faith
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“I’d like to buy the world a Coke” was a huge hit in 1971 as Coca-Cola sought to fight the rising competition of other soda companies. It became such a hit at the time for its focus on authenticity as the world itself, especially in the West, young people were searching for something real. As…
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Both the secular and Christian world views the heart of man as the center of the experience and expression of life. We use many different common phrases in the church and outside of it regarding the heart. For example, if we are speaking about good intentions, we may say that someone has a “heart of…
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We live in a consumeristic society. We the consumer dictate what businesses rise and fall. Businesses build their models and services on what the consumer is interested in, spending money on, and flows with the trends of the day. It is a society that is self-focused and self-gratifying. We live in a world of instant…
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How would you define what exactly a Christian is? The world would define being a Christian as one who follows the teachings of Jesus in the Bible and lives a life of religiously motivated good works. Many Christians would have other definitions as well, many of which may be good. However, in my study I…
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As the Nazi party rose to power during the late 1930’s in Germany, many were silent. However, one name is recognized although there were many who stood against the Nazi party and the evils they committed. That name is Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Bonhoeffer was a Lutheran pastor in Germany who is perhaps most known for his…
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My mom grew up poor on River Road in Amherst, Virginia. She lived a good life, but they didn’t have an abundance of much of anything. My mom’s father was a deer processor and a great one. Both of her parents worked to provide, but they like others who lived on that road were called…
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Practical Christian living begins and ends with the preeminence of Christ. The preeminence of Jesus Christ is His supremacy and sufficiency over all things, in all things, and through all things. When Christ is not preeminent in our lives, our practical living will suffer. For example, our Bible reading or study suffers when Christ is…
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The Puritan John Owen wrote, “On Christ’s glory I would fix all my thoughts and desires, and the more I see of the glory of Christ, the more the painted beauties of this world will wither in my eyes and I will be more and more crucified to this world. It will become to me…
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Man’s greatest problem is not poverty. It is not sickness. Nor is it war, violence, or sickness. Man’s greatest problem is their standing before God. Everyone will stand before God, but each individual only has two ways to stand before Him. One, you can stand before Him dressed in your righteousness which will lead to…
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One of the first things that I remember learning were “manners.” I remember the importance of having good manners that was stressed to me, especially by my mother. The big one as a young boy was to say, “thank you.” Don’t you hate it when someone doesn’t say it? I’ve shared this before, but I…
Grow With Pastor Joe 