Welcome to The Gospel Changes Everything Podcast, where, together, we'll explore how Jesus transforms us everyday.
To fear God is not to be afraid of God. If you are a true believer, who has put their faith in Christ alone for salvation then Christ has saved you forever from being afraid of God. Instead of being afraid of God, the fear of the Lord is holy desire to know this magnificent, […]
Should I Read the Bible in a Year? The short answer is “of course”. If you can set aside about 12-15 minutes per day to follow a Bible in a Year reading program then I would definitely do it. The benefits are worth it: You get to see the whole scope of the Bible. […]
Gentle and Lowly, by Dane Ortland One of the ways I engage with the Lord and learn from him is through journaling. Journaling for me is mainly writing out my prayers and conversations with the Lord. Journaling helps me interact and engage with the Holy Spirit. The other day I found myself wanting to […]
Have you ever wondered what Lent is? Or Ash Wednesday or why some people deny themselves of certain things for 40 days before Easter? Lent is the season of 40 days leading up to the celebration of the passion and the resurrection of Christ. “The first Christians observed with great devotion the days of our […]
My garage is packed with stuff. Golf clubs, fishing gear, power tools, painting supplies, beach chairs, bikes, rakes, shovels, sporting equipment, more fishing gear. And I do actually use about 20% of it. But I can’t get rid of it, I might need it someday. I’m not always that good at putting things back where […]
When I was in high school I used to memorize Scripture with a small group of guys I met with. We used the Navigators Topical Memory System in order to help us understand some of the foundational truths of the Christian faith. The system has you memorize 2 verses a week on a particular topic […]
For those of you who have been listening to this podcast for a while then you know that I often mention my Friday morning Men’s Bible Study. This is due to the fact that I usually write the content for these podcasts on Friday morning after our Bible study. And today is no different, except […]
Recently I was having a conversation with some friends about the topic of hope. With so many terrible things happening in the world and in our community we were saying that everyone needs hope. We all need something to hope for especially during a time when the Covid crisis has sent shockwaves through all of […]
Jacob Wrestles with God Genesis 32:22-32 Pre-Introduction This morning we arrive in Genesis 32 as we progress through this book of beginnings, and what we have been keying in on the book that begins God’s Covenantal promise to his people. We’ve seen the promise start with Adam and Eve that after they […]
Psalm 63 was written by David while he was in the wilderness of Judah. It is a Psalm that many run to when times are tough, when their spirituality seems a bit dry, or when life feels overwhelming. The beauty of the Psalm is that even though David finds himself in a dry and weary […]
Last week I was together with some staff at our church to discuss our Advent messages for this year. It was rich time to think about this season of waiting that leads up to the birth of Jesus. The Covid crisis cannot be underestimated in its impact or in our desire for it to be […]
Thanksgiving Message Are you really thankful for your family? 1 Thessalonians 1:2-3; 3:9 “We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” […]
Mark 4:35-41 35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” 36 And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. 37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were […]
Sermon: John 1:1-18 The Self-Centered Gospel Introduction: We talk about being followers of Jesus and spend a lot of time discussing what Jesus wants us to do. But do we talk enough about who Jesus actually is, what is the essence of Jesus? What characterizes Jesus? What are his attributes? And so I […]
There are two specific men that come to my mind when I think about people who always seem to have an upbeat positive attitude. But not just in the sense of “don’t worry be happy” but its a much deeper sense of trust and faith in Christ that I believe drives their joy. One was […]
I’ve been grumpy lately. I’m not particularly depressed or anxious but rather frustrated with life right now. It makes sense since we are in the middle of a global pandemic. We have had to drastically reorient ourselves to living in a world where masks are required. I’m so tired of the masks. I have one […]
You know that feeling when you’ve been hiding under the covers for too long breathing in your own recycled air, starting to get a little worried that no one will find you, and maybe a little scared of the dark too? Hiding is suffocating. We were not created to do this alone. I […]
As I’ve mentioned several times on this podcast, I’m in a Friday morning Bible study with a group of men from my church. And yes it is a true “Bible Study” where we pick a book of the Bible and study our way through it. It’s not just a book club where we choose a […]
All of Life is Repentance, by Tim Keller Martin Luther opened the Reformation by nailing “The Ninety-Five Theses” to the door of Wittenberg Cathedral. The very first of the theses was: “Our Lord and Master Jesus Christ.willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.” On the surface this looks a little bleak! […]
To find out more about Gospel-Centered Bible Study go to: www.gospelcenteredbiblestudy.com We are all looking to be satisfied. If we are thirsty we drink water. If we are hungry we eat food. If we are looking for pleasure then well, we look to all kinds of things. Our desire to be satisfied is not […]
The truth is that many of us have done some pretty horrific things in life. Many of us have lived lives that were brutally selfish, lives that destroyed relationships, lives that destroyed livelihoods. Many of us have things hidden deep in the recesses of our hearts that nobody knows about and we would never, ever […]
Download this month’s free resource a Goal Workbook that will help you set impactful goals: https://mailchi.mp/f93ca9a4946f/goalworkbook Our church just finished a series entitled, Overwhelmed. Each week we preached on topics like, worry, anxiety, depression, fear, family, pressure, and doubt. The gospel speaks directly to all of these issues and offers very deep, soul-satisfying answers. It […]
Get my FREE Goal Setting Workbook here: Set Impactful Goals Sermon Luke 7:36-50 Are You in Love with Jesus? Intro: Have you ever heard someone say, “I married my best friend!” I think I understand what they mean when they say it. However, I think that there is a difference between being best […]
It was Christmas Eve 1974. I was 7 years old. I was lying in my bed late into the night and thought I could hear something downstairs. I strained really hard to listen and try to hear what it was. I lay completely still, listening really hard. What was I hearing? I knew I had […]
Martin Luther said that we need to be preaching the gospel to ourselves every day because we forget the gospel every day. I hear from other preachers and authors give this same message. Actually, I say this often because I believe it is the only way to live a life of freedom and grace […]
I don’t know of anyone who doesn’t experience anxiety on some level. We live in a super stressed out world. We feel pressure all around us in just about every area of our lives. And all of this pressure makes us anxious. We are anxious to succeed. We are anxious for people to love us. […]
You never know what will happen when you start your day. You wake up, you have your plans, your schedule is laid out, you have a to-do list and you are off to the races. But how often does our plan get side-tracked or interrupted? As a pastor, I’m always on call in case […]
I sat with a couple of men this morning at breakfast. Men that are older than I am, which is 52. Men who have walked with God most of their lives, men who have been heavily involved in their church, men who I would consider mature in their walk with Jesus. I asked them […]
I’m a rule follower. I may have mentioned this before. But it’s worth repeating. I don’t like jaywalking, I try to follow directions and do what I’m told. I believe that most laws are good for us and help keep order in our country. I’ll admit that I’m not always good at following speed limits […]
I’m in the middle of my three-month sabbatical and have already been able to experience some amazing things. My wife and I have been to Israel and Greece and walked in the footsteps of Jesus and Paul. I’m sure I’ll have more podcasts about that soon But most recently I had the chance to […]
I love the Psalms. The Psalms contains such a wide spectrum of encouragement, hope, solace, and security. And it seems that no matter what I need spiritually, there is a Psalm that can satisfy me. Sometimes I need to be encouraged, sometimes I need to repent, sometimes I need to hear about forgiveness and steadfast […]
This story would even make Stephen King shudder… As a gospel writer, Mark is the shortest of the four. His gospel is fast paced and action packed. He quickly moves through the life of Jesus letting the narrative speak for itself. This is one of many stories in the life of Christ, yet Mark takes […]
There is one thing I know for sure, Everyone suffers at some point in their life. I realize that statement may not draw you in to listen to the rest of this podcast. However, I just want to get to the point and get to the hope we have in suffering. No one will […]
Everyone would like to live a life of purpose, meaning, joy, and success. We want to have clarity, inspiration, peace, and energy. We desire our relationships to be healthy, fulfilling, and satisfying. We want to feel confident, motivated, and productive. We want to be well-liked, happy, focused, and grateful. Can you tell I’ve been […]
Most people have at least seen a few minutes of the reality tv show Hoarders on A&E. The show documents the lives of people who have a disorder in which they cannot get rid of anything they have. This includes old magazines, newspapers but also trash, expired food, etc. These people are literally suffocating under […]
We love our Bible heroes don’t we? David the “giant slayer”, Moses the great deliverer, Nehemiah the courageous leader, Paul the outrageously bold church planter, the list could go on. While these men did live exemplary lives we have to be extremely careful not to get caught in the Bible hero worship trap. Goal is […]
The following article is from a study book entitled The Gospel-Centered Life. I highly recommend that you get it and go through it with some friends. Forgiving people who harm us is one of the most difficult things to do in life. And the deeper the wound, the more challenging it gets. We often feel […]
Maybe I’m not Reading my Bible Enough? I receive a devotional in my email each day from Ken Boa. What I love about this particular devotional is that it only contains Scripture, no commentary. Now, commentary is not all bad, but sometimes I just need to be guided by Scripture alone. I read […]
I’ve been meditating on one verse for over a year now. Actually, I bring this verse to mind more than any other. I struggle with confidence, failure, lack of discipline and find that I am a chronic condemner of myself. In order to fight against my own condemnation, I recall this verse and believe it […]
Listen to an interview I did with Steve Brown and learn how grace allows you to relax.
Christmas is only a few days away. Are you excited and ready to celebrate? I am exhausted. Not from shopping or baking or wrapping or hanging lights in the yard. But from the fact that our church has had two deaths in the last three weeks. It has been a really tough time for […]
Advent highlights the larger story of God’s Redemptive Plan. Hey friends, welcome to the first week of Advent. Advent encompasses the four weeks leading up to Christmas day, the day we celebrate the birth of Christ. But, I think many people do not even know what Advent is or what it means. So I […]
We should be thankful that God is determined to make us like Jesus.
In Psalm 19:7-9 we see that the Word of God has the power to transform your heart, soul and mind. The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul. The Holy Scriptures tell the love story of God redeeming His people back to Himself. Therefore, when you read it, your soul is brought back […]
Disappointed in myself and spiritually discouraged, I needed some gospel intervention. Listen closely and be encouraged by what Jesus has done and is doing in your life.
In this episode I read a brief excerpt from Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s book, Life Together.
In this episode I replay an Ask Pastor John interview with Jen Wilkin. Jen helps us understand that the Bible is not about us but about God.
In this episode, I read a recent blog post by David Mathis at Desiring God. David writes about the struggles we all have in our Bible reading and gives us great encouragement to persevere.
The question we want to answer today is, “Can I Know God Personally?” and the short answer is simply, YES. In order to start understanding this answer let’s go back to the beginning of time and the creation of man. In Genesis 1: 27 we read, So God created man in his own image, in […]
In this episode, I read a chapter out of J. Oswald Sanders book, A Spiritual Clinic. In this chapter, he retells the courageous story of Caleb, a man “wholly committed to the Lord.”