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Paul came also to Derbe and to Lystra. A disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek. He was well spoken of by the brothers at Lystra and Iconium. (Acts 16:1-2)

I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well. (2 Timothy 1:5)

But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing f

Remember God's Faithfulness

"Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be know to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:4-7)

As you are reading this, we are twelve days into the new year.

I am not sure how

Commission

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’ (Matthew 28:18-20)

Final Instructions.

Possibly one of the most discussed and memorized texts in the Bible is (Matthew 28:18-20). Known as "the

Lord Over Creation

And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, ‘Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?’ And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, ‘Peace! Be still!’ And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, ‘Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?’ And they were filled with great fear and said

Let It Shine

And he said to them, “Is a lamp brought in to be put under a basket, or under a bed, and not on a stand? For nothing is hidden except to be made manifest; nor is anything secret except to come to light.”(Mark 4:21-23, ESV)

In the verses above, the lamp represents the gift of the gospel which brings life to those who are dead in sin. In the same way that a light is placed in a home to benefit everyone in the room, so it is with the gospel in the world.

Jesus places an o

Lord of the Sabbath

One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields, and as they made their way, his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. And the Pharisees were saying to him, “Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?"

And he said to them, “Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God, in the time of Abiathar the high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not la

Celebrate

Now John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, “Why do John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?” And Jesus said to them, “Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast on that day. No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth

An Outcast Calling Outcasts

He went out again beside the sea, and all the crowd was coming to him, and he was teaching them. And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.(Mark 2:13-14)

Jesus had been “going throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons” (Mark 1:39). His teaching coupled with the miracles he performed caused many to follow after Him.

However, not everyone was

Greatest Need

Please, first find your Bible and read Mark 2:1-12.

I’ll give you a moment to do that. Hmm, Hmm—ok now…thanks for indulging me!

Now let’s get to it.

Jesus had returned to Capernaum after ministering throughout Galilee. His reputation had grown to the point where people stood outside of homes just to hear his teaching. A certain citizen of Capernaum, unable to walk on his own, was brought to Jesus by the man's friends, for a particular purpose. They had heard that Jesu

Clean

"And a leper came to him, imploring him, and kneeling said to him, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean." - Mark 1:40-42

For a Jewish person living in Palestine, one of the worst things that could happen was to contract leprosy.

Leprosy describes a variety of skin disorders characterized by a wide range of symptoms. I pa

Priority

"And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, and they found him and said to him, Everyone is looking for you." - Mark 1:35-37

The word priority comes from the word prior, which means to come before something else.

A priority is a concern, interest, or desire that comes before anything else. We have all heard folks tell us to "get

Come Sundown

“That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. And the whole city was gathered together at the door. And he healed many who were sick with various diseases and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.” Mark 1:32-34

You may read this as I did and ask,

“Why did they wait until evening to go to Jesus? Why didn't they go home immediately from the Synagogue, fetch their sick and oppress

Quite the Day

“And immediately he left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon's mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them.” (Mark 1:29-31, ESV)

Jesus had already had quite the day!

First, He had been preaching in the synagogue, then was driving out demons from a possessed man who was there (Ma

Proven Savior

"Passing alongside the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And Jesus said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men.’ And immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. And immediately he called them, and they left their father Zebedee in the boat

Why We Can Hope This Year

As I write, it is the first day of a new year.

It is normal to look back at the previous 365 days and assess all that has happened. For some, 2021 has been one of great blessing and favor. For others, you are experiencing loss. For many, a bit of both. 

Now, looking at the prospect of the next 364 days, 13 hours and 45 minutes (the time is 9:15am as I am writing), if the Lord wills, you may be wondering what these coming days will bring. Will it be more of the same? Wi