Hurricane Sandy hit the Northeast Coast shortly after Matt’s sermon on 1Timothy 5. He talked about how the Church's credibility and the power of the gospel are linked to how we fulfill the needs of the truly vulnerable. Our family along with a couple of other men...
“Tell the people at Grace that we love them, we are thankful for them, and we are praying for their work in America.” I heard some version of this from pastors and church leaders over and over again in the highlands of central Kenya, and...
In the Bible, we see examples of women who did not live Spirit-directed lives because they were not following God. Their primary goal seemed to be to direct and manage everyone around them to get what they wanted....
When you don’t have time to say much or your words are limited, do you use your words to encourage or criticize? To build up or tear down? What is your legacy with your voice?...
I blew it…AGAIN! As we left the church parking lot, I was in a hurry to get to Lowe’s. This elderly couple in front of me had the audacity to drive five miles less than the posted speed limit. ...
In recent years (and with good reason) the traditional short-term missions trip has come under plenty of scrutiny. Are these trips really worth the effort, time, and money we invest in them? Joey Espinosa, a Grace Church member serving Allendale County, speaks to this question...
In the midst of a recent crisis, God showed one of our readers how he can use all things for his glory and for good, even the most painful situations....
There is silence. Everyone’s mouths are closed and a single vocalist steps up to the microphone. She takes a deep breath and releases an effortless stream of pure tone. This audio-joy fills the room and the beauty cleans you from the inside out. This is a...
The following is a brief summary of Bernard Kabaru's teaching this past Tuesday night (July 31) which was attended by 130 Grace Church members. Bernard is our primary partner in the country of Kenya, and he served us through this lecture by giving us the...
Denise Belk comments from San Jorge, Nicaragua on some things she is learning about cross-cultural ministry. She is one of twenty Grace Church members in Nicaragua for a full week of ministering through medical clinics, construction projects, children's ministry, and pastoral training. At debrief this week,...
The Oxford dictionary will tell you that the English word ‘worship’ is derived from the old English weorthscipe, which means ‘worthiness, acknowledgement of worth’. It denotes anything that is of supreme worth or value. Obviously, that’s not where the Greek, Aramaic, or Hebrew word comes...
“Where do you worship?” It’s a normal enough question. Around 2000 years ago this was the type of question the one woman used to sidetrack a conversation she was having with Jesus (John 4). The scene is pure genius on Jesus’s part. This is classic Messiah-stuff....
Putting on a bathing suit is the bane of my summer existence!! I am not at all excited about moving from being fully clothed to wearing a swim suit!...
Worship is not an activity. It is a state of being. It has activities and acts of service, but it is first and foremost an attribute of humanness. You aren't a worshipper because you believe in a god, sing songs of adoration, or engage in...
This past week, I was able to go on the high school student ministries trip to Allendale, SC. As a Culturally Engaged intern, I had heard a lot about the area and the ways that Grace Church is partnering with people in Allendale/Fairfax. Having...
The definition of transition is a process or a period of changing from one state or condition to another. Words used to describe a transition are passage, change and crossing. We transition from school to summer. For most, it’s a welcomed and...
She had so many things running through her head during the Ezer conference. She had spent years trapped in the guilt, shame and remorse she felt from sexual sin in her 20’s. Praise God that he had set her free indeed!...
He works so hard every day. She can’t imagine the pressure he feels from bearing the weight of his job along with leading his familly. Sometimes she is in awe of the godly man he is!...
She stays up late almost every night, telling herself she has chores to do, emails that need responses, and her favorite show to watch. But really, she’s just avoiding a sexual encounter....
Her mother was abused, wounded and discarded. Her mother associated sexuality with evil and passed that down to her daughters. Her mother would tell her that she had a prostitute spirit and that giving herself to a man was dangerous and wicked....
She just can’t seem to get that old flame out of her mind. That relationship was so much more exciting than this one, she thinks. Her husband is steady, but life has gotten boring and predictable. Their sex life is ho-hum. ...
“How can he be upset?” she thinks to herself. Wasn’t she thinking of him when she wrote on her list, “make time for hubby?” She doesn’t know what he expects of her. He should be happy that she recognizes that she must...
It all began innocently for Miriam. She received a message on Facebook from an old crush that simply said, “Beautiful family. You’re looking better than ever.” It brought a smile and even some butterflies to get a compliment from this man who...
She was out with a man with whom she enjoys spending time. Together they watched what initially seemed like a “harmless” movie....
She puts the kids in bed after a long day and is anxious to sit back with a drink and watch her favorite drama on TV. She feels like this is exactly what she needs after a long day. ...