New posts will be posted every Tuesday. Pastor Ryan also blogs at his personal site, Look at Christ, at www.lookatchrist.com.
People often view prayer in simplistic terms: Prayer is about telling God what you want and waiting for Him to give it to you. Sure, you thank Him when He does what you want, and you give Him praise to make sure He’s listening, but prayer is a magic formula to make your life better and satisfy your desires. This popular conception runs into problems when your prayers are...
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All of humanity is born with the innate ability to blame others for their problems. We are capable of surveying any problematic circumstance and finding someone or something to blame. Even if outwardly we profess ownership of a problem, we can find a way to justify our action or inaction inwardly. Perhaps it is not difficult for you to remember some recent issue that arose...
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We are motivated by what we love; we are driven by what we believe is valuable. As has been said often, if you want to know what someone loves, see how they use their time. Let’s take this same principle and press it into the individual a few steps deeper. Rather than looking at how we spend our time, let us instead consider our thoughts. Our minds tell the story of how ...
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Almost everyone is working from home, schools are closed, nearly everything is shut down, sporting events are canceled, events and gatherings are postponed, and now a statewide curfew of 8PM is in place (which is earlier than what we would impose on teens), so we should have more time to pray than ever....
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Coronavirus is spreading fast. Schools are being shut down. Events have been cancelled. And governments all over the globe are buckling down in an attempt to halt the pandemic. How are we as Christians to respond? While God’s world seems to be in panic, how are God’s people to act?...
Keep Reading Coronavirus is spreading fast. Schools are being shut down. Events have been cancelled. And governments all over the globe are buckling down in an attempt to halt the pandemic. How are we as Christians to respond? While God’s world seems to be in panic, how are God’s people to act?...
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The plagues and the Exodus. These are famous displays of the wonders of God. Much has and could be written about this time in history. But I want to focus in this short post on the flies and the chariot wheels. Yes, those pesky flies, and yes, just the chariot wheels in the story. These might seem like they aren’t anywhere near the main point of the story, but God used t...
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Evil is thwarted, undermined, and outdone by the love of God. This is true especially at the cross where the love of God defeated the darkness that has spread over the world. By dying in the place of his people, God in his love enabled sinners to be genuinely forgiven, reconciled to him, and transformed. There, God’s love won......
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With what can we compare God’s love for his people? C.S. Lewis provides us with four helpful analogies to picture God’s love...
Keep ReadingA look at the way God relates to people as a Father, and what the fatherhood of God does and does not mean...
Keep ReadingAn examiniation of Why the doctrine of the Trinity is important for our faith...
Keep ReadingA brief look at some of the attributes of God...
Keep ReadingPart 1 of what we at CNCC believe about God...
Keep ReadingPart 2 of our look at what the CNCC statement of faith says about God...
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