In Kindergarten, I walked to the store with my next door neighbor and stole some candy. Actually, he stole it, but that’s not the point—I watched him and gladly agreed. Not long after, I understood the gospel in a very basic way and something began...
Over the course of the past four weeks, we have sent groups of students and families each week to help run summer camp in Allendale, where we have partnered with two of the local churches. There are three interns living there and giving direction for...
I think it’s safe to say that we’ve all criticized others before. It may be our spouse, our children, our boss—maybe all three in one day! Criticism is a form of pride, and it can easily be recognized as sin. What’s more difficult, and what...
Following our last Travelers Rest campus meeting May 24, we are looking forward to finalizing the details and getting everything rolling for our new campus. Because of our church body’s commitment to sharing the gospel and reaching our local communities, this campus will begin with...
There is a war taking place among all believers: while our new nature of the Holy Spirit is at work in our lives, our fleshly desires are constantly fighting against it. We must evaluate the "fruit" of our lives to know what has taken root...
I had always considered myself an open book; I was always “open” about my struggles and willing to tell anyone anything—that is, until my deceived heart convinced me that my struggles were now “too big” for me to ever fully expose in front of anyone....
The email from our community group leaders said they would be out of town, but everyone could still get together if someone wanted to open their home to host. I felt a knot begin to form in my stomach. My fingers were heavy as lead...
The Holy Spirit is at work to convict the world of sin, reveal God’s righteousness, and remind us of the coming judgment. As Christians, we are ushered in to be a part of the work He is doing here—pointing the world to Christ....
In our series on Christianity, we recently heard a sermon from Romans 8:18-39. One of the things that Paul only touches on very briefly in this passage is the question, “Where does suffering come from?”...
Suffering can be a stranger to some of us and a familiar face to others. It can be self-inflicted and directly correlated with our own sin, inflicted on us from someone else, or it can simply be inflicted by our world that is at enmity...
Suffering is integrated into the life of every person, both believers and nonbelievers, because of the broken world we live in. Instead of being surprised by suffering, we should root our perspective in the truth of the Bible–that this world is broken by the presence...
We just finished studying the book of Hebrews as a church where arguably the main point of the entire book can be boiled down to: Jesus is better. The author uses Melchizedek, Abraham, Moses, the Tabernacle, and more to make the point that Jesus is...
Studying the basics of Christianity begins with our relationship with God. All people are born completely sinful as rebellious enemies of God. The way to be right with God is not by comparison to others or good works but through faith in Jesus by the...
I love my life. I have incredible friends, a wonderful church, a great job, and ways I can serve. But unfortunately, like so many of us, I forget how big my blessing is. This morning I felt jealousy because I am “alone”— wanting to be...
The term “already but not yet” is something that sunk in for the first time when I started coming to Grace Church, and I haven’t been able to get it out of my head since we started our study of Hebrews. This is the very...
The Christian life is marked by faithful endurance produced by confidence and trust in Jesus. We are able to love others and suffer well through the painful situations of our fragile world because we look forward to the hope and promise of our future reward...
I believe one of Satan's greatest tools is shame. He wields it delicately and tactfully, yielding a greater blow than much else can muster. It slides into our hearts after being whispered in our ears and grows and divides like a cancer, forming new lies...
Last week, we were reminded of the access to God that we have through Jesus; our need for access is met in Jesus and no longer in the tabernacle. Although the forgiveness of sins used to come through the sacrifice of animals again and again,...
I love a good children’s story; I love the way it engages youth and adults in equal measure. Some of these stories will undoubtedly be considered classics for as long as books are read: The Chronicles of Narnia, The Hobbit, The Giver, even Dr. Seuss....
On April 26, those interested in launching Grace Church Travelers Rest met for the second time to discuss the status of the campus. Although we do not have a facility yet, we are excited to move forward with the campus launch as we look for...
Although the tabernacle was once a holy place of worship instituted by God, the writer of Hebrews reminds the Hebrew people of its limitations and ultimate failure to perfectly reconcile us to God. The tabernacle was only a precursor to the perfect tabernacle that we...
The Hebrew people tend to find security and rest in the old ways of the old covenant, but the author attempts to introduce them to the new covenant where they can find hope once for all. Although we cannot identify with the familiarity of the...
I've always been fascinated by small towns. Maybe it was the teaser I got by growing up on the edge of an old family farm, or maybe it was my overactive, Tom-Sawyer-and-Laura-Ingalls-Wilder mind, but I've always been irresistibly drawn to a Mayberry lifestyle on the...
As we have continued to walk through the book of Hebrews, the big idea remains the same: Jesus is Greater. Although the Hebrew audience is still caught in the old ways of a Levitical priesthood to grant access to God, the solution the author gives...