of a community where each generation matters, and we are responsible for guiding, encouraging, and modeling godliness for one another. Our conduct should reflect the grace we have received, showing the world a different way: one marked by self-control, love, and integrity. We do not live for ourselves alone; our words and actions shape how others see Christ. God's grace saves and purifies us, but also trains us in good works. As we wait for Christ's return, we must live purposefully, rejecting what is empty and clinging to what is good and eternal. Merciful Lord, we thank You for the grace that not only saves us but also teaches us how to live faithfully. Shape our hearts to value what is true and to walk in a way that honors You. Help us to be examples of love, purity, and self-control in every season of life. Let us guide one another with wisdom and humility, building a community that protects and edifies. Teach us to say no to what is empty and yes to what is holy. As we wait for Christ's return, may our lives be marked by gratitude and zeal.   Thought Questions: What are the “things which are fitting for sound doctrine” in this chapter? How is it focused on relationships and the treatment of others? Why is it important for younger and older Christians to spend time together? Is this intergenerational relationship-building important to you? How has the grace of God changed your life? What has God done for you, and what expectations does He have for your life in Christ?

Go to https://joniandfriends.org/volunteer/ to see how you can serve today! --------Thank you for listening! Your support of Joni and Friends helps make this show possible. Joni and Friends envisions a world where every person with a disability finds hope, dignity, and their place in the body of Christ. Become part of the global movement today at www.joniandfriends.org. Find more encouragement on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube.

Pastor Jim Scudder Jr. is senior pastor of Quentin Road Baptist Church in Lake Zurich, IL. He's an author and also is the speaker on the program InGrace which airs on WVCY Television, VCY.tv and on VCY America Radio. Pastor Scudder has a passion for souls and a desire to teach others about our Savior's love. He also has a special love for the nation of Israel and the Jewish people. For 738 days, people around the world had been praying for the release of the hostages, brutally taken by Hamas on October 7th, 2023. Then in Egypt yesterday, President Trump, along with world leaders from Egypt, Turkey and Qatar, signed the Gaza peace plan. This has resulted in 20 live hostages being returned along with the bodies of four deceased hostages, leaving another 24 behind. Listen and get details regarding the hostage release you won't get from mainstream media as Pastor Scudder, from Israel, discusses comments from the captors regarding President Trump and Kamala Harris, what he encountered at Hostage Square, the significance of Joy of Torah, Trump's quote of "peace forever," why Israel is a miracle nation and much more.

Years ago, I was at a youth conference where we needed to raise some money for a camp scholarship fund. So we challenged the kids to buy their counselor into this Friday night food fight. Well, the kids found the money alright pretty quickly! So, Friday night all of us leaders showed up on the field of battle with the campers watching like sadistic spectators at the Roman Coliseum. Now, for starters, we got hosed down so everything would cling to us. I have to tell you, in retrospect, I'm embarrassed about the food we wasted. But we did it, so I'll tell you about it. Round One was flour. The campers got their money's worth as we redecorated each other with this blizzard of flour, followed by eggs, then fudge sauce. Can you imagine this? Get the idea? The last round was the worst - lard. Yea, from our hair to our toes, we were totally gross by the end of this massacre. Our only satisfaction was at the end when we went after those kids and gave them a big, gooey hug. Yeah, it was great! I couldn't wait to get a shower, though. And I was there for a long time. Ever try to get lard off? Probably not. Well, I have never felt dirtier - but clean has never felt better! I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "Feeling Dirty, Getting Clean." If you've ever felt real dirty, you know how much you enjoyed that shower that made you clean again. If only there was a shower that could make us clean on the inside, where we carry the guilt, and the regrets, and the dirt of the things we wish we'd never done, or the things we should have done and we didn't do. Unfortunately, there's no medication, there's no therapist, not even a religion that seems powerful enough to remove the dirt on our soul. That's why our word for today from the Word of God is such good news. Acts 3:19 - "Repent and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord." Now look at this! All the sins of your life can be wiped out, erased from God's records forever. God says you can be clean - that you can have a new beginning. He is actually offering a cleansing spiritual shower for those who repent and turn to Him. That means you acknowledge the wrongness of what you've done and that you're ready to turn from your sin-choices and turn to Him for a new beginning. Look, we all have things we're ashamed of, things we're not proud of, things that make us afraid of what God will do when we meet Him on Judgment Day. According to the Bible, the sins of our life will, in fact, make it impossible for us to ever enter God's Heaven because there is no sin there. Our only hope is if somehow God will forgive a lifetime of choices that have left Him out. And there's only one place where a spiritual shower like that is available. It is at the cross of Jesus Christ, the place where every sin of yours was paid for. You carry all the garbage of your life up that hill, you give yourself in total trust to the One who paid for your sin on that cross with His life, and you leave your sin at that cross forever. You may have started this day guilty, but you could go to sleep forgiven tonight and finally clean. God's promise: "Everyone who believes in Jesus receives forgiveness of sins through His Name" (Acts 10:43). There is nothing you've done that is so bad that Jesus did not pay for it on the cross. Today could be the day you are finally clean. If you've never trusted Jesus to be your own Savior from your own sin, would you tell Him you're doing that right now? Your sins will be erased. He promised. And you'll never carry them again or face them when you meet God. And the only thing that would keep you from heaven can be gone today. We've put the information on how to begin with Jesus at our website. Please go there today. That's ANewStory.com. That day I felt so gross, it was an awesome feeling to stand in that shower and have all that accumulated junk get washed away. That's what Jesus wants to do for your heart, my friend. It is such an incredible feeling to be finally clean!

Change is an inevitable and sometimes difficult part of life. We can get the power to change, or to cope with it, from the Savior. Click here to see the speech page.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

EST-2019  ::Listen On::.  Youtube Music  Amazon Music  iHeart  Apple Podcast  SPOTIFY IGl @OurPodPage  IGl @_AshleyAngelina_ IG | @Kamaira.Est87   https://linktr.ee/CHRISTIANish This podcast serves as a platform for sharing personal Christian life experiences rather than providing formal theological instruction. While we affirm our belief in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, who died for our sins and was resurrected, the primary focus is on personal narratives. We hope you enjoy the program.

National Divorce, The ‘New Confederates', Trump Invokes INSURRECTION ACT. Victor Davis Hanson, Glenn Beck, Dr. Steve Turley Victor Davis Hanson: Meet the 'New Confederates' in America's Blue Cities Glenn Beck- The HORRIFIC TRUTH about "national divorce" BREAKING! Trump Invokes INSURRECTION ACT as Terrified Dems PANIC!!!- Steve Turley   Victor Davis Hanson: Meet the 'New Confederates' in America's Blue Cities Across the country, a new confederacy is rising—built not on states' rights, but on resistance to federal immigration law.  As cities like Portland, Los Angeles, and Chicago openly defy federal immigration laws, Victor Davis Hanson argues we're seeing the rise of a “neo-Confederate secessionist ideology” where local officials act as if they're above the law on today's episode of “Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words.” “Sometimes it's sponsored or encouraged by the Democratic Party: Gavin Newsom in California, our governor, or Karen Bass, the mayor of Los Angeles, openly calling for resistance, or Gov. Pritzker of Chicago. “What's really disturbing is we're starting to see a new—I would call it—a neo-Confederate successionist ideology in these cities. In these blue cities, the officials who run them, the mayors or the police chiefs, believe they are a law unto themselves. In other words, within the confines of Chicago or within the confines of Portland, they can nullify all federal laws, just in the way that South Carolina said it could on the eve of the Civil War: The Union does not apply to us. We are morally superior.” Watch this video at- https://youtu.be/G2-_Qn_F49U?si=PUbnHmpsnVjoHUop The Daily Signal 946K subscribers Oct 9, 2025

Reach Out: Please include your email and I will get back to you. Thanks!Good morning! Thank you for taking a few minutes to listen. If you are interested in the Daily Bible Devotional, you can find it at the links below:Amazon - (paperback, hardcover, and Kindle)YouTube Video Introducing the ContentFeel free to reach out with any questions: emersonk78@me.comTitus 1The apostle Paul opens his letter by identifying himself as a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, sent to build faith and knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness. He writes to Titus, his true son in the faith, and reminds him of his responsibility to appoint elders in every church. Paul outlines the qualifications for elders, emphasizing that they must be blameless, faithful to their families, self-controlled, upright, and devoted to sound doctrine. These leaders must be able to encourage with the truth and refute those who oppose it. Paul warns about rebellious people with defiled consciences, especially those spreading false teachings for dishonest gain. He instructs Titus to rebuke them sharply so that their faith may be sound and not corrupted by human commands. Leadership in the Lord's church is not about status or personality but character and conviction. We are all influenced by those who teach and lead, so we must be careful to follow those whose lives reflect the truth they speak. Elders are our spiritual examples and protectors. As members of the body of Christ, we also carry responsibility. We must live with integrity, speak with honesty, and be grounded in sound doctrine. We cannot ignore false teaching; we must respond with clarity, conviction, and grace. Whether we lead formally or simply by example, our lives should point others toward truth. We are called to uphold the gospel with both courage and humility, guarding the faith that has been entrusted to us. All-powerful Father, we thank You for the truth of the gospel and the calling to live lives that honor it. Help us to be people of integrity, consistent in our words and actions. Strengthen us to recognize what is false and to stand firm in what is sound. Guide those who lead among us to serve with humility, wisdom, and faithfulness. Teach us to reflect Christ in our homes, our communities, and our churches. May our character speak as clearly as our confession. Let us guard what is good, live without compromise, and be faithful stewards of the truth You have given. Thought Questions: Is it God's design for all local churches to have elders? What role can you play in helping a local church cultivate a strong eldership? How would you describe the character and abilities of an elder? How many of these qualities should you also be pursuing diligently? Describe the type of men who must be silenced in this chapter. How is their unsoundness about more than just getting scripture wrong?

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272. Pathway to Joy and Happiness in Parenting with Amy Rienow   Psalm 144:15b NKJV, "Happy are the people whose God is the Lord!"   *Transcription Below*   Questions and Topics We Cover: Will you share your story of God revealing a spirit of perfectionism was sneaking into motherhood? How can we recognize our own spirit of perfectionism and what can we do about it? What is one thing you've found every mom needs more of and how can we get it?   Thank You to Our Sponsor: MidwestFoodBank.org   Amy Rienow's first ministry is loving her husband and nurturing faith in their seven children. She and Rob founded and lead Visionary Family Ministries, a ministry created to equip parents, encourage couples, and help families live for Christ. She attended the University of Illinois, followed by Wheaton College Graduate School, where she earned her MA in Clinical Psychology. She is a licensed clinical professional counselor. Amy has her hands full as a mom, partnering with Rob, and serving in the women's and worship ministries at church.   Savvy Sauce Episodes Mentioned in Episode: Special Patreon Re-Release: Discipline that Disciples with Dr. Rob Rienow Five Love Languages with Dr. Gary Chapman 87 Visionary Parenting and Grand-Parenting with Dr. Rob Rienow 182 Things I Wish I'd Have Known Before My Child Became a Teenager with Dr. Gary Chapman 220 Cultivating Healthy Family Relationships with Dr. Gary Chapman 245 Stories Series: Miracles Big and Small with Dr. Rob Rienow 230 Intentional Parenting in All Stages with Dr. Rob Rienow   Connect with The Savvy Sauce on Facebook, Instagram or Our Website    Please help us out by sharing this episode with a friend, leaving a 5-star rating and review, and subscribing to this podcast!   Gospel Scripture: (all NIV)   Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”   Romans 3:24 “and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”   Romans 3:25 (a) “God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood.”    Hebrews 9:22 (b) “without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”    Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”    Romans 5:11 “Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”    John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”   Romans 10:9 “That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”    Luke 15:10 “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”   Romans 8:1 “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus”   Ephesians 1:13–14 “And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession- to the praise of his glory.”   Ephesians 1:15–23 “For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.”   Ephesians 2:8–10 “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God‘s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.“   Ephesians 2:13 “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ.“   Philippians 1:6 “being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”   *Transcription*   Music: (0:00 – 0:09)   Laura Dugger: (0:11 - 1:43) Welcome to The Savvy Sauce, where we have practical chats for intentional living. I'm your host, Laura Dugger, and I'm so glad you're here.   Thank you to an anonymous donor to Midwest Food Bank, who paid the sponsorship fee in hopes of spreading awareness.  Learn more about this amazing nonprofit organization at MidwestFoodBank.org.   I'm thrilled to get to introduce you to my inspiring guest for today, Amy Rienow. Now, that last name may sound familiar because Amy's husband, Dr. Rob Rienow, has been a previous guest multiple times, actually. So, I'll make sure and link his previous episodes in the show notes, along with other episodes that we recommend in this conversation.   Amy and Rob are founders of Visionary Family Ministries, and they are parents to seven children. Amy is also an author, podcaster, and she's practiced as a licensed clinical professional counselor in the past, so she's going to combine all of this experience together, and her wisdom just pours out as now she's going to seek to encourage us to seek the Lord and follow His guidance, especially as parents in our parenting journey. Here's our chat.   Welcome to The Savvy Sauce, Amy.   Amy Rienow: (1:44 - 1:51) Hi Laura. I'm so glad to do this with you. It's been a while since we've talked about it, and I'm excited to be here today.   Laura Dugger: (1:51 - 2:00) Well, I'm thrilled to have you join, and I'd love to just dive in and hear how did Jesus Christ become your personal Lord and Savior?   Amy Rienow: (2:01 - 3:39)  I love that you start with that question. I grew up in a home with a Christian mom and a non-Christian dad, but they had made an arrangement before they were even married. She did have the wisdom to ask her husband to give her the domain of that, like picking a church, and he was willing to go with us as a family to church, even though he was not a believer, and that was very clear.   But she led me to the Lord when I was about four years old, and I grew up going to church, and that was my first. I feel like I never kind of have a lot of memory of not knowing Jesus, but I would say that my faith increased and became even more my own. I feel like it was always my own, but in high school, I went on a missions trip to Mexico, and I will never forget the experience of being in a very poor town in Mexico, and there was this horrible storm coming in, and all of us Americans were afraid of the storm, and we ran into the church while the service kept going on, and literally none of the Mexican people that were outside in the service, the storm didn't faze them at all.   They just kept going on, and honestly, that was such a pivotal point in my life where I was like, that is the type of faith that I wanted to have. I mean, it really cemented. I feel like that's when the Holy Spirit just helped me to know that that's who I want to be.   I want to be a person of that kind of faith in the Lord that is not budging when the storms come.   Laura Dugger: (3:40 - 4:04) Love that. Thank you for sharing, and since that time, you've added some people to your family, so I'd love to get a snapshot of your family right now and then share some more about motherhood, specifically in one of your books you wrote about recognizing that you had a spirit of perfectionism. So, I'd love to hear more about that because I think it's very relatable.   Amy Rienow: (4:05 - 6:43) Well, my family right now, I've been married to my husband Rob for 30 years. I have seven children, R.W., Lissy, J.D., Lainey, Millie, Ray, and Rush.  And R.W. is turning 28 this year. He has one little boy.   His name is Cliff, so that's my grandbaby number three. My daughter Lissy is married to Bond, and she's about to have baby number three, so that will be my fourth grandbaby. She has Avey, Bondy, and then this little new one on the way. And then my son J.D. just got married to Brooke last summer, so that is exciting. We're thrilled, thrilled, thrilled to have Brooke in our family. Lainey is graduating from Olivet. She graduated in three years, which we're really proud of. Millie is a junior.   Ray is a freshman, and Rush is in fifth grade, and I still homeschool those three. They kind of do part-time at a Christian school here, and then I homeschool the rest of the time. So, that is my current family.   It's expanding. As you will find out when you get to the stage, expansions come very quickly, and it's exciting, exciting times. But about that spirit of perfectionism, actually, even before I became a mom, I was convicted of a spirit of perfectionism because I had always been very critical of myself.   I had a very critical spirit. Just I don't know if it was, you know, the peer pressure, what those components are. I'm a middle child, but I just tended to critique myself very harshly.   And after I was married, even about a year, the Lord showed me how, because of my husband and I were becoming one flesh, I was really turning that critical spirit onto him. But then there was a book called The Fly Lady. She is a home organization.   I think I mention it in my book, but that is when I really began to understand that I struggled with perfectionism, and that's often what kept me paralyzed. It often keep me with that, you know, I would say engaging with that critical spirit, communicating a lot of criticisms, whether it be to my children or to my husband. So, that was, you know, so it started early in marriage, but by the time I was well into motherhood, I was really starting to understand what this was. What the critical spirit was, and it really was a spirit of perfectionism.   Laura Dugger: (6:44 - 6:52) Well, and the Lord met you there, and there is a story that you share related to picture frames. Would you be willing to tell that?   Amy Rienow: (6:52 - 9:07) Yeah. So, my daughter, Lissy, was graduating from high school, and it was classic me. I was trying to like get this massive graduation party together, and I'm sort of a procrastinator and life is busy.   So, it's like we are, okay, I got to get this done before this big party, this big event, and had a friend who was a decorator to kind of give me an idea of what to do. And so, my husband and really the whole family was kind of working overtime to get everything ready for this big event. And he had helped my, we had this huge wall that had to be that my decorator friend suggested a gallery wall.   So, we had all of these pictures up and I was looking at it late at night, kind of exhausted. We're talking about past midnight and I know it wasn't just my husband helping. I had JD helping.   I don't remember where I was, but we were just all working hard to get this ready for this party. And I was laying there as past midnight looking at that wall and so frustrated, like so frustrated because all those pictures I kept looking at like, Oh, this is going to be a mess. Like they're all, they're not like, you know, they're not command stripped.   Right. And so they're all going to be, I just felt like, what have I done? It's looking crooked already.   And it was so frustrating to me. And that is when the Holy spirit completely convicted me with just like, Amy, you should be looking what's in those pictures and not whether they're crooked or not crooked. Like, first of all, like all the family has been helping me with this vision.   Right. And it's not really their vision. It's my vision.   They've all been supportive of me in front of me. It was a wall of all the memories of all these beautiful pictures. And here I was so focused on my right angles and having it look perfect for the crowd coming in at the graduation party, as opposed to what everything on that wall represented.   And so, it was a very convicting moment to me of just like, I have a choice. Am I going to embrace everything in those pictures and everything my family's done to help us get to this special day? Or am I going to come in and be fixated on how crooked those picture frames look to me right now?   Laura Dugger: (9:07 - 9:19)  Appreciate you sharing that. And I'm wondering for any parent, especially listening, if they find themselves identifying with that spirit of perfectionism, what can we do with that?   Amy Rienow: (9:20 - 11:11)  It's a challenging one because I think our culture promotes it. And I also think I'm on the flip side of the positive side of it. Let me just say, I believe there's a vision of perfect in our hearts because we were created for perfect.   We're created for heaven. And the Bible says that no eye has seen, no ear has heard, or no mind has even conceived what God has prepared for those who love him. So, there's this drive for perfect that I think is very good and right.   And so, we don't want to give up like excellence, or we don't want to give up that we have that drive. The problem is that the enemy, in fact, I've actually done more research on this. There's really can be a demonic spirit of perfectionism where we're trying to create heaven here.   We're trying to think in our own flesh and our own strength that we can take care of all of our sin, take care of all of our flaws. We can take care of our children's flaws. We can take care of our husband's flaws.   That is actually from the enemy in the sense that we believe in our own strength. And you can look at that through history. It's basically a form of humanism that we can fix everything in ourselves.   God makes it very clear in scripture that that is not possible. So, I think understanding this tension, that it's okay to want things to be wonderful, that's not bad. But what's bad is when we leave God out of the picture and we put this pressure on ourselves and on the people around us to accomplish what only can God can do.   And we don't accept God's timing. We don't have patience with who we are, our sinful nature and really put our trust in Christ and not in ourselves.   Laura Dugger: (11:12 - 12:56) Let's take a quick break to hear a message from our sponsor.   Midwest Food Bank exists to provide industry leading food relief to those in need while feeding them spiritually. They are a food charity with a desire to demonstrate God's love by providing help to those in need.   Unlike other parts of the world where there's not enough food in America, the resources actually do exist. That's why food pantries and food banks like Midwest Food Bank are so important. The goods that they deliver to their agency partners help to supplement the food supply for families and individuals across our country, aiding those whose resources are beyond stretched.   Midwest Food Bank also supports people globally through their locations in Haiti and East Africa, which are some of the areas hardest hit by hunger arising from poverty. This ministry reaches millions of people every year. And thanks to the Lord's provision, 99% of every donation goes directly toward providing food to people in need.   The remaining 1% of income is used for fundraising, costs of leadership, oversight, and other administrative expenses. Donations, volunteers, and prayers are always appreciated for Midwest Food Bank. To learn more, visit midwestfoodbank.org, or listen to episode 83 of The Savvy Sauce, where the founder, David Kieser, shares miracles of God that he's witnessed through this nonprofit organization. I hope you check them out today.   You also write in one of your books that there's one thing that you found every mother needs. So, what is it and how can we get it?   Amy Rienow: (12:56 - 14:56) That one thing is joy, joy, joy. And, and I like to use the word happiness, honestly, because I feel like that happiness got a bad rap, I say, in Christian world for like a while, in my opinion. I don't know if it's still that way, but so often I heard sermon saying, you know, like we don't want happiness.   We want joy. Like there's these two different major things, like, you know, almost like a rejection of happiness for this deeper spiritual joy. Well, finally, the Lord really convicted me that deep, deep inner joy that doesn't show is an oxymoron.   Like, you really should see happiness. You should feel happiness. You should feel those things.   If you ever come across someone's like, oh no, I have a deep joy, but like, there's no evidence of it. Well, that's a red flag. That's a problem.   The Lord, you know, in the King James version, it actually says happier people whose God is the Lord. And I believe every mom desires that happiness. And sometimes they don't even really know that that's the most important element that they want in their home, you know, because it's so easy to get, I don't know, sidetracked on things that feel more important that you kind of forget how important happiness is.   And, you know, we can take it for granted. I feel like very easily because often when our kids are little and we don't have not entered that world of, whether it be academic or whatever into the greater world, let's just say in your home, you can kind of have like a natural happiness and joy that's just there, but it's so easily stifled. When we start putting our self into the world of either comparing ourselves to other moms, comparing our kids to other kids, stressing about the expectations or what we think our kids need.   We can often find that happiness slipping away. And I believe we do not want that to happen in our homes and in our hearts.   Laura Dugger: (14:57 - 15:08) And so how can we get more of that, both as parents and how can we train our kids to be happy and joyful as well?   Amy Rienow: (15:09 - 17:18) It's such a good question and a hard question. Cause I don't think it's just like we can snap our fingers and just do that. I think that it's really important that we are seeking the Lord and helping him order our priorities.   You know, God gave us 10 commandments for a reason. And if you look at the first one, it says, “You know, you'll have no other gods before me, you'll keep him first.” And part of the reason why I think that commandment is both like the first and also in many ways, very abstract, like, you know what I mean?   How do you even do that? You know, it's confusing, I think, but I think that's what the Lord wants is of a seeking of helping us keep him first. Because when we help to keep God first, number one, and number two, we don't have idols that we bow down to, that we place above him. Like, let's take an example of motherhood.   Let's say the idol might be, um, I have to have super smart children. Let's put it that way. You know, your joy is going to be robbed when you keep sacrificing to that idol, because that's a trap.   Like the enemy wants to trap you there to make the wrong sacrifices. And that is why I think God knows this. Like he's telling us right in those 10 commandments, you know, you need to keep me first.   You can have no, do not worship to idols. Because when you're making the sacrifices to eternal God, who is the author of joy, the author of love, the author of peace, those are the things he gives back to you. No other idol can give you peace.   No other idol can give you joy. So, I think when we look at the lack of joy that we see in a lot of our homes in our culture, it's because we've been ensnared into an idolatry where we're making the wrong sacrifices. We're sacrificing things that we don't realize the consequence of that until we're in it.   And we're like, wait, this didn't produce the happiness and joy that I expected it to produce. Cause we were tricked.   Laura Dugger: (17:19 - 17:27) Do you have any examples from your own life or friend's stories where that really comes to life?   Amy Rienow: (17:27 - 21:22) Oh boy. There's lots of examples and lots of friends stories, but I'm going to say one that's more of a story that I'm well aware of and not, you know, personally walk hand with. But I think it's always struck with me because it was so painful story. You know, I grew up, I've raised a lot of athletes in my home and my son, especially my first born very athletic boy.   And we were kind of at the beginning of the cusp of how important travel was, you know what I mean? Travel baseball and travel, you know, sports in general. And there's that pressure.   You need to choose this. You need to do this or else you are going to, you know, ruin the advantages for your child. If you don't do this, even if choosing that is going to mean you're going to sacrifice family time, you're going to sacrifice finances.   You are going to sacrifice your Sundays. I could go on and on. The world will tell you you have to do this in order to get to the prize that you're looking for, or your son is going to be disadvantaged.   If you don't choose that. And it took a lot to be like, no, we're not going to make, we're not going to make that trade. And there was a lot of pressure.   There's a lot of pressure with our son, you know what I mean? With him feeling sometimes neglected and having to deal in that relationship. So, it's not like that's immediate happiness or immediate joy, you know, but what did it did allow us to disciple him through all that.   It allowed us to see God, you know, use him, whatever team he was on, give him a lot of joy in sports. The blessing of it is that we saw him in high school, you know, excel in baseball, always rise to the top, win character awards. He eventually did go on to play college baseball and AIA, not like D1, but he got to play, got to use that gift to pay for his education.   But most importantly, he was a joyful, happy kid. Baseball didn't control his life. And I just praise God for that.   And in contrast, he, at the same, his age, same age level, there were these two boys who were twins were very well known for being top, top, top, top players. And they were just elevated in many circles we were in. And, you know, you, when you're in the baseball world, baseball moms will understand this, you know who the top players are.   You see the name, like, you know, when your son's in the paper for something, you know, he was listed in the number of top of DuPage kids. And obviously that's a feather in your cap and you're really proud of that. These boys were top of the top D1, but I'll never forget.   They went to different D1 schools and one of them ended up taking his own life his freshman year. I believe it just the most devastating thing. I could not, I cannot speak to any of those situations.   I don't know his family background. I do not know any history of at all. All I can say is it hit me really hard in the sense that these were the boys that so many parents were envying, envying of their success and of their status.   And that was so jolting to, to know that they'd received, you know, hit so many of these incredible hurdles that every parent thinks they want their kids to achieve. But obviously there was something amiss because there was a lack of joy, lack of happiness. I don't know the whole story.   But that just strikes me again of just how important it is to again, go back to keeping God first, make sure you're making the right sacrifices.   Laura Dugger: (21:23 - 22:43) That's a good word. It's such a sobering story, but making sure we're making the right sacrifices or really listening to God's counsel. That reminds me where I was this morning, Psalm 25.   I read it in the amplified version, but it was talking specifically that some of his guidance comes from his word. Like it's amazing. It's incredible.   It's important to pray and to be around others who are godly and do other spiritual rhythms, but there's nothing like reading his word to hear from him. And let me try and find the verses. Verse 14 in the amplified version says, “The secret of the wise counsel of the Lord is for those who fear him and he will let them know his covenant and reveal to them through his word, it's deep inner meaning.”   And the next verse, just the first part goes on to say, “My eyes are continually toward the Lord.” And that was such powerful takeaway this morning, but then I'm hearing it through the way that these lives played out. Because when you look, is it my understanding correct?   That you did travel sports, but they were not, your children chose not to do Sundays.   Amy Rienow: (22:44 - 25:52) Well, we did not even do travel sports for my oldest. It was back in the day when park district actually, you could, you know, like there were enough kids. So, we, my son did only park district all the way through eighth grade, but then he kind of, because he was like young for his age, he had one sort of gap year in between high school before he started like high school sports.   And that's when he did play a travel sport. We found one that honestly was not good at all. I don't think the level was any better than park district, but they accepted the no Sunday situation.   So, that's what we did. And you know, it was a losing team. Like he was on losing teams, like most of his baseball career until he got to high school.   So, it really was you know, the opposite of what the world said he needed. And yet he was able to, to rise and, and achieve. And honestly his high school experience was being able to always, he was a starter all the time and he his teams won.   So, it was like years of like, not, you know, kind of paying these prices I would say. And that's neither here or there. The winning or the losing is really not important.   The important was keeping baseball in its proper place, enjoying the gifts that God has given you, not letting, listening to the world. I'll just throw this in because we are what you said about sound. First of all, I love the amplified version.   So, that blessed me that you read the amplified, but you know, seeking the council, you, we must be as parents in his word, like regularly listening to how he's speaking to us because we also, it's so interesting. Rob and I live in a very interesting world. We had one foot, especially back then, one foot in the homeschool world, one foot in the public school area, public school community, lots of public school friends.   And then also the Christian school is where my son played. But you know, if we'd go to homeschool conference, there were tons of messages that you should not have your kids in sports at all. Sports are wrong.   Sports are a waste of time, you know? So, that was a strong message of sort of like condemnation almost for being in sports at all. So, my point is there was no one community that said, okay, this is the way, you know what I mean?   We had to seek the Lord, you know, for ourselves, for our family, for our son, knowing this was his love and his giftedness and continue to look for wisdom and how he should grow in those gifts. You know, and how he wanted to use it in his life, but not let it take over his life. And isn't that the lesson for all of us?   So, anyway, it depended on that seeking the counsel of him, both myself with my husband and then also with our W. It wasn't like we kept him out of the picture. We were praying the three of us for wisdom and all those things.   Laura Dugger: (25:53 - 26:42) I love hearing that because you're right. It's not about black and white decision of travel sports are always wrong or always right. But the main takeaway is seek the Lord because he has wisdom for our individual unique situation.   And I want to go back and close a few other loops. Sure. Please.   One of those being that even with perfectionism or with comparison or when we're choosing godly values that may contradict worldly values, I'm hearing a theme that there's a, it's a fight and that there's a spiritual battle. And you even said you had researched some of this, Amy, how do you personally learn about that and be aware of the spiritual realm?   Amy Rienow: (26:44 - 30:42) We, we really, I can't say it enough that we do need to be so aware of the spiritual realm. I didn't understand. I didn't understand in my early years of parenting at how important that was to pay attention to.   And here's the thing there's, I feel like there's the Lord brings us on a path along the way with the knowledge we need at the time. And then he wants us to stretch and grow and learn a little bit more. So, there was a season in my life.   When especially we began homeschooling, the Lord brought us into all these new teachings that we didn't really understand was so powerful. It was so wonderful. We were very blessed by all of those teaching and the conferences that we were attending.   But what began to happen for me is that the perfectionism that I knew was there kind of gotten folded into that teaching because all of a sudden I kind of wore as a spiritual, like pride that I, I called it my noble list. Now I, when I talk about my book, Not So Perfect Mom, I, this is not in the book, but this is part of my talks. Like I kind of replaced the world's list of great athlete, great, you know, so smart, all those things with my noble list.   My child will have wonderful character. My child will read God's word. My child will know what it means to serve, but you see what I mean?   We're still dealing with a list. God had to call me out of that way of thinking back to the importance of a relationship with him, meaning for myself and meaning for my kids. Because when my oldest was 12, I was starting to see that we could be raising a Pharisee. If we keep focusing on this noble list, like if he knows all of his Proverbs, if he obeys perfectly, if he, you know what I mean?   Like life is not supposed to be, God never called us to do that. He desires a daily relationship with us. And that's what he desires for our kids.   So, that was beginning to suffocate my oldest for sure. And my, I would say, and my daughter right underneath him because they felt the weight of this, you know, we need to arise to this, this standard. So, like that perfectionism can take on this, this type of robe that makes you feel very noble about it.   Especially if you're in certain circles, like spiritual circles, where if your kids look right, dress right. You know, say yes, ma'am and yes, sir. Then we're all assuming that they're wonderful and we're not really getting to the heart underneath, but that is, there's a tension and a spiritual battle.   That's far. That's super important to pay attention to. And the way the Lord showed that to me is that I would often say the phrase in conversation.   Oh, it's a battle. Oh, it's a battle. We're in a battle.   I'm the Lord. I don't know what they gave me a vision. That's too strong word, but I had this sort of, I, I guess it's a vision.   I imagine that I was on, I was sitting in a coffee, like at a table with a friend drinking coffee. And we were just, you know, chatting and yet that coffee table was in the middle of this bloody battlefield. And the Lord was just kind of showing me, this is how your attitude is about saying that it's in a battle.   Like you're sitting here, just talking with your friends, drinking coffee and chatting and laughing. And this is the battlefield. It's all around you.   What are you doing about the battle? You know, when you are following after the Lord, you need to expect opposition. You need to understand that your kids are under spiritual attack.   And if we're not praying and putting on that full armor of God and recognizing it, we're not engaged in it.   Laura Dugger: (30:42 - 31:41) When was the first time you listened to an episode of The Savvy Sauce? How did you hear about our podcast? Did a friend share it with you?   Will you be willing to be that friend now and text five other friends or post on your socials? Anything about The Savvy Sauce that you love. If you share your favorite episodes, that is how we continue to expand our reach and get the good news of Jesus Christ in more ears across the world.   So, we need your help. Another way to help us grow is to leave a five-star review on Apple podcasts. Each of these suggestions will cost you less than a minute, but it will be a great benefit to us.   Thank you so much for being willing to be generous with your time and share. We appreciate you.   When you go back to your family of origin, did your father ever find a saving faith in Jesus Christ as well?   Amy Rienow: (31:41 - 33:11) He did. He did actually. That's such a wonderful question. And he did when my husband and I were married for about a year. And he, at Christmas day in front of our whole family, after we were sitting at the table at dinner, he kind of waited for all the gifts to be open and be at a different spot.   And he said, “Well, I opened one more gift today and it was the gift of salvation.” Wow. I still tear up thinking about it and thinking about my older brother's response, who was not an emotional person.   And I saw tears in my older brother's eyes, but I just want to even in saying that, that taught me a lot because even at the time when he accepted salvation, he even said, I don't necessarily believe all the Bible's true. He really, you know, he accepted in faith and now he doesn't, you know, the Lord took him from evolutions. Now he's probably more conservative or believes the Bible in a way that I would say many other Christians maybe wouldn't believe, but I'm saying that it was a process watching him grow.   And my kids don't even understand that, that we call him Bop Bop. He used to be a man who, you know, let the communion plate pass every week. And he was not a believer because they see him so much as a spiritual leader now, but you see how faith moves and how faith changes us.   And we need to be patient with God in ourselves, with our kids, you know, and trust in that walk with Him. Love it.   Laura Dugger: (33:12 - 33:23) Well, I'm going to change gears here a little bit. Yeah. Will you explain attachment and share why you're so passionate about this topic?   Amy Rienow: (33:24 - 37:18) That is, I do feel like I love talking about attachment. I feel like it's an underrated thing to talk about. Some of you might be familiar.   I don't know if any of these names like Mary Ainsworth or the Harlow experience, you remember the monkey Harlow experience. It's most, most kids who've had like even a high school psychology class, know that the story of the monkey who has the wire surrogate mom with the bottle. And then has like the fuzzy mom that doesn't have the bottle and the monkey goes and gets its food from the bottle of the wire mom but continues to go over to the furry surrogate mom for comfort.   That's some of the original psychology on attachment but I was started my professional job in a school with children with behavior disorders and autism. That's one of my first jobs. And, and because of that, I went to different seminars for continuing education.   And one of them was a woman who specialized in attachment. And part of the reason she specialized in attachment because she'd adopted so many children and she was sort of a professional on adoption. And that's when I really did a deeper dive into attachment and specifically something called reactive attachment disorder.   I can't go into that. It would be a long tangent. But she was such an eye-opening time.   And this is even before I had children. But she said that, you know, she couldn't say everything she wanted to about attachment and the effects specifically of daycare on children, because it wasn't politically correct. That she would lose her funding basically, if she gave her true opinion on some of the things that our culture was doing to destroy attachment among families.   And it was just very eye opening to me that, you know, when we get our baby development books, the time that I was having kids, it was What to Expect When You're Expecting and What to Expect for Your One Year Old and all these milestones that moms are looking for. And obviously moms generally love their kids. I will stand by that over and over, you know what I mean?   That's the norm. And, you know, you're told to look for all of these milestones, but really attachment is not even mentioned in this book of how important it is. What are the signs of a securely attached child?   And yet this is so significant. And it's not just in the Christian world that we can recognize this. This is universally known in the psychology world, how important attachment is.   So, let's go back to that spiritual battle. Why is it that that is not discussed? Or why is that not focused in the development book?   Or why is it that if you're going to adopt a child, you're going to learn all about attachment, but that's not something that you may necessarily come into contact with if you're just having your own children. But attachment is essential for all healthy relationships. And specifically attachment with the mother.   I mean, we can use the term primary caregiver. Yes, to other people come in and be a primary care. I'm not saying that, you know. It's not just the mom, but this relationship with the mom, this, this attachment is so significant because God created it that way.   And it, how that relationship and how that attachment happens will have this impact on all the other relationships that your child is going to have in their life. So, it's something that we need to be talking about. And I pray that it becomes more and more common for people to talk about it.   Laura Dugger: (37:18 - 37:25) Well, and I'm even curious that speaker was that Karen Purvis?   Amy Rienow: (37:25 - 38:04) Oh, I don't even remember her name. I apologize. She was not a Christian. She was not a believer.   She, well, if she was, I don't know that. Cause I was, I was listening to her in a secular setting. You know, so she might've been, I don't, so I don't know, but I, the reason why it was so curious to me that the time most of the children on my case list that I had at this school were adopted.   So, I found that so interesting, like, and that was why I went to her seminar to try to understand more that connection of the adoption. And you know, how did that play into some of the problems that these children were, were having.   Laura Dugger: (38:05 - 38:20) Well, and just to go a little bit further with attachment, let's take it from the positive side. What are some proven examples or ways that we can form that healthy attachment with our children and that bonding?   Amy Rienow: (38:21 - 40:38) Yeah, well, a lot of it is just a spending time with your child, you know, and that's why I want to be very gentle here. Cause the world that we live in, I mean, I know for a fact that there are so many moms in situations where they have to go back to work right away. There are difficult circumstances.   And I'm, I am not here to say that then you don't have an attached relationship with child. Cause that is honestly not true. But I will say that if you have any opportunity to be home with your children, please, please, please take that opportunity because your children need that contact with you to form that attachment.   I mean, the number one thing for attachment is presence, time, touch, eye contact, and smiles. I mean, like it is what the baby that interplay that's happening with the baby and the mother and, and the why babies love faces. I mean, like they, we need to have that time with our children.   We need to be the ones to know our children the best that only comes with time. But even a mom who maybe for reasons have to be away from their baby, the important thing is that when you're with them, that you are engaged. You know, I even, I don't have my phone in front of me.   Even the phone takes away attachment. You know, when you're looking at another screen, as opposed to paying attention to that communication with the baby long before they're communicating long for the communicating with words, they are interacting and communicating with you. So, God knew what he's doing when he created mothers with the ability to feed their babies.   Nursing enables attachment, you know, because the baby is dependent on the mother. So, all of these things play into why God created our system the way it is because it was designed not to just physically feed our babies, but to emotionally create this attached, secured relationship where that enables a child to feel safe, feel security.   Laura Dugger: (40:39 - 40:54) Well, that makes me think of another a word that you wisely encourage us. And that is the word affection. So, can you share why this is also important to shower on our children?   Amy Rienow: (40:55 - 43:47) Yes. You know how it is when you become a mom, there's all these new parenting styles out there, things that you get bombarded with, or should I do this? Or, you know, and I think I was really impacted by a Bible, small group where a woman was talking about her six-month-old needing disciplining her six-month-old.   And it hit me really negatively because I just heard a woman who had had like, I think she has 17 children who talked about, you know, there's, you cannot spoil and she used, you cannot spoil anybody under the age of two. I would say it's as much as under three with as far as attention and love and affection, affection, your children need your affection. Again, let's go to how this, how Satan, let's go back to that spiritual battle.   We can keep going back. Cause I often find you can see God's truth with how it's perverted in the world. So, let's look at how we have a sex education system now in so many schools, including in Illinois that tries to teach younger children horrific adult sexual behaviors, correct?   And they are manipulating what needs to, what children do need, which is positive, a non-sexual physical connection with their parents, with their siblings, with aunts and uncles. So, so in some ways I can remember early in my career and either in my development in getting my classes, my masters, you know, in some ways they demonize, you know, like parents are afraid to sometimes have too much physical touch or too much of this because it's almost like, Oh, we can't, you know, we have to make sure our children are more independent, you know, like, like for example, co-sleeping, which builds a lot of affection between parents, which is normal in most cultures and normal throughout history can be viewed as really negative. Like, you know, you gotta get your kid in another room and another, like pushing them out early and yet look at what we see from the world, which is an encroachment of inappropriate touch, inappropriate sexuality at younger and younger ages.   And obviously kids who don't have positive, strong, physical affection are more inclined to fall for Satan's counterfeit. And desire and need touch, but they, they, it's been twisted from the world's perspective.   Laura Dugger: (43:47 - 44:17) Does that make sense? Are you tracking with that? I am.   And it's even making me think of a previous guest, Dr. Gary Chapman, talking about mostly the five love languages of in marriage and how those are displayed. But we also discussed with children and the parent child. And I'm just thinking as you're giving examples of affection, it, it even goes beyond the hugs and kisses and appropriate touch to acts of service and lighting up with them and spending that quality time and all those love languages.   Amy Rienow: (44:18 - 46:16) That's right. As the kids get older, I mean, my, my, we joke about, you know, I have certain sons that, did not want to be touched at all when they were 13, 14. We laughed at my son J.D. like he would want to come give me hugs and he would want to, but it had to always be on his terms.   Like I could never come up, you know what I mean? And how can you, my affection towards him was I'll get you a double cheeseburger. I will make you a milkshake.   That was the way I communicated my affection to him, but it was also my presence in listening to him when he needed to be listening to. There's so many ways as we get older. Right.   And I love Gary Chapman's work as far as like understanding our kids love, love languages, but I'll never forget, you know, I just had JD's wedding and he surprised me with the mother son dance and he had a song ready for me. I'm going to cry again, but it was this wonderful, he had told his siblings that he was probably going to cry on his wedding day when he saw Brooke and when he danced with his mom. And I had so many, and he was really hugging me and holding on and not afraid to be affectionate with me during that dance.   And that's because affection has always been a normal part of our home and a normal part of our relationship. And so, I just want to encourage parents out there not to be afraid of both physical affection when they're young and don't push your child. If your child is needing you or wants hugs, I would say, don't hesitate to give those to them because there is a culture again that pushes kids like, Oh, you shouldn't need that now.   You shouldn't, you're too old for that. Let them determine those boundaries. You give them the hugs and the affection as long as they still want it.   Cause I promise you they're all going to come to a day and they're not gonna want it. And you don't need to worry about if they're looking for that for you, it's a need that, that you can still meet.   Laura Dugger: (46:17 - 46:34) Well, and one other piece of parenting. I know we oftentimes hear mom guilt. I don't know if dads experienced the same thing, but how can we overcome that?   And what do you see as being at the root of struggling with sometimes that false guilt?   Amy Rienow: (46:35 - 49:52) Yes. Well, that I think comes so much again. Well, for me, it came internalized.   I had, I carried some internalized guilt with me, but that's compounded by a culture that puts so many expectations and demands on us as mothers. Where we are bombarded with another ideal, another sense of where we're falling short. And again, I know I keep coming back to the spiritual attack, but the point is I want to lay it out there that sometimes, sometimes moms can feel like, especially in an area, this sounds interesting, but because so many more children have been in daycare or exposed to a lot more developmental things at young ages. If you are like home with your kids, if you feel like, well, gosh, I'm not providing a craft every day.   I'm not, you know, I'm not reading. I went to the library and it literally had this whole campaign on a thousand books before kindergarten. Like, are you kidding me?   And that's the kind of thing. It's like, you're just having a normal mom day and all of a sudden you walk into the library and you get bombarded with what? I'm supposed to read my child a thousand books before, like a new standard that's just put in front of you.   And the enemy uses that to, to make women feel that they're not enough, you know? And first of all, we have to go back to God's word. That says, “there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”   And to really understand that, yes, we need to be open to be convicted to sin. But when we are convicted of something that our heavenly father wants us to change, we will experience a freedom and a lightning when we repent. And it'll be like a burden lifted up.   And as soon as you have that revenge, you feel like you've been given a gift. It's not something that's a burden. So, that is always my guide for women.   Like if you are under something that you feel like is a burden that you're carrying around, um, this sense that you're not doing enough or that you're a bad mom, that is not coming from your Heavenly Father. You need to reject that in the name of Jesus Christ, because this sense is clearly from the accuser. The Bible says Satan is an accuser and he stands accusing us, but Jesus is there to, you know, to say, no, that's my child.   They're covered by my love covered by my grace. So, we don't want to live under that over that guilt, bad mom guilt shadow for whatever, you know, God knows our faults. He doesn't expect us not to have faults, and your children are going to have faults and your husband are going to have faults.   So, if we think that the Lord is, you know, carrying around our faults, hanging over this, we need to, we need to be reminded that that's not from him and we have to reject it. And again, we're talking about a spiritual battle. You might have to reject the same lie 20 times a day until you find real freedom from falling for that guilt trap.   Laura Dugger: (49:53 - 50:12) Well, and along those lines, as you talk about engaging in the battle, you encourage us as children to woo our children in this same way that the Lord draws us close to him. So, how can we go and do likewise as the Lord does?   Amy Rienow: (50:12 - 52:09) Woo our children's hearts. Like I think it's important to know that the relationship that we have, our kids will, the more we model our relationship, our parenting off of how our heavenly father parents us, the easier it will be for our kids to kind of what I, I have a visual in my mind that I'm walking with my child's hand and I'm holding Jesus hand and I'm gradually through this parenting, trying to connect my child's hand to Jesus hands.   Like that's the picture that I want to be guiding my parenting, not I'm trying to raise you to be X, Y, Z, da, da, da, da, da. I'm trying to lead you to your Heavenly Savior. So, you're going to walk with Him.   So, Jesus is, you know, there's many components of our relationship with Jesus and the Heavenly Father and Holy spirit. But one of them is that God woos the hearts of his people. When you read scripture, He desired, He's always telling them you walk with Me.   “My burden is easy. My yoke is light.” You know what I mean?   He's, He's showing us this freedom and this love and grace. He's not coming with a sense of, see, you're doing this and this and this and this and this. And that's why. You know what I mean?   Like you see God's everlasting love for his people. And we want to woo our children with that same kind of everlasting love. You know, I always say, say you can, you can demand your kids to obey you.   You can demand your kids to respect you, but no one can demand love. Even our Heavenly Father doesn't demand love. He gives us free will and choice to choose to love him.   And so, we want to remember that with our kids to woo them. We want them to choose to love us. So, we woo our hearts.   You already mentioned Gary Chapman by understanding our kids' love languages. You know, realizing that's part of our job as a parent is to woo their hearts.   Laura Dugger: (52:10 - 53:13) So, I love how you're drawing this out as the Lord being the best parent ever and that we can learn from Him. That was something that I felt like he was really teaching me in my quiet time this week. And I wanted to take it one step further.   So, for me applying that, I just made a note on my phone and now anytime I come across a parenting scripture, I want to put it in this same list and go back and review it and be prayerful that the Lord can change me to be more like Him as a parent. So, I'm just going to share the first verse that inspired me to do this this week is Luke 6:36 and the amplified version again, “Be merciful, responsive, compassionate, tender, just as your Heavenly Father is merciful.” And so, Amy, just as He's a great parent and we can learn from Him, I appreciate you just drawing us back, pointing us to the heart of the Father.   And if we want to continue learning from you after this chat, where would you like to direct us?   Amy Rienow: (53:13 - 55:30) Well, I'd love you to come to our website at visionaryfam.com and listen to us at our podcast, Family Vision. You know, we named it Family Vision kind of like television because television really changed the American family. It did when it first introduced on to the scene and our heart is that family vision.   Our podcasts would help give your family a new vision, a vision from God's word for all that he wants to do in your family. You can also find our books well on our website, but also on Amazon. We have, I brought a couple today, but Not So Perfect Mom: Learning to Embrace What Matters Most, which is what you're talking about today.   And this book is very close to my heart because it really was wonderful. It was the easiest book I've ever written because I just felt like it was being able to talk about how God has worked in my own life and my own journey. And it just was the like culmination of so many conversations I've had with moms like all over the country, but really overseas and over the world.   And we're all battling some of the same exact things. So, I just, I would encourage you to pick up Not So Perfect Mom: Learning to Embrace What Matters Most. And then the other book that is, it's not new, it's called Shine Embracing God's Heart for You.   I'm actually leading a group of women through it on a zoom study right now. Um, but I actually wrote this, originally back in 2005 when I was a youth pastor's wife. Um, but really it's all about kind of what I talked about earlier of just, recognizing how to, to trust and believe the Lord.   I said, you know, wholeheartedly with our head and our hearts and our hands and, and really going back to, you know, keeping God first, identifying idols in our life. So, we, you know, the more that we get our own relationship with the Lord centered and we kind of figured that part out. I feel like everything flows from that in our homes, in our marriage, in our other relationships. So, I highly recommend, um, picking up this shine and there's a prayer journal to go with it.   There's a leader's guide. If you'd like to lead a group and that's all on Amazon or at our website.   Laura Dugger: (55:31 - 55:48) Wonderful. As always we'll add the links to that in the show notes for today's episode and Amy, you already know that we're called The Savvy Sauce because Savvy is synonymous with practical knowledge. And so, as my final question for you today, what is your Savvy Sauce?   Amy Rienow: (55:48 - 57:06) I love that question. My Savvy Sauce is actually mentioned in Not So Perfect Mom, but it's when the Lord gave me that quote, “whatever is worth doing is worth doing poorly.” I feel that perfectionism kept me paralyzed so often.   If I couldn't do things exactly the way I thought that they should be in my head, then I was kind of pathetic and wasn't going to do it at all. And so, my encouragement in any area, if you know something is worth doing. Let me give you a practical example really quick on this, even when it comes to like, um, when you're struggling with your marriage. I know I had some issues in my marriage with my husband where I was getting to the point where I didn't even really want to go out on a date, you know, because it was just discouraging and whatever's worth doing is worth doing poorly. So, knowing that, you know, even when my relationships aren't living up to my expectations, or even when I'm feeling hurt, the Lord tells us to press on. Don't, don't stop doing what you know, God wants you to do, um, because you don't think it's living up to your expectations.   Do it. Just do it.   Laura Dugger: (57:07 - 57:38) That's a good word. And Amy, you have so much to share. Our family has benefited so much from the ministry and work that you and Rob do through Visionary Families.   And I am just so grateful for your time and you just to share all of this parenting wisdom. It felt like a mentoring conversation. I loved hearing all the ways that you've been intentional in what you've learned from the Lord. So, thank you for seeking Him.   Thank you for sharing with us and thank you for being my guest.   Amy Rienow: (57:39 - 57:58) Thank you, Laura, for having me. It's been a delight. I love connecting hearts with people who are like-minded.   I love what you're doing with The Savvy Sauce. In fact, my neighbor is one of your devoted followers, and she was so excited to hear about your podcast. So, thank you so much for having me and it's truly an honor and a pleasure to be here.   Laura Dugger: (57:59 - 1:01:13) One more thing before you go, have you heard the term gospel before? It simply means good news. And I want to share the best news with you, but it starts with the bad news.   Every single one of us were born sinners, but Christ desires to rescue us from our sin, which is something we cannot do for ourselves. This means there's absolutely no chance we can make it to heaven on our own. So, for you and for me, it means we deserve death and we can never pay back the sacrifice we owe to be saved.   We need a savior, but God loved us so much. He made a way for his only son to willingly die in our place as the perfect substitute. This gives us hope of life forever in right relationship with him.   That is good news. Jesus lived the perfect life. We could never live and died in our place for our sin.   This was God's plan to make a way to reconcile with us so that God can look at us and see Jesus. We can be covered and justified through the work Jesus finished. If we choose to receive what he has done for us, Romans 10:9 says, “that if you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”   So, you pray with me now. Heavenly father, thank you for sending Jesus to take our place. I pray someone today right now is touched and chooses to turn their life over to you.   Will you clearly guide them and help them take their next step in faith to declare you as Lord of their life? We trust you to work and change lives now for eternity. In Jesus name we pray.   Amen. If you prayed that prayer, you are declaring him for me. So, me for him, you get the opportunity to live your life for him.   And at this podcast, we're called The Savvy Sauce for a reason. We want to give you practical tools to implement the knowledge you have learned. So, you're ready to get started.   First, tell someone, say it out loud, get a Bible. The first day I made this decision, my parents took me to Barnes and Noble and let me choose my own Bible. I selected the Quest NIV Bible and I love it.   You can start by reading the book of John. Also get connected locally, which just means tell someone who's a part of a church in your community that you made a decision to follow Christ. I'm assuming they will be thrilled to talk with you about further steps such as going to church and getting connected to other believers to encourage you.   We want to celebrate with you too. So, feel free to leave a comment for us here. If you did make a decision to follow Christ, we also have show notes included where you can read scripture that describes this process.   And finally, be encouraged. Luke 15:10 says, “in the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” The heavens are praising with you for your decision today.   And if you've already received this good news, I pray you have someone to share it with. You are loved and I look forward to meeting you here next time.

Jesus is the promised Messiah, the Savior who came to fulfill every prophecy and bring redemption to the world. From His foretold birth in Bethlehem to His victory over sin and death, every part of Scripture points to Him as the one true King. This message walks through the Old and New Testament to show how Jesus checked every box the prophets spoke of and how His return will complete God's plan of salvation.If you've ever wondered how we can know Jesus is the Messiah or what the Bible says about His identity and coming again, this message will bring those truths to life and strengthen your faith in the One who came to save us.

Today, on Karl and Crew, we kicked off our weekly theme of “Questions” with discussions about difficult questions in Christianity. We had J. Warner Wallace joins us to discuss how he came to trust the Bible after investigating it as a Cold Case detective. J. Warner is a Dateline featured cold-case homicide detective, popular national speaker, podcast host, and best-selling author. He also serves as a Senior Fellow at the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. He is also an adjunct professor of apologetics at Talbot School of Theology, Gateway Seminary, and Southern Evangelical Seminary. We were also joined by Dr. Jim Coakley, who discussed the beauty of questions in understanding the Bible. Dr. Jim Coakley is the Professor of Bible at Moody Bible Institute and a current elder with 180 Chicago. He is also a member of the Evangelical Theological Society. We also heard from one of our listeners as we asked him the question, "Who was Jesus to you before He was your Savior?" You can listen to the highlights of today's program on the Karl and Crew Showcast. If you're looking to listen to a particular segment from the show, look at the following time stamps: J. Warner Wallace Interview [04:53] Dr. Jim Coakley Interview [35:26 ] Listener Call-in Response [58:38 ] Karl and Crew airs live weekday mornings from 5-9 a.m. Central Time. Click this link for ways to listen in your area! https://www.moodyradio.org/ways-to-listen/Donate to Moody Radio: http://moodyradio.org/donateto/morningshowSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Has someone ever told you that you were too stubborn? Well, have you ever considered that it can be a good thing? Today, we're talking about holy stubbornness. Stubbornness that is good and healthy AND righteous when we are sticking up for what is right. Stubbornness is only good when it is redirected on the right path. Let's find out together how to use our stubbornness for God! ▶SUBSCRIBE: https://www.youtube.com/c/SouthernHillsLV▶Do you know Jesus as your Savior? https://www.southernhillslv.com/the-gospel▶ DONATE: https://pushpay.com/g/southernhills?src=hpp&r=monthly▶ Visit Southern Hills: https://www.southernhillslv.com/▶ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/southernhillslv▶ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/southernhillslv/Pastor Josh Teis is the founder and senior pastor of Southern Hills Church in Las Vegas. He has a Masters Degree in Bible Exposition from Pensacola Theological Seminary, and he is a Master of Divinity with Liberty University. He coaches pastors in practical leadership and time management and is a nationally sought-after speaker. #joshteissermon #bibleteaching #southernhillschurch #churchsouthwestlasvegas #bible #prayer #Christian

In Hebrews 5, the author points us to the story of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. There, we see the suffering Savior of the world crying out to the Father. Jesus felt abandoned, overwhelmed, and too weak to carry life's burdens. In the middle of emotional and physical pain, He still chose to obey. His obedience gives us inspiration to choose obedience when we face our own suffering, and hope that it is not in vain. This passage is an excellent reminder that with Jesus as our perfect High Priest, our suffering will not have the last word.  Key Verses: Hebrews 5:7-10

Matthew 17:1-13 | Rev. Blake Arnoult Matthew: The Gospel to the Church

Why is baptism spiritually significant? Baptism is a powerful picture of our union with Christ in His death and resurrection. It declares our freedom from sin and our new identity in Him.In this four-part series on the command “Baptize My Disciples,” we are invited to see baptism not as a symbolic obligation, but as a profound declaration of our union with Christ. Rooted in the authority and love of the risen Savior, baptism marks the believer's identity in Him, testifying that we have died to sin and been raised in newness of life. Through teaching, testimony, and Scripture, we are reminded that this command is both deeply spiritual and practically essential—anchored in Christ's power, pointing always to His glory, and flowing from a life of discipleship. Join Nate and Gabe as they explore Christ's command to “Baptize My Disciples.”Want to go deeper in studying this command of Christ? Download a free study guide at https://homediscipleship.comStudy guide includes: Scriptures referenced in podcastReview of Old Testament contextGuide for Scripture meditationQuestions for application and prayerFor more information, visit us at https://homediscipleship.comFind us on Facebook and Instagram @homediscipleshiphttps://www.facebook.com/homediscipleshipnetworkhttps://instagram.com/commandsofchristpodcast

We're not just a church. We're a Family.Our Vision is clear, simple, and unique. Our vision is Jesus in you. Our vision is for the people of God to have a faith that holds them. The kind of faith that vanquishes doubt, verifies identity, and voraciously contends for inner peace. A faith that removes the past, clarifies the present, and breathes life into the future. Our vision is the Kingdom of God built within the people of this obscure, yet mighty generation. A kingdom so great that its purpose destroys the common lack of self worth. A kingdom that sharpens the eyes, tenses the muscles, and readies itself for the battle against darkness. A Kingdom that brings purpose and healing to those who have failed more than succeeded, who are sinners more than saints, and who have known more pain than pleasure. Our vision is to challenge the weak and unproductive church of our day. To step beyond those who are religiously immature and search out those who for their love for Christ cannot be offended. Our hope is to raise warriors instead of those who think God only exists to keep bad things from happening. To raise those who know that following Christ means suffering loss yet gaining all things. Our vision is clear, simple, and unique…. It is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Matthew 2:13-23 God saves his Son from an early death. God's plan was to save the world by having his Son die on the cross when the time had fully come. The Foundation Preacher Podcast is provided to you by WELS Congregational Services. The Foundation resources were created to help churches allow the gospel message […]

If you want to be blessed by someone like Paul, sign up for a Family Retreat today at www.joniandfriends.org. -------- Thank you for listening! Your support of Joni and Friends helps make this show possible.     Joni and Friends envisions a world where every person with a disability finds hope, dignity, and their place in the body of Christ. Become part of the global movement today at www.joniandfriends.org   Find more encouragement on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and YouTube.

Part 48 of the series: The Gospel of John // John 18:1-11

God never ceases to provide...

The Vine continues in our series TAKE HEART by considering a story from Mark 10:46-52. In this passage, we discover how our Savior can heal us from our blindness. www.thevineaustin.org DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1. Share a moment where you felt like you were aware of the presence of God. It could be through an interaction with a friend, a beautiful moment in nature, or a simple morning walk. What did it feel like? 2. Read Mark 10:46-52? What do you notice happening in this passage? 3. What stands out to you about the disciples telling Bartimaeus to “take heart?” 4. When do you feel the most blind? What are things that take your awareness away from Christ? 5. Share a moment that you looked up and your perspective changed. How did that feel? What happened afterwards? What changed? 6. What has stayed with you from the sermon- either confusing, curious or encouraging? 7. What person or group of people do you want to illuminate who you feel like has been erased? 8. Is there anything in this message that has helped you take heart?

Iam so reminded, as we think about what's going on right now in the news, thatJesus Christ is coming soon. The Bible says when everyone is saying peace andsafety, then sudden destruction will come upon them (1 Thessalonians 5:3).Before real peace comes in the millennial reign of Jesus Christ, there will bethe rapture of the church and then a terrible seven-year tribulation period, asI understand the prophetic Scriptures in the Bible. But we can still pray forpeace today. This is something that we can pray for, “that we might live godlyand quiet lives, that we might have the opportunities to share the gospel ofJesus Christ with everyone we possibly can” (1 Timothy 2:1-3).  Again,I ask for your prayers. You know that while we travel, we are not able to makeour daily pastor chats. I trust you'll just go back and look at maybe some ofthe old chats. You can do that on YouTube and even on Facebook. Just look themup and go back and listen. I trust they'll encourage you and bless you whilewe're missing our daily chats. We hope to be back by October the 26th from thistrip. Wehave been looking at Ephesians 2. In these first 10 verses we see how that sin worksagainst us and brings death into our lives. “But God”, (I love verse four), butGod, God works for us. He redeems us. He forgives us. And it's all through theblood of His son Jesus Christ. He exalts us. We sit in the heavenly places eventoday in Christ Jesus. We are to the praise of His glory. What a wonderfulchange takes place when we meet Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. We talkedabout how that we are saved by grace through faith alone in Jesus Christ. Thatfaith makes a difference because it's a faith that not only saves us, it's afaith that works in us and through us and out of us. God works in us, throughus, and for us as we trust in the blood of His son Jesus Christ. Nowas we get down to verse 11 through the end of the chapter, we're finding aboutthe peace that God can make between not only ourselves and God, but betweenourselves and others. The Gentiles and the Jews were so divided because theJews look down very much upon the Gentile people as you see in these verses.Now the Jew and Gentile can go to church together and be made one in JesusChrist. I am telling you, it doesn't matter what religion you are, what faith youare, what background you might have, what culture you were raised in. When youcome to know Jesus Christ as your savior, other believers become your brothersand sisters in Christ. They, I'm telling you, can be loved in Christ. You canhave oneness in Jesus Christ. That means you have peace. You not only havepeace with God, but you also have peace with those around you.  Thecircumcision were the Jews that was made with hands. Circumcision was a sign ofthe covenant that God had made with His people Israel. The Gentiles were theuncircumcised. Paul now addresses the Gentiles in the church at Ephesus. Theywere without Christ. They were aliens from the commonwealth of Israel. Theywere strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God inthe world. But now in Christ Jesus, those “who were once afar off have beenbrought near by the blood of Christ”. What a powerful message for us today.Come to Jesus through His blood and you can be made one with those around youin Christ!  Myfriend, today you can have peace with God and peace with those around you.That's the real peace we should all be seeking today. Godbless!

The Parable of the Ten Virgins: Are You Ready for Jesus' Return? | Matthew 25:1-13What if you looked ready for Jesus' return but weren't actually prepared? In this powerful third episode of our Parousia Parables series, we dive deep into one of Jesus' most sobering warnings about His second coming.The parable of the ten virgins isn't just about waiting—it's about being ready. Five were wise, five were foolish, and the difference came down to something that couldn't be borrowed: oil. Join us as we unpack what this oil represents, why some believers won't be ready when Jesus returns, and most importantly, how YOU can be prepared.In This Episode: ✓ What the oil in the parable really represents ✓ Why looking like a Christian doesn't make you one ✓ The shocking reality that some things can't be borrowed ✓ How to truly be ready for Christ's return ✓ The beautiful power of repentance in the Christian lifeThis isn't about living in fear—it's about running into the arms of a Savior who loves you so much He took your place. Don't miss the party when the Bridegroom comes.AFTER THE AMEN: We end with a powerful question: Are you ready? Plus a discussion on why repentance shouldn't be a scary word but a beautiful reality in every believer's life.SUPPORT THE PODCAST: Venmo: @amenpodcast Cash App: $amenalex Website: amenpodcast.comVISIT US: House Church Kauai Website: housechurchkauai.com DM us on Instagram for our contact info!

We are all born dead. Does that sound like a contradiction? It's not. This paradox is the theme of Ephesians 2: that we are all born physically alive but spiritually dead, and that the only way we are made spiritually alive is by trusting Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. He takes our dead lives and makes them alive! Paul tells us there are three things that work to keep us dead, and three things that work to make us alive. Find out in today's study as Pastor Gary shares a message entitled, “Dead or Alive?”

“Rise! To arms! With prayer employ you, O Christians, lest the foe destroy you; For Satan has designed your fall. Wield God's Word, the weapon glorious; Against all foes be thus victorious, For God protects you from them all. Fear not the hordes of hell, Here is Emmanuel. Hail the Savior! The strong foes yield To Christ, our shield, And we, the victors, hold the field.”

The Parable of the Ten Virgins: Are You Ready for Jesus' Return? | Matthew 25:1-13What if you looked ready for Jesus' return but weren't actually prepared? In this powerful third episode of our Parousia Parables series, we dive deep into one of Jesus' most sobering warnings about His second coming.The parable of the ten virgins isn't just about waiting—it's about being ready. Five were wise, five were foolish, and the difference came down to something that couldn't be borrowed: oil. Join us as we unpack what this oil represents, why some believers won't be ready when Jesus returns, and most importantly, how YOU can be prepared.In This Episode: ✓ What the oil in the parable really represents ✓ Why looking like a Christian doesn't make you one ✓ The shocking reality that some things can't be borrowed ✓ How to truly be ready for Christ's return ✓ The beautiful power of repentance in the Christian lifeThis isn't about living in fear—it's about running into the arms of a Savior who loves you so much He took your place. Don't miss the party when the Bridegroom comes.AFTER THE AMEN: We end with a powerful question: Are you ready? Plus a discussion on why repentance shouldn't be a scary word but a beautiful reality in every believer's life.SUPPORT THE PODCAST: Venmo: @amenpodcast Cash App: $amenalex Website: amenpodcast.comVISIT US: House Church Kauai Website: housechurchkauai.com DM us on Instagram for our contact info!

Acts 4:1-31The priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. They were greatly disturbed because the apostles were teaching the people, proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection of the dead. They seized Peter and John and, because it was evening, they put them in jail until the next day. But many who heard the message believed; so the number of men who believed grew to about five thousand. The next day the rulers, the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas, John, Alexander and others of the high priest's family. They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: “By what power or what name did you do this?” Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people! If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame and are being asked how he was healed, then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed. Jesus is “ the stone you builders rejected,      which has become the cornerstone.Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say. So they ordered them to withdraw from the Sanhedrin and then conferred together. “What are we going to do with these men?” they asked. “Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign, and we cannot deny it. But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name.” Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John replied, “Which is right in God's eyes: to listen to you, or to him? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.” After further threats they let them go. They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened. For the man who was miraculously healed was over forty years old. On their release, Peter and John went back to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God. “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heavens and the earth and the sea, and everything in them. You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: “ ‘Why do the nations rage     and the peoples plot in vain?   The kings of the earth rise up     and the rulers band together   against the Lord     and against his anointed one. ' Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen. Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness. Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.Acts 5:17-42Then the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the party of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy. They arrested the apostles and put them in the public jail. But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out. “Go, stand in the temple courts,” he said, “and tell the people all about this new life.” At daybreak they entered the temple courts, as they had been told, and began to teach the people. When the high priest and his associates arrived, they called together the Sanhedrin—the full assembly of the elders of Israel—and sent to the jail for the apostles. But on arriving at the jail, the officers did not find them there. So they went back and reported, “We found the jail securely locked, with the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside.” On hearing this report, the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests were at a loss, wondering what this might lead to. Then someone came and said, “Look! The men you put in jail are standing in the temple courts teaching the people.” At that, the captain went with his officers and brought the apostles. They did not use force, because they feared that the people would stone them. The apostles were brought in and made to appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest. “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man's blood.” Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings! The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead—whom you killed by hanging him on a cross. God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.” When they heard this, they were furious and wanted to put them to death. But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. Then he addressed the Sanhedrin: “Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.” His speech persuaded them. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.

As a young journalist, I quickly learned about the power of a “press pass.” That one credential—displaying my name, picture, and media outlet—unlocked countless doors by allowing me to meet and interview athletes and celebrities before or after major events. While I enjoyed having special access to public figures, the allure soon faded after I received Jesus as my Savior and started living for Him. I realized sports and my career had become my idols. When God called me out of my journalism career, I lost my press pass but gained the access that truly matters— access to God’s heavenly throne room through prayer because of Jesus’ sacrificial death and resurrection. The writer of Hebrews points out that a high priest was selected from among the Israelites, specifically one of Aaron’s descendants, and appointed for the sacred duty of representing the people before God. He was the only one who could enter the Most Holy Place in the temple once a year “to offer gifts and sacrifice” to atone for his and the people’s sins (5:1) for he too was a mere mortal man. Then Christ came, our great and perfect high priest. When He died, the veil in the temple was torn and the barrier that existed between God and humanity was removed (Matthew 27:51). Because our loving Redeemer has reconciled us to His Father, we can freely pray to God: “Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). What a privilege to have access to God’s throne room as we talk to Him in prayer.