Waking Up Christian Every Christian in the world wakes up every morning as an alien and stranger whose true citizenship is in heaven (Philippians 3:20). Every day we wake up, we know that our first loyalty is to our God (Acts 5:29), who holds us responsible to submit to our governing authorities (Romans 13:1). Spend some time reading and meditating…

Over the course of JG's time in youth ministry, I have had the opportunity to watch the Holy Spirit grab a hold of his heart and to instill in him how uniquely gifted and loved he is. JG brings joy and passion to the students he serves, to us as leaders, and to the body as he leads in worship.…

I have been one of the fortunate ones to have a good and gracious Heavenly Father and a good and gracious earthly father. My daddy, Ray Eaves, was born on a farm in east Tennessee, and the urge to farm remained a part of his life until the day he went to heaven. When I was born in 1943, he…

Five letters. One word…masks! Gonna keep it real with you. I probably shouldn't give my opinion on this since it's kind of a loaded political like topic, but…I loathe masks. I can’t breathe well in them, my cheeks muffin top right over the edges, and they are uncomfortable. Do I wear them? Yes, I wear them in stores. Do I…

We have another opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus in our community. City of Hope has an urgent need for blood donors! Would you consider giving blood sometime in the next few weeks to help replenish their supply? Patients at City of Hope - most of whom are fighting cancer - rely on more than 37,000 units…

One of our local food banks needs our help! Their pantry shelves are empty and they have hundreds of families coming weekly for their drive-through distribution. We would love to help meet this need and show God's care for our community in this tangible way. Here’s what you can do: 1. FILL A BAG (or two!) with non-perishable items on the…

Recently we introduced the #jesuschangedmylife challenge to our junior high and high school students. I wanted to take a minute and explain our heart behind this challenge and how students and parents (or anyone really!) can participate in it! Initiated by a church in Los Angeles, this movement was designed to give believers an opportunity to share their faith with others during this…

42 days . . . I reached 42 days before I broke. In beautiful Southern California, we continue to live the quarantine life. My three boys continue to try learning with mom and dad as their teachers. My wife Celia keeps us all sane while at the same time running a company remotely. As for me, I work from my…

When we decided to start praying in January – Father, pour out your Spirit on us and move us forward together – we had no idea that within two months we would enter into a worldwide crisis and pandemic. We had no idea we would be living these types of lives week in and week out. We had really good…

Easter is coming, a joyful celebration of Christ’s resurrection and the defeat of sin and death. Yet to fully enter into that joy, we must first enter into Jesus’ suffering. Good Friday reminds us that Easter came at an incredible cost. It shows us a picture of humanity at its worst, and it shows us a picture of God’s selfless…