The Encouragement Blog

Lots of people give God the heave-ho when things in their lives don’t go according to plan. Prayers are sent upward to Jesus asking Him to bless the business, the kids and to watch over their flight when they take off from JFK. We recite a “wish list” for God to tend to as we clamor about thinking of new

We carry around the chains of pride and self-centeredness that prevent us from asking God to unlock the manacles of hopelessness. Some of us are afraid to trust Christ because we don’t really believe He will get our lives right. We fall into the trap of thinking that a life in Christ is all about rules and regulations. It isn’t.

Taking our faith in Jesus to work or out with our friends is an intimidating thing. We are considered wimps or worse for believing in Jesus, and we get confronted with tough questions. People want to know why a “loving” God allows starvation in Africa or massive earthquakes in poor countries or a gunman killing six-year-old kids at school. They

What is a person worth? What are we worth? What are you worth? Do you ever sit alone after a tough day or in the midst of a busy life and ponder the question, “What am I worth?” Most of us do from time to time. The problem is that we look for the answers in the wrong places. In

We are all bombarded with self-help programs; programs to treat violent anger, addiction, and other behavioral abnormalities. Sometimes our anger management classes bump into our 12-Step AA and NA schedules. If we are not in group therapy, we are in book clubs that discuss Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Most of these give good advice and counsel.

When Jesus was gathering His disciples, He would often say “Come and See” to them to encourage the men to investigate and observe something about which they were skeptical. As we enter into 2016, make a simple resolution to focus on one thing. That should be Jesus. Many of us are unsure about who Jesus really was…or is… In 2016

  The fairy tales like Cinderella and Snow White all revolve around a damsel in distress being rescued by a handsome prince. These stories are timeless and were our favorites and now are the favorites of our children. Evil surrounds our heroine and she faces death and poverty unless someone comes to her rescue. Events always look dire and awful

Lots of people give God the heave-ho when things in their lives don’t go according to plan. Prayers are sent upward to Jesus asking Him to bless the business, the kids and to watch over their flight when they take off from JFK. We recite a “wish list” for God to tend to as we clamor about thinking of new

Nobody goes to hell because they are homosexual…or adulterers…or child molesters…or murderers…or greedy, mean and dishonest. No, people walk willingly into hell (that place where God is not) for one reason and one reason alone. They do not have a right relationship with Jesus. These things listed above are symptomatic of a life that is out of kilter. It’s a