Unashamed: Take Me As I Am

Excerpt from “Chapter 5: Take Me As I Am” of Unashamed by Lecrae   The final night of the conference was New Year’s Eve. All the attendees were gathering in the hotel ballroom for a message and a concert before the countdown to midnight. I was typically late, so I had to sit in the overflow room where Pastor James White’s sermon was live streaming from the main room. Something about this…

Drop Off

This action-packed family adventure tale from the director of Where the Red Fern Grows is for everyone who’s ever dreamt of instant millions! After a duffel bag with a million dollars is dropped in their path while out bike riding, 13-year-old Tim Parker and his buddies believe they finally have an answer to their problems. Each of them desperately needs financial security and is on the brink…

The God of Hope

Hope is not a passive wishing for something better – it is active anticipation of a positive outcome. In biblical terms, hope is reality based on God’s goodness. It improves today by setting your sights on a better tomorrow! Of course, hope needs a valid source to be of lasting value. Hope that is not based in truth may make your present better but will collapse over time. That’s what makes…

Living in the Promises of God

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28, NIV). Let me see a show of hands, “Who would like a little suffering today?” Not too many. Let me rephrase the question, “Who is looking to be embarrassed today?” Wait a minute, “How about some good old-fashioned desperation? The kind that makes you pull up…

Three Essentials for a Strong Spiritual Foundation

The word “foundation” is defined as the ground on which other parts rest or are overlaid, like the base on which a house is built or the roots of a tree. Without a strong foundation, neither could withstand the storms that various seasons bring. Similarly, without a strong spiritual foundation, you cannot withstand the storms of life that you may be facing — whether they are financial,…

Complete Commitment

“If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”—Matthew 19:21 NKJV When Antony of Egypt turned 20, he inherited his parents’ wealth. But these earthly riches left him unsatisfied. Real change only took place after he pondered the story from Matthew 19 where Jesus told a young man if he wanted to be perfect, he…

Talking to Your Children About Tragedy

Watching my children hurt is one of the hardest things for me as a parent. There are moments where I am completely powerless to take their pain away. I can still recount many of them. My son has an undiagnosed neuromuscular disease, which has meant many scary and painful medical tests. My daughter has a benign rapid heartbeat condition, which is frightening when it kicks in at 200 BPM. Her eyes…

Movie Review: Grace and Gravity

According to a report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and posted on the National Institute of Mental Health’s website, in 2017 “suicide was the tenth leading cause of death overall in the United States, claiming the lives of over 47,000 people.” In that year alone, there were 47,173 suicides in the U.S., compared to 19,510 homicides. With the prevalence of…

Logs, Specks, and Hearts Serving Him

“And why worry about a speck in your friend’s eye when you have a log in your own? How can you think of saying to your friend, ‘Let me help you get rid of that speck in your eye,’ when you can’t see past the log in your own eye? Hypocrite! First, get rid of the log in your own eye; then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend’s eye” (Matthew 7:3-5). Recently, after the…

Grace and Gravity

While on work assignment in the UK, American John Palmer is shocked when he discovers Chris Arnold, a British atheist who is about to end his life by jumping from a bridge. John is desperate to keep the man from killing himself so he decides to talk with Chris and share his Christian faith. But as he begins his conversation, he is angrily rejected by Chris, a sharp-witted former pastor turned…