Consider a temptation you struggle with, or that someone else you know has difficulty overcoming. Imagine yourself, or this person, out in the wilderness as Jesus was, and the devil comes to bring this temptation once again. How would you fight back?

“Prayer is both conversation and encounter with God . . . We must know the awe of praising His glory, the intimacy of finding His grace and the struggle of asking His help, all of which can lead us to know the spiritual reality of His presence.” –Tim Keller When I was getting to know my husband, and throughout our marriage, I wanted to spend as much time with him as possible. I loved having conversations with him about so many different things! Sometimes when we were together

Parents want their children to grow spiritually strong, yet many parents don’t feel comfortable training them to seek the Father in prayer. If you are struggling with raising up a praying family, here are some suggestions to help you! Step out in faith and learn to pray with and for one another. Be intentional about giving your children opportunities to recognize God’s presence in the midst of your family’s everyday life! If you feel uncomfortable with prayer, be committed t

Perhaps no spiritual discipline today is as much misunderstood as fasting. Why to fast, how to fast, when to fast, how long to fast, what type of fast, SHOULD I fast…etc. In simplest terms, fasting means to abstain from food for a period of time for a spiritual purpose or goal. As a Christian, obviously the first question we need to ask is, “What does Jesus say about this?” It is obvious in Scripture that Jesus fasted, but because He did, does that mean that we ought to as we

One of the problems that most of us have with praying is that we instinctively know that prayer isn’t about getting what I want from God. It’s about God’s will being accomplished. Yet, there are things we want God to do that are very important to us. How do we reconcile these things?

As I have grown in my approach to prayer, I’ve learned more specific requests, especially in using the Word of God to help format and provide content for my prayers.

This is an important question, as the majority of Christian couples, even pastoral couples, don’t make this a regular practice. Yet it is probably the most fulfilling and divorce-proofing thing any couple can engage in.

There are days, seasons, or events in all of our lives that sometimes seem to paralyze our hearts and leave no words available to us for prayer. When this happens, the first thing to do is remember that God is still there.

Let’s face it! Many of us struggle to stay focused when we pray. Our culture is busy and there are so many things vying for our attention. What are some simple ways to combat the wandering mind when we want to focus our attention on God in prayer? Choose times for focused prayer when you are most mentally alert. If mornings are your best time of day, get up a bit early to meet with God. Grab a cup of coffee or tea, your Bible, journal, and a blanket if needed. We are to pray

As with anything new you undertake, the more you practice praying out loud, the more confident and comfortable you will become.

If you are a Christian and you need something, the first place you should turn is to the Lord. Jesus teaches us that we are to ask for anything we need, even for daily bread. That’s how dependent on Him we are to be. It seems to me then, that if I want to grow in prayer, the first place to go is to God. So, I suggest praying about prayer. Isn’t it interesting, and maybe a bit sad, that we struggle so much in prayer, and yet never come to the Lord and ask Him to help us to pra

The Angers Bridge was constructed in the early 1800s and used successfully for many years to cross the Maine River in Angers, France. Until April 16, 1850. In the midst of a violent thunderstorm, 486 French soldiers were walking in cadence across the bridge. The combination of the swaying of the bridge in the storm and the powerful resonance created by the lock-step of the soldiers caused the suspension cables to snap, plunging 226 men to their death. To this day, military ra

https://vimeo.com/37549858 There are a lot of good definitions of revival. My favorite is very simple: It’s when God shows up for church. It’s that very special time in a life of the people of God when they begin to experience the presence of Jesus Christ in a fresh new way. You might be thinking: Now, isn’t that the way it’s supposed to always be? That’s probably the case, but the truth of the matter is, most of us can go to church Sunday after Sunday after Sunday and

Pursuing God There are certain things God plans to do that are not conditioned upon any response from man—steps He plans to take regardless of our responses. But there are many things He promises to us that are completely conditional. One of these is seeing and experiencing Him in increasing intimacy. Consider both an Old Testament and New Testament instruction: “To him who orders his way aright I will show the salvation of God” (Psalm 50:23 NASB).Pursue peace with all men, a

Confession of our sin is a very important exercise. It should happen every day, because we sin every day. But there is great confusion about real confession. Biblical confession is not doing good works to get God to approve of us. It is also not a light, mindless recounting of our sins to make sure we get everything covered. The word confess in the Greek language means to “say the same thing as.” When a criminal confesses, he says the same thing that everyone else has been s