Archive for March 2020

A couple, in their late 60’s, had their home explode and burn to the ground. Everything was gone. How would you respond? It’s not difficult for us to imagine them being angry, bitter,…

Francis shares how he was recently having a pity party, which he described as the loneliest party of all. Only one person attends: you. Even God doesn’t show up. There’s no…

The purpose in life is to become like Jesus…our Creator. There is no greater purpose. In Him we see our true IDENTITY. Living out becoming like Jesus is our DESTINY.…

Sometimes we hear what we want to hear. We expect what we hope will happen. But, our expectations often collide with God’s. That’s when we lose hope. One of our biggest challenges today, in order to have…

Sometimes we hear what we want to hear. We expect what we hope will happen. But, our expectations often collide with God’s. That’s when we lose hope. One of our biggest challenges today, in order to have…

Some of the buzzwords that are trending today are: authentic, real, genuine, unrehearsed. That’s why the next generation is into Jimmy Fallon, because anything can happen, when you are watching Jimmy. We have a generation that has been hyped to death. The screw has…

We seem to understand and even glorify “Heroes,” from “Super Heroes” to “Unsung-Heroes,” but it’s harder to comprehend “Martyrs.” Perhaps, the reason we would never consider dying for Jesus is because we haven’t fully known Him. Francis…

When Francis began to pastor in 1997, he knew that God had called him to help people process how to live a fruitful, abundant Christian life in a crazy world. So, he…

There are three questions every child asks of his or her mother – but they never ask them out loud, consciously or directly. Grown children are still asking these questions of their aging moms. “Mom, do you…

God wants to give each of us a fresh start. Every day’s a brand new beginning. You had a great day yesterday. Wonderful! But, it’s over. You may have had…

We are all in a battle! We’ve never seen our enemy with our natural eyes. As we must walk by faith, so we must fight by faith. I read the Word of God by faith. I pray by faith. I repent by faith. I love people by faith. I fight the fight of faith. You…

Sometimes we just want someone to hug us and say, “I know it’s hard. You’re going to be okay. Here’s a coffee, and 5 million dollars.” Devastations will happen in each of…

We’re all going to possess and be possessed by something. Yet, there’s a gift, an inheritance God wants to give you, but you’ll have to fight for it. We don’t wrestle against flesh and blood, but spiritual wickedness in…

We have to reclaim our childhood in order to claim our future inheritance. Jesus is the One who intercedes for each of us. He forgives us when we sin against…

Abandonment is the ransacking of the soul. It invades the most protected parts of our heart and leaves them in tatters. Lack of emotional nurturing by a father or mother…

Francis writes in his book, Father Wounds, “As a pastor, I’ve seen the damage parents have inflicted on thousands of people I’ve met and cared for. I’ve seen firsthand the…

Suffering and patience are Siamese twins. If you want Patience, you’ll have to receive the other sister called Suffering. Though we’d all love to see the word “short” before “suffering” in the Bible, for…

No one in God’s eyes is least or on the fringes. Of the ten lepers that Jesus healed, only one came back to give thanks, and he was a Samaritan. When Jesus was…

Francis does a study in the Book of Exodus, explaining that the plagues of Egypt were connected to the gods of Egypt. The Egyptians were really the secondary audience. They…

Enlightenment, means walking in the light of God’s will and purpose for your life. It is the only way to experience true freedom. In the Garden of Eden, Adam and…

If you see a parent who has a child that’s in trouble in an I. C. U ward, then you might very well find that parent praying more fervently than…

There are three faces of evil in this age, characterized by three men mentioned in one verse in the Bible, Jude 11. They are Cain, who killed his brother Abel,…

Francis discretely shares. In my youth, “I believed and acted out, desperate sex lies. It is always embarrassed. Talk about it. I have a beautiful wife, two gorgeous daughters, son-in-laws and (seven)…

Everything Jesus claimed about Himself. That He was God. That He was dying for the sins of the world. That He could give people eternal life. All of it hung…

In the Christian life, success means becoming one of God’s champions. It’s not an option. The Bible provides a clear strategy on how that can happen. Studying the life of the patriarch Joseph provides…

You and I are wired for perfect love. God is the Father we always wanted. He is the perfect Dad each of us desires and needs. Yet, many of us had fathers who were…

Irving Roth, an 84-year old Auschwitz Death Camp survivor, shares before the message, about surviving the Holocaust. It is a chilling account, told by an incredibly authentic and humble man. It…

There are four questions that come to mind when we are considering stepping out in courage. First: Is it really that serious, or am I overreacting? Second: Is there anyone else…

Each of us will either face our fears or cower from them. Victory in life requires courage. The most renowned American pilot during a war was Eddie Rickenbacker. By the…

Why am I here? What is God’s purpose? What does He want to do in me that would bring out the best in my life? It will take courage to…

Not many things amazed Jesus when He was on this Earth. Not many! But, one thing stood out, and frankly still amazes me today. The Bible says, “…because of their…

C. S. Lewis wrote this, “We never love anyone too much. The trouble is always that we love God or perhaps some other created being too little.” All of us have missed…

the character of Jesus Christ into the workplace. And, uh, you know, St. Francis of Assisi said. “Preached the gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words.” This is a perfect…

Shame says, “You’re feeling bad, because you’re inherently bad.” Guilt says, “You’ve done something wrong but if you respond well it will lead to freedom and victory.” Shame leads to bondage and death. Responding properly to Guilt leads to…

What could be so sad and dangerous to push someone into losing their faith? There is one truly deadly sin that is perhaps responsible. When the disciples asked Jesus how to pray, in what we call “the Lords Prayer” the only word that appears twice is the word: “forgive.”…

Compared to people around the world most Americans are rich. Tell someone from Cuba or Haiti you’re not rich. They don’t risk their lives to get here on rickety boats,…

Learning to trust God accesses the peace of mind that seems impossible to attain. Yet, it’s always within reach—with arms of faith. Believe God for the impossible. Not with presumption,…

In World War II, German soldiers were loading Jews destined to die in concentration camps into rail cars. A woman saw a soldier shoving a Jewish mother and her little girl toward the station. The…

There’s a vast difference between being a son or a servant in the Kingdom of God. It’s the difference between renting and buying. Ownership can alter our attitude and motive. When…

What Is God Trying To Tell Us That We’re Not Hearing? When religious leaders stoned Stephen, they were acting just like their fore-fathers. They were guilty of what they’d always been guilty of: rejecting God’s…

Are you aware of and prophetically prepared for what’s ahead? Paul the Apostle, after being told, chains and tribulations await him if he went to Jerusalem. He responded, “But none…

Do I have a real relationship with Jesus? Would someone look at my life and see an obvious presence or absence of the Holy Spirit. His peace and power in my life? What do I see when I look…

Are we confident and enthusiastic about our destiny in God? If there is no Creator, we have no destiny. If we evolved as a cosmic coincidence, from blobs or slime or frogs, then we have no ultimate purpose and no eternal value. We…

Are you willing to allow God to bring you to a new level of love and acceptance? The Book of Acts shows the gradual growth of the church in understanding and acceptance of…

The Book of Acts shows the spiritual battle between the eternal “realities” of Heaven, and the temporary “deceptions” of Earth. It is also a book that separates genuine spirituality from the fraud . . . Truth from lies. And it asks each of us this question: Am…

What will become of us? Will we degenerate into The Church in a Maze, cowering in delirium and delusion, sending up pleas of desperation for a heavenly shuttle to whisk us away? Or…

We are never to love at the expense of righteousness, and are never to be righteous at the expense of love. Real love is the greatest righteousness, and real righteousness is the greatest love. There…

Many modern academics say they want to discover the “true Jesus” and when they say this they often mean, “The true Jesus is not the Jesus of the Bible. The…

We are all hardwired to search for love. Nature can teach us many things about God. It can show us His wisdom, His intelligence, and His mighty power. But nature, in…

When it comes to sin, we can wait to get caught, or we can turn ourselves in. Sean Smith writes, “Deep down inside, the world wants to see someone who believes in something…

We’ll spend our whole lives trying to discern God’s heart, which is a heart of love. The love of God is wide and deep and high. The number one thing God…

The Holy Spirit has made it exceedingly clear to me that unless there is a mighty move of God in America, the Church cannot be revived, nor the lost awakened.…

Revival comes only from above. Yet, in cooperation with all that God longs to do in our lives, may the flame of the next great awakening ignite each of our…

Have you ever considered the possibility that the most strategic person to pray and believe for the salvation of those we love is…us? We may be their best shot at…

When it comes to sin, we can wait to get caught, or we can turn ourselves in. The former resists connection to God. The latter opens up an intimate relationship…

Loving relationships unveil the fabric of Heaven. Relational breaches break the heart of God. The root of these relational breakdowns is spiritual warfare. Their faces are human. Their roots are…

One of Jesus’ final requests to His Father was not merely that His followers would be one with Him, but that they would be one with each other. He even…