Faithful Writers

Pain, grief, betrayal, exhaustion — Jesus knows it all firsthand. Not because He’s omniscient, but because He lived it. That’s what makes this personal.

Fear and grief can overwhelm, but God’s promises remain. Reacting to Charlie Kirk’s death, we learn to trust Him in the wake of sorrow.

It’s what makes us morally responsible before God. He gave us a will so that love and obedience could be genuine, not robotic. God doesn’t force obedience — He invites it. The will is where we answer that invitation.

I’ve learned that consistency isn’t about striving in my own strength but surrendering to God each day. By focusing less on impressing others and more on growing in obedience, I discovered the joy of simply getting things done—and even started to fall in love with the process I once resisted.

Worry never actually fixes anything, but we keep doing it like it’s our job, don’t we? Jesus talked about this and shared several practical solutions. They’re not deep theology. Just real, day-to-day stuff.

Lot tried to offer up his daughters to be abused by the drunk men in town. Joseph was kidnapped and sold into slavery by his brothers. Job lost everything he owned, and almost everyone he loved. The woman at the well had been through five husbands and avoided everyone in town (it may not be explicitly written, but you can’t tell me there wasn’t pain there). Jesus was run out of town, beaten, mocked, mortally betrayed by his close friend, nailed to a cross and killed.

God is the World Cup Champion when it came to creating a definitive, active, and dynamic vocabulary on how we are to be and what we need to do. Don’t think God doesn’t expect you to put in a little elbow grease here.

Now, you might be saying, “If you know the tips, how do you fall to the bottom of the well?” Because it’s not magic. We’re all living real life here and — for whatever reasons — I’m sometimes tripped up along the way.

We all have friends who operate between the hours of 8 and 5. But will they be there on moving weekend? Or drive to pick you up if your car breaks down? Are they available 24/7? This is why so many people feel lonely at church. Like-minded people surround them. But none of them are friends.

‎Some people are toxic, some are not meant for you. You need to do a deliberate act of sieving the number of people on your friend list, contact list, et cetra.

When the Psalmist wrote, “The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord,” he didn’t say that they’re hard to find, specific steps.” There’s wiggle room. There’s grace. There’s space to learn as you go. God doesn’t yank the rug out every time you hesitate.

I managed to be perfectly still. I knew our lives that night depended on that stillness. His anger and agitation were palatable in the air.

But Juneteenth 2025 commemorates a special day for all Jewish people because it celebrates an event that Christians will never entirely understand. While most Christians dwell in the “New Testament,” we should read and fully appreciate the Book of Esther.

We usually come to God ready to unload.But good conversation starts with listening. Scripture gives us God’s side of the conversation — His tone, His heart, His repeated themes of mercy, justice, presence, and love.

Doubt was treated like a disease. If you had doubts, you were either backsliding, disobedient, or not truly saved. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, it was the process of dealing with doubt that I discovered a richer relationship with Christ.

I studied both evolution and creationism in high school, and while I admit to not enjoying evolution, it has helped me defend my own beliefs to others better.

This isn’t the kind of life you can fake with a forced smile or spiritual performance. This is the kind of life that seeps out of your pores, even when you’re tired, even when you’re flawed, even when you’re unsure.

Recognition. Reward. At least a little celebration. But it didn’t come. Instead, I watched people walk away from the church, come back, and get welcomed like heroes. I clapped on the outside. But inside, I was thinking: Really? That’s it? Just throw them a party and move on?

Jesus loves the assembly line workers and the remote salespeople who only check in occasionally via Zoom. But he delights in the worker who knocks in person. Imagine his smile when you put a couple of donuts on his desk.

Wow! Why did I think the response would be a prequel to “The Terminator”? I looked for a drone circling overhead. But the sky was clear. And none of my bank accounts were frozen. No sixes appeared on my right hand or forehead.

Suddenly, we weren’t in buildings anymore.We weren’t being led by a stage team with fog machines and countdown timers. We weren’t sipping free coffee between services or navigating church apps to register for “authentic community.” And many of us didn’t miss it.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: a lot of what we were told about Jesus isn’t from Jesus. It’s our denominational image.

Your first reaction to a prayer request and your action says a lot about you and your relationship with God. 

I grew up with the impression that doubt was something to repent of. Like it was mold on your spiritual fruit. But when I look at scripture with fresh eyes, the ones God seemed to draw nearest were often full of questions.