in faith

What does Scripture say in regard to obeying the laws of the land? Should we as Christians subject ourselves to those laws, or do we obey a higher authority? What if that law requires us to sin--or to aid others in the commission of that sin? Our conversation continues--but is not yet finished--in this week's episode.

Are we free from the law of the land once we receive Christ? We've been given complete forgiveness, we're told; why are we still punished on earth? From an unlikely source we get some insight into this question.

In today's episode we dive further into our previous Isaiah passage and ask: how can a good God "create the blacksmith who fans the flames and forges a weapon fit for its work"? Turns out, God uses weapons devised by the enemy to accomplish His will throughout Scripture. It may sound messy, and we may not like it, but it's a part of God worth exploring.

"It's a small world," they say, and east is not so far from west. Or is it? Just how far does God remove our transgressions from us, according to Psalm 103? Listen in for a message of hope for those seeking forgiveness.

Christianity is meant to offer a lot of hope, love, forgiveness...it can seem, to hear some talk, that a life following Christ is a lot better than one rejecting him. And in many ways, that's true. But if we're only concerned with the material, natural world, a life in Christ can be...hard. Things still go badly, sometimes. We don't always get what we want. Our path forward seems blocked or broken. And all those happy Scriptures start to ring hollow. What do we do? How do we respond? Listen in for some (hopefully) helpful things to consider.

Welcome (officially) to the new season of In Faith! Today we introduce this session as we ask ourselves an old question reimagined: when you prioritize, when you choose an action, a path, an idea--who do you do it for? Yourself? Your spouse? Your parents? Your friend? If you consider yourself a follower of Christ, do you do it for him? I would encourage you to--and I do, in this episode!

This week we finish out Genesis by mining a couple nuggets of faith and wisdom from chapters 46 through 50: inflicting our own grief when we don't trust God; sketchy government deals; another early example of God shunning favoritism; another prophecy of Christ; and the reassurance of forgiveness. It's been a great ride, and I'm thankful for all who came along. New season next week!

As we read Genesis 42-45 we see Joseph take his brothers on a journey of repentance and forgiveness, and leaves us some nuggets of wisdom as we seek our own path of forgiving others according to New Testament teaching. It can be difficult, but God's grace is. enough to help us on our way.

When God promises us something--through a dream, like Joseph, or through His Word, or through other people--how much are you willing to go through to see it fulfilled? What are you willing to give up? Joseph went through a lot, but saw God's faithfulness. 

We look today at a strange set of chapter, documenting two cases where "God's People" didn't act very godly, and--what's up with genealogies? Why should we care? Listen in to find out!

Sneak preview of the upcoming Topics in Faith series--Jesus' miracle of walking on water was unprecedented. Why this miracle? The answer sounds like a punchline, except for its profound relevance to our lives.

We all wrestle for blessings from God and from Man--but should we? Or should we ask and let what comes, come? We start with Jacob as he slowly reconciles with everyone he's cheated, then look at ways we, too, wrestle and cheat.

Not only does He provide, but His providence is up to him--not us. If He promises to care for us, He will, even if we stray.

In Faith is back after a 19-month hiatus! Here's what's been happening, why we're back, and how we can "mourn on the way," as it were.

Another week, another Special Episode--changes are coming! Spring is in the air, motivation was down the drain, and a golden opportunity to grow my faith in God is here. Lots to discuss, and more to come, take a listen and let me know what you think!