I somehow made it into my thirties without a major tragedy in my life. My adolescence was peppered with significant trials, suffering, pain, and the like, but I had no battling experience with a mighty all-consuming tragedy. Then last summer the sky opened up and...
21 Later Jesus said to them again, “I am going away. You will search for me but will die in your sin. You cannot come where I am going.” 22 The people asked, “Is he planning to commit suicide? What does he mean, ‘You cannot come...
24Seven on Mission was a local four-day and three-night mission trip that had 135 middle schoolers and over 50 adult leaders involved from seven Grace Church campuses. ...
Driving to lunch yesterday I saw a frightening thing. Another car had made a very wrong turn and was traveling the wrong way down an exit ramp of a major interstate, about to enter the wrong side of oncoming traffic! My first reaction was to...
30 “Forty years later, in the desert near Mount Sinai, an angel appeared to Moses in the flame of a burning bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he was amazed at the sight. As he went to take a closer look, the voice of the...
Often we find ourselves in seasons where we feel far from the work that God is doing. In Exodus 2, Moses’ circumstances leave him in a foreign land with a new family and far away from everything he had ever known. In what appears to...
1 But Moses protested again, “What if they won’t believe me or listen to me? What if they say, ‘The Lord never appeared to you’?” 2 Then the Lord asked him, “What is that in your hand?” “A shepherd’s staff,” Moses replied. 3 “Throw it down on the...
Each year, Grace Church sends four adult teams to Nicaragua who focus on pastoral training, church leadership training, and medical care. These teams serve with our partners, Christ for the City, and local church members with the goal of training pastors by equipping the local...
Caring for orphans through foster care and adoption can be difficult and draining. When we've been in our most difficult days we have been blessed by the volunteers who are willing to serve our family by playing with our children one night a month so...
1 One day Moses was tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro, the priest of Midian. He led the flock far into the wilderness and came to Sinai, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a blazing...
20 “At that time Moses was born—a beautiful child in God’s eyes. His parents cared for him at home for three months. 21 When they had to abandon him, Pharaoh’s daughter adopted him and raised him as her own son. 22 Moses was taught all...
22 It was by faith that Joseph, when he was about to die, said confidently that the people of Israel would leave Egypt. He even commanded them to take his bones with them when they left. 23 It was by faith that Moses’ parents hid him...
“Eventually, a new king came to power in Egypt who knew nothing about Joseph or what he had done" (Exodus 1:8). Historically and culturally, Ancient Egypt is fascinating to me. It was home to one of the oldest civilizations on Earth and was a major...
10 Meanwhile, Jacob left Beersheba and traveled toward Haran. 11 At sundown he arrived at a good place to set up camp and stopped there for the night. Jacob found a stone to rest his head against and lay down to sleep. 12 As he...
“He who guards his mouth preserves his life, but he who opens wide his lips shall have destruction” (Proverbs 13:3). The word of God speaks clearly about the power of the tongue to wound or heal. Throughout my life I have used the written word...
1 A severe famine now struck the land, as had happened before in Abraham’s time. So Isaac moved to Gerar, where Abimelech, king of the Philistines, lived. 2 The Lord appeared to Isaac and said, “Do not go down to Egypt, but do as I tell...
Much like the cross is the sign of God’s faithfulness to us in the New Testament, the book of Exodus and the cry of God’s people in Egypt is God’s reminder to His people of His faithfulness in the Old Testament. He heard our cry—He...
1 Some time later, the Lord spoke to Abram in a vision and said to him, “Do not be afraid, Abram, for I will protect you, and your reward will be great.” 2 But Abram replied, “O Sovereign Lord, what good are all your blessings when...
1 About this time, a man and woman from the tribe of Levi got married. 2 The woman became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She saw that he was a special baby and kept him hidden for three months. 3 But when she...
2 This was Stephen’s reply: “Brothers and fathers, listen to me. Our glorious God appeared to our ancestor Abraham in Mesopotamia before he settled in Haran. 3 God told him, ‘Leave your native land and your relatives, and come into the land that I will...
1 Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim his greatness. Let the whole world know what he has done. 2 Sing to him; yes, sing his praises. Tell everyone about his wonderful deeds. 3 Exult in his holy name; rejoice, you who worship the Lord. 4 Search for the Lord and...
One could easily be overwhelmed and confused by the many different translations available these days. The Scriptures were originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, which makes translation necessary—but why are there so many? And are they really all that different? Is one better than...
22 So Joseph and his brothers and their families continued to live in Egypt. Joseph lived to the age of 110. 23 He lived to see three generations of descendants of his son Ephraim, and he lived to see the birth of the children of...
I find myself in somewhat of a unique place when it comes to the power of words and how I have seen their power of death take over not in what was said, but in what was not said. Words that are spoken have the...
1 So Jacob set out for Egypt with all his possessions. And when he came to Beersheba, he offered sacrifices to the God of his father, Isaac. 2 During the night God spoke to him in a vision. “Jacob! Jacob!” he called. “Here I am,” Jacob...