Grace – Pathway Journey

June 10, 2026June 10, 2026

Don’t Allow Your Past to Destroy Your Future

Rusty metal chain breaking into pieces with sparks and glowing light

Many people allow their hurts, abuse, regret, sin, or disappointments to steal their joy and future. These words are not intended to downplay the difficulties you may have encountered. But we must realize there is absolutely nothing we can do to undo the past.

Too often we allow a never-ending replay loop to visit the problems of the past. At the end of the replay loop, there is no delete button. It is sad that so many people allow the past to mar their future.

All of us have choices of which we regret. “I wish I hadn’t done that!” or “I wish I would have made a better choice there!” There is nothing we can do to change the decision or the action of the past. That door is shut and cannot be opened.

Then there are so many who have suffered abuse for no fault of their own. They experience shame and guilt over something totally out of their control. It is like the enemy leaves an open sore that never seems to heal. These people need our compassion and the healing that only comes from Jesus.

March 24, 2026March 23, 2026

The Tension of Balance

Imagine someone walking on a balance beam with a rope tied to each arm. On either side is someone holding the loose end of the rope. The two rope handlers’ job is not a tug-a-war but one of tension. The tension of the two opposing forces match each other to keep the person on the balance beam.

I have tried to apply balance to my life and encourage it in others. I have found that those who like to view themselves as radicals do not like the concept of balance. Balance sounds like compromise to the radical. I try to be very choosy on which mountains I am willing to die on; molehills are not mountains.

In our current world, everyone seems to be divided into two camps on many issues. Our country is divided into political, cultural, religious, and societal issues with very few clear balanced proposals. It seems that a line has been drawn in the sand and swords are drawn.

October 28, 2025October 27, 2025

Good Intentions

I remember in the late 1990’s having good intentions about door-to-door visitation. I, along with some fellow ministry workers, knocked on every door of a nearby city’s government housing projects. We had good intentions but nothing tangible resulted from it. Maybe one person visited our church but no new converts. I know we encouraged a few people, but we never saw a harvest of our efforts.

I learned that building relationships is more effective than cold-calling.

Churches and mission organizations are full of good intentions. We have to be honest and ask ourselves the question. Are our good intentions bearing fruit or do they just make us feel better about ourselves? We often learn by trial and error.

September 12, 2025September 12, 2025

Murder Grows from the Seed of Hate

Most of us watched in horror as Charlie Kirk was assassinated before our eyes. Many of us viewed the footage where Iryna Zarutska, a Ukrainian refugee was stabbed to death on a Charlotte train with no provocation. Those of us with any sense of morality or common sense, ask the question, “Why?”

I am relieved to know that so many of us can’t fathom how these things can happen. It seems such a senseless act to destroy another human being—a being made in the very image of God. Our hearts cry and our reasoning minds can’t comprehend the depths of hate.

July 24, 2025July 24, 2025

Central Message of Christ, Crucified and Resurrected

When God called me to preach, he called me to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ. He did not call me to be a motivational speaker, telling folks to be a “Better You.” Yet, in the process of discipleship, we often guide our disciples in necessary life skills. But our overwhelming call is to tell the story of God’s love in the gift of HIs Son. This love is demonstrated in the sending and dying of His Son Jesus on the cross for our redemption. The resurrection of Jesus is a confirmation of His deity.

The main theme of our preaching needs to be Christ, crucified and resurrected.

May 21, 2025May 18, 2025

How Grace and Mercy Lead to Peace with God

In the church world we throw around words and catch phases until they become threadbare of their meaning. Paul used the three terms of grace, mercy, and peace in his salutations to his spiritual sons. Here is one, “To Timothy, a true son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Tim. 1:2 NKJV).

Peace always follows grace and mercy. It is impossible to have true peace with God without the blessings of grace and mercy. Since we were born with a sin nature, it is impossible to have peace with God without them. We can’t outside of these two make ourselves compatible with God’s peace.

We can measure twice and cut once. We can fill the cracks with putty and sand until smooth. We can put three coats of paint on a stairway to Heaven. Still, it will not reach!

May 9, 2025May 8, 2025

Understanding God: Insights from a Lifelong Journey

I will soon cross over into my seventh decade of life. There are a few things I know now. I did not know them when my hair was brown and my energy was like the battery bunny. The main morsel of knowledge I now realize is how much I do not know. The body of knowledge seems to be as vast as the ocean and I am in a row boat.

I have read the entire Bible each year for close to thirty years. I understand many truths of the Bible but I still scratch my head about some things. It is the Word of God. How can a mere mortal like me understand the vastness and the depth of it? The short answer, I cannot. Yet, I keep studying and praying for more understanding of the Word of Life.

April 25, 2025April 24, 2025

Paul and Silas’ Response to Persecution

Join me in a little stroll through Acts chapter 16 as we journey with Paul and Silas.

We must minister to those God sends us and work with those God brings alongside us.
Paul on his second missionary journey was accompanied by Silas. Silas was not Paul’s first choice as a traveling partner. Barnabas was Paul’s first missionary partner on the first journey. While planning the second missionary journey, Paul and Barnabas had an argument about whether to take Mark who had abandoned them on the first trip. Paul did not want him to go, but Barnabas insisted. Unable to come to an agreement, they separated and went different ways.

April 3, 2025May 2, 2025

Message of the Cross

Jesus was not the first person ever crucified. The Persians had diabolically invented crucifixion in about 300 BC. The Romans of Jesus’ time had put the practice to their own evil ends. It was considered the worst punishment that could be carried out.

Man was created in the image of God, and one aspect of that image was the ability to imagine and create things. This endued gift in the fallen man was corrupted to invent objects for evil use. Death by crucifixion was one of those things. The word we use for unbearable pain is excruciating—which is from the Latin word “excruciare” [ex-scru-char-a] meaning “out of the cross, to torture.” We could say that excruciating is the pain of the cross.

March 20, 2025

King David’s Moral Crisis: Lessons in Repentance

King David had a moral crisis when he committed adultery with a beautiful woman named Bathsheba. He complicated and multiplied his sin by deceit and murder after it was revealed to him that she was pregnant with his child.

The husband of Bathsheba was Uriah. He was a trusted soldier of David and was numbered in the elite thirty-seven of 2 Samuel chapter 23. Uriah was ordered from the front lines for the sole purpose of obscuring his wife’s pregnancy as a product of adultery. Uriah refused to keep company with his wife out of concern for his fellow soldiers still on the battlefield.

David took the sin to an even lower level of murder. He wrote orders for Uriah to be put in the most dangerous position of battle guaranteeing his death. This strong faithful soldier faithfully carried his own death sentence to the commander of the army. He died in battle and David brought Bathsheba into his palace as his wife.