Grow In Faith

Remember the first time you fell in love — how you thought about that person the moment you woke up, all day long, and as you fell asleep, without anyone telling you to? In Part 5 of our "Made for Something" series, Pastor Mike Woodruff explains that this is exactly the kind of love Jesus is describing when he commands us to love God "with all our heart." Not procedural. Not du...

What's your purpose in life? Someone actually asked Jesus that question — and his answer fits in a single sentence. In Part 4 of our "Made for Something" series, Pastor Mike Woodruff unpacks the Greatest Commandment and shows how it distills your entire God-given purpose into one line: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with...

You're on a road right now — and it's taking you somewhere, whether you've thought about it or not. In Part 3 of our "Made for Something" series, Pastor Mike Woodruff unpacks one of the most sobering lines in the Sermon on the Mount: "Small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it" (Matthew 7:13–14). Mike walks through why this m...

What if the reason life feels exhausting isn't that you're not trying hard enough — it's that you were never meant to be the main character? In Part 2 of our "Made for Something" series, Pastor Mike Woodruff makes the case that the search for purpose starts with one uncomfortable but freeing truth: it's not about you. Our culture constantly tells us to find ourselves,...

Have you ever stood in a moment so humbling you had to ask, "What on earth am I doing here?" Pastor Mike Woodruff kicks off a brand-new devotional series, Made for Something , with a story that's equal parts funny and painfully relatable: failing a board-breaking test at a father-son martial arts class — in front of a room full of parents, after an eight-year-old and a six-year-old...

You can cram for a final exam. You cannot cram a harvest. In the final part of this "Best Of" devotional series on the Parable of the Sower, Pastor Mike Woodruff wraps up the week with a modern parable that reframes everything covered so far — the difference between the "law of the student" and the "law of the farmer." Drawing from Stephen Covey's 7 Habits of Hig...

What does a homemade worm compost bin have to do with your spiritual life? More than you'd think. In Part 3 of this "Best Of" devotional, Pastor Mike Woodruff tells a story from 25 years ago — building a caffeine-fueled compost pile with Starbucks coffee grounds and bait-shop worms — that ends up teaching a surprisingly deep lesson about the Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13. Mike...

Have you ever wondered what farming actually looked like in Jesus' day — and why it makes the Parable of the Sower hit so much harder? In Part 2 of this "Best Of" devotional, Pastor Mike Woodruff shares what he learned standing in a recreated first-century village in Nazareth, Israel, and how it changed the way he reads Matthew 13. Mike paints the picture: hillside terraces, a narro...

Same seed. Different soil. Wildly different results. In Part 1 of this "Best Of" devotional, Pastor Mike Woodruff opens up one of Jesus' most well-known parables — the Parable of the Sower, also called the Parable of the Four Soils — from Matthew 13. Mike reads through the full parable: a farmer scatters seed, and it lands on a path, on rocky ground, among thorns, and finally on goo...

You've heard the Parable of the Good Samaritan a hundred times. But have you ever noticed you're actually the man left for dead in the story — and Jesus is the one who stops to save you? In the final part of this "Best Of" devotional, Pastor Mike Woodruff reveals the connection most people miss entirely: this parable isn't just about how to treat others. It's a pictur...

Jesus doesn't ask the question you'd expect. In Part 3 of this "Best Of" devotional, Pastor Mike Woodruff finishes walking through the Parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:34–37 — and shows how Jesus flips the entire conversation with one brilliant question. The Samaritan bandages the injured man's wounds, puts him on his own donkey, pays for his care at an inn, and pr...

Why did Jesus make the Samaritan the hero of his most famous parable — and not the priest, and not the Levite? In Part 2 of this "Best Of" devotional, Pastor Mike Woodruff walks through the story itself in Luke 10:30–33 and unpacks a detail most people completely miss. Yesterday, a religious leader tried to sidestep Jesus with a loaded question: "Who is my neighbor?" Today, Jes...

Most people think the Parable of the Good Samaritan is just a story about being kind to the poor. It's not — and Pastor Mike Woodruff breaks down what's really happening in Luke 10 in this "Best Of" devotional from our archives. In this episode, Mike unpacks the setup to one of Jesus' most famous — and most misunderstood — parables. An expert in the law tries to test Jesus...

We've reached the final devotional in our journey through Paul's letter to the Colossians — and we're closing with one of the hardest questions people ask about the Christian faith: How could a loving God send anyone to hell? It's an uncomfortable question, but a fair one. And it's a question worth answering with clarity, humility, and grace. In this Colossians Bible study...

"All roads lead up the same mountain." You've probably heard it. Maybe you've even wondered if it's true. In today's Colossians devotional, we address one of the most common — and challenging — questions Christians face in our modern world: Are all religions essentially the same? And how do we respond with grace and clarity to those who believe they are? In this Colos...

What if a single sentence could make someone thirsty for something more? In today's Colossians devotional, we take a close look at Paul's beautiful, practical instruction to let our conversations be full of grace and seasoned with salt — and discover why this ancient wisdom is exactly what our modern conversations need. In this Colossians Bible study and devotional, we explore: → Paul&ap...

The Christian life isn't a retreat from the world — it's an invitation into it. In today's Colossians devotional, we look at how Paul urges believers to move through daily life with eyes open, ready to speak, ready to invite, and unafraid to share a story only you can tell. This is a practical, encouraging look at how ordinary conversations can open extraordinary doors. In this Colo...

We often think of gospel proclamation as something pastors do on Sunday mornings — but Paul had something bigger in mind. In this devotional, we look at how every follower of Jesus carries a message that no one else can tell, and how to be ready when God opens a door. From praying for those who teach God's Word, to knowing what to say when a friend is hurting, this devotional walks through Pa...

Paul is chained to a Roman guard in a prison cell. If you could ask a church anywhere to pray for you, what would you ask for? Release? Comfort? Better conditions? An early hearing with Caesar? Paul asks for something else entirely — and it reveals what really mattered to him. In today's Colossians devotional, we dig into Colossians 4:3-4 and discover the powerful pattern of prayer that fuels...

Paul doesn't just say pray. He says devote yourselves to prayer . The King James says continue . The ESV says continue earnestly . The Message says pray diligently, stay alert, pray with your eyes open . In today's Colossians devotional, we take a practical look at what it really means to devote ourselves to prayer — and how to build a prayer life that lasts. In this Colossians Bible stu...

We've arrived at the final chapter of Paul's letter to the church in Colossae — and it opens with a call that is beautiful, challenging, and (if we're honest) a little bit uncomfortable: "Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful." In today's devotional, we take an honest look at what prayer really is, why it's often harder than we admit, and how i...

It's short. It's simple. It's a little uncomfortable. And it's directed specifically at fathers. In today's Colossians devotional, we sit with Colossians 3:21 — a verse every dad, stepdad, grandfather, uncle, and any man with influence in a child's life needs to hear. "Fathers, do not embitter your children, or they will become discouraged." In this devotion...

Alfred Nobel — the inventor of dynamite — once had the strange experience of reading his own obituary in the newspaper (after a paper mistakenly ran it when his brother died). What he read shook him so deeply that he changed the entire trajectory of his life and legacy. Today's devotional invites you into that same moment of reflection. In this Colossians Bible study and devotional, we return...

What does it actually mean to "put to death" the old self and "put on" the new? In this devotional, we dig into Colossians 3:5-11 and unpack Paul's powerful clothing metaphor — including the two lists of sins he refuses to let believers ignore, and the game-changing truth that our identity is now defined by who we belong to , not where we come from. In this Bible study and...

A charging rhinoceros can run 40 miles an hour — but can only see clearly about 30 feet ahead. That means the rhino is charging faster than it can comprehend , crashing into things it never really saw coming. Sound familiar? In Day 33 of our Colossians devotional series, we open Colossians chapter 3 with a powerful call to lift our eyes above the here-and-now. In this devotional, we explore: → The...