Our spiritual life can progress and flourish only with the sincere support of others, especially when we face difficulties and crises in life. A community in communion with Christ, provides this support and solidarity to its members.

There is really nothing particularly profound about learning to let go of little resentments. But for fulfilling and lasting relationships, letting them go is a must. Refuse to carry around bitterness and you may be surprised at how much energy you have left for building bonds with those you love.

This story shows that a big part of setting and meeting your goals is avoiding being bogged down by a culture of constant urgency. The problem is that most of us don’t understand the difference between the urgent and the important. And once we do, we’ll recognize that the urgent is the enemy of the important. 

"Old age is like a bank account. You withdraw from what you've put in. So, my advice to you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories!"  "I thank all those who were a  part in filling my Memory bank--and, I am still depositing."

The power of remembering wasn't just about preserving the past, but about cherishing the present. She found that even in the face of fading memories, the love and connection one held for those they cherished could remain vibrant, a beacon guiding them through the years.

Some of our best-loved hymns were written in times of great sadness. Our story today is a perfect example…the hymn “What a Friend We Have in Jesus”. Writers of such hymns found great comfort in the loving arms of Jesus during times of great sorrow and stress; they wanted to share with others how grateful they were that Jesus is THE source of comfort and caring and renewal when we are in our greatest need.

Our prayers are a sweet fragrance to God as we admit our own inadequacies and lean on God’s promises of provision and power.  Worry is a conversation we have with ourselves about things we cannot change.  Prayer is a conversation we have with God about things He can change!  

Few subjects in life ignite as much passion and longing within us as our desire for love and our hope for genuine, enduring relationships. We all long to be loved. Every human being on this planet craves to be cherished by someone.  We are wired for relationships by God's design. 

We need to remember WHO Christmas is all about.  We need to put Christ back in Christmas.  JESUS is still the reason for the season.

This note is a reminder for us to do to others as we would like them to do to us and to 

not worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Let’s tell God what we need, and thank Him for all he has done

Horatio Spafford was inspired to write the hymn It Is Well With My Soul as his heart ached after several traumatic events in his life.  The depth of his sorrow is expressed in the hymn, but it also affirms his faith in God’s goodness, love, power and provision.  The hymn has meant much to those who need reassurance during trouble they are experiencing.  It is another way God makes Himself known in today’s world

This story shows stress is a part of our lives. None of us can escape it. Stressors rob us of life, rest, joy and peace. Stress impacts our life through fear, anxiety and insecurity.

We may give without loving; but we cannot love without giving. Love is giving all we can. Love is like a smile - neither have any value unless given away. Love cures people - both the ones who give it and the ones who receive it. 

When our hopes and dreams are far from us, and we are running out of faith, we must recognize how strong the connection is between hope and faith  We can’t have one without the other. Hope is the foundation of our faith just as much as faith is the foundation of our hope! Faith makes all things possible. 

God created man in His image. Then He created the ‘FAMILY’ in the image of heaven. It was the first and best institution founded by God. The letters in the word, FAMILY may be regarded as representing the first letters of the words in the statement, “Father And Mother In Love, Year-round” or the hearty remark of a loving little child, “Father And Mother, I Love You!”. Parents should stand between their child and God- not as a separating wall but as a connecting link.

This story helps us understand “Can anything ever separate us from God’s, our Father’s, love?” Does it mean He no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death?

This story is a reminder that we all have "parachute packers" in our lives - those who silently contribute to our successes.  They are our colleagues who work late to meet a deadline, family members who offer unwavering support, mentors who guide us, and friends who cheer us on.

“People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life, like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?” The six-year-old continued, “Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long.” Remember, if a dog was the teacher, you would learn things like:

Today stretches ahead of us, waiting to be shaped. And we are, the sculptor, to do the shaping. What today will be like is up to us. We choose what kind of day we will have! This is a time of investment. Investing is about making decisions in the present that will have a major impact on our future.  

, "Unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Every person needs love because God is love.  Every person needs acceptance because that is what unconditional love from God truly is. Love is all about FREEDOM.  FEAR is all about CONTROL

Baseball season is starting and it’s an intrinsic part of our culture.  This story of “The Lord’s Home Run” shows how a game of baseball can be used to relate a lesson about the important role of Grace in our relationship with our Lord.

Some of us also fear growing older for physical reasons. Aging is often seen as a loss of control. As the years pass, our fear of the unknown may grow stronger.

But the truth is, we’ve never been in control anyway! From the moment we were created— whether we’ve realized it or not—we’ve relied on our Creator for every breath. Growing older helps us to shed that illusion of control more and more, and to rest in the promises of our loving God.

Living in a post-crucifixion world means we’ve received God’s forgiveness and we’re at peace with Him in every way. But we need to be living in a post-resurrection world, too, as the resurrection gave us victory over sin and an unbreakable spiritual union with Jesus!  It’s time we now focus on what it means to have new life — His resurrection life in us, here and now.

Imagine being told as a child you may never be able to walk again and that you may have to spend the rest of your life as an amputee. Imagine going from there to winning a medal at the Olympic Games! This is the true story about athlete Glenn Cunningham. 

This is a very good example of a “God-incident" (some people might call it a "co-incidence"). If you take the time to read it, you will be glad you did. It is about a song that even silenced a cappuccino machine.

The longer I live the more convinced I become that life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we respond to it.  As this story shows, the single most significant decision we can make each day is our choice of attitude

This story, “The Pickle Jar”, author unknown, makes me cry each time I read it. It speaks of a parent’s unconditional love. More than anything, it warms my heart, because my parents did exactly the same for me.

Greet 2024 with a healthy “Hello” by accepting those challenges and opportunities that confront you by committing yourself to give your understanding, patience, and help to those who need you. Discover the ‘one word’ God has for you this year! Pray and ask God to choose your word for you. He knows what the year ahead brings and He knows exactly the focus we need to make to meet the challenges for 2024. 

Christmas is a yearly reminder of how much God loves each of us. The Bible says God is love. It doesn’t say God has love; it says God is love. There is nothing you can do that will make God stop loving you. You simply can’t do it – because His love for you is based upon His character and not on anything you do or say or feel. 

A lot of people have a warped definition of humility. They think it means, "Shucks, I'm no good at that." Humility is not seeing everybody else as better than you. It does not mean you are a doormat.  Humility is a fair and accurate assessment of who God created you to be. For example, false humility is the worst form of pride. For Tiger Woods to say I am a terrible golfer is not humility. It's a lie and an affront to God who gave Him that ability. Here’s an inspiring story about humility.

Life is the coffee; our jobs, money and position in society are the cups. Cups are just tools to hold and contain Life, and the type of cup we have does not define, nor change the quality of Life we live. Sometimes, by concentrating only on the cup, we fail to enjoy the coffee God has provided us." God brews the coffee, not the cups. Enjoy your coffee

Let’s connect to thankfulness in a super deep and meaningful way this year. Let’s take time to truly feel and express it. Thankfulness begets thankfulness, and we could all use a little bit more of it every day of the year. I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Thank you for allowing me to share this Thanksgiving message with you. We don't need more to be thankful for, we just need to be more thankful! I'm thankful for YOU!!

Happy Thanksgiving, Ben

Loving our spouse the way Jesus loves us requires compassion and understanding, not judgment and criticism. That is why keeping Jesus on the throne of our heart is the only way to keep wedlock out of deadlock.  A good marriage is not easy and does not happen without a lot of work, mistakes, patience, forgiveness, prayer, and laughter.

When we live our life fully aware that God lives in us, for us, thru us and as us and will protect us wherever we go, it changes the whole equation in front of us. He is taking care of us even when life hurts! God’s timing is perfect! Relax! Let’s affirm His nearness in our heart and not be anxious about anything!!

Life is a garden that grows the seeds we plant.  We must be careful about the kind of seed we plant. Jesus gives us one of the most important critical factors for emotional health and happiness.  Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. (Matthew 7:1‑2)

But transformation means when Christ becomes our life, everyone will know it. We are changed… transformed if you will.  But information alone can’t do that. Neither will information and revelation apart from application. One must ACT and live out what we believe. All three together result in transformation.  Information plus revelation plus application will lead to transformation

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Hebrews 13:5 

In our life’s journey, troubles, suffering and failures may fall on us. Let’s not worry about them or feel helpless or hopeless. We shouldn’t let the troubles defeat us or bury us. Let’s use every set back as a stepping-stone and not as a stumbling-block. As Joni Eareckson said, “Sometimes God allows what he hates to accomplish what he loves.”

“When someone hurts you, write it in sand, so the winds of forgiveness can erase it. But when something is done for you, out of love and caring, engrave it in stone—so the winds of forgetfulness cannot erase it.”

Small…what we consider to be small and insignificant may actually be huge in God's scheme of things. Have you ever noticed how often God's view and the world's view are opposite? 

Each and every one of us is born with unique traits and characteristics that help us shine and find our true calling. Learning to love ourselves for who/what we are is a big challenge. There are so many people who believe they aren’t enough. They hate that they’re different from the everyday crowd, and try so hard to be someone they’re not. 

We need to accept our personal challenges as part of our beautiful individuality and direct our attention to our own personal strengths.  Focusing on our positive aspects allows us to amplify these qualities and share our goodness with those around us. 

Let’s choose to be who God made us to be and that’s unique in every sphere of life.  We are designed to live in the sunshine of our Father’s love.  Let’s live a life of love.

What are You Going to Do Today?  What are your plans? What's on your agenda for today?  Do you have any plans, or do you just expect to react to everyone and everything around you? How about purposefully having an agenda, things that are important to your destiny?  Here are some ideas for an Agenda for Today

Start off the New Year encouraged that no matter what heartache, or hardship you’ve endured, God always offers the opportunity to begin again and He doesn't cancel our destiny because we've taken a few detours. He still has a plan for our lives.

In that instant, we understood the reason we were there, why we celebrated the holiday in the first place, why even in the chaos, there was a purpose for our festivities.  

Happy Mother’s Day, Moms!! Ben