Author: Pastor John
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Softening a Hard Heart
I’m pretty sure that no one wakes up and says, “I want to have a callous heart.” Nor do they say, “I want to rebel against the good that God has planned for me.” Yet, we’ve all done it. How did we get there? Can we get back? Romans 1:21 For even though they knew…
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Know His Love
There is just something about Christmas. I don’t know if it is the lights or the time with family or if it is the feel-good movies, but it seems that so many people are talking about love this time of year. They aren’t talking about infatuation or romance like they do in February. They talk…
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Do We Have to Choose Between the Manger and the Cross?
During the Christmas season we think about Jesus coming as a baby. There is wonder here. There is a miracle. Yet, do we sometimes we get stuck in Bethlehem and the manger? He was born for a purpose. He was born not to simply be adored. He came to save. Let us never forget it. …
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Giving Up the Terrible Toos
I have a suspicion. I don’t think we ever grow out of the terrible twos. Wait, no, I think we do grow out of those terrible twos. But, we exchange them for a different set of terrible toos. Do you know what type of ‘toos’ I mean? We think, “I’m too old.” Or, “I’m too…
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Thanksgiving Clears the Eyes
At this time of year we hear people say words of gratitude. We have thanksgiving services. We gather together for the thanksgiving meal. Yet, being truly thankful can be a struggle. There are many obstacles to thankfulness. The first is a struggle with circumstances. The struggle is our focus. We focus on what we don’t…
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When God is Important to Us, We Find Joy
What moves you? What makes your heart beat with passion or your eyes light up? It’s worth it, isn’t it? It’s worth the effort. It’s worth the struggle. It’s joy! Matthew 13:44 “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid again; and from joy over…
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Peace, Angst, and the American Way
The early Superman comics said that he stood for, “Truth, justice, and the American way.” I think that we could say that today we might stand for peace, angst and the American way. We say we want peace. Yet we choose angst. Angst is so common. We have angst over relationships. We have angst over…
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Faith, Love, and God
There’s as song from the 20th century that asks this question: “What’s love got to do with it?” When we think about the things we believe and put our faith in, we usually think about its truth. However, over and over in the Word of God we are told that our faith is placed in…
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Fear & Hope
Fear is all around us. We watch scary movies. We are afraid because of terrorists, diseases, and natural disasters. We are afraid for our children, our parents, ourselves. So when we read in the Scriptures to not be afraid, it can appear to be a pipe dream. What is this power that God seems to…
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The Gift of Hope
This happens to us every Christmas. Invariably we accidentally leave a present unopened under the tree. It is behind the trunk. The rug we put down to catch the needles is partially covering it. How fun it is to find the gift hours after the official opening time! We say it is the Christmas that…
Pastor John D Jakes 