A Moment of Hope

by Marilynn Chadwick My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.  John 10:27 (NIV) Consider the miracle of speech. Our voice sets us apart from the animals. Our voice allows us to communicate with each other. Our voice can be a powerful tool for good or for evil. We're on day 10 of our 21 Day Experiment. In John 10, Jesus encourages us to listen to his voice saying, "I am the goo...

by Marilynn Chadwick One thing I do know. I was blind, but now I see!   John 9:25 (NIV) The man had been born blind. Just imagine. He had never seen daylight, his own hands, or his parents' faces. We can tell from today's reading of John 9 that the man had never even heard  of Jesus. And yet, he was about to experience a dramatic encounter with this controversial Rabbi. When they first noticed the...

by Marilynn Chadwick The truth will set you free.  John 8:32 (ESV) What does it mean to "get real?" It's a challenge to take off the mask. Let go of pretense. Speak the truth. Be authentic. Sadly, we live in an age where people will do almost anything to create a good image. More time, attention, and money is spent on our outer self than on our inner soul. We end up comparing our insides with ever...

by Marilynn Chadwick Anyone who is thirsty may come to me!  John 7:37 (NLT) Even before I believed in Jesus, I observed a great divide between those who followed him and those who did not. As I've shared earlier, I was firmly in the "those who did not believe" camp. Christians seemed so well…needy. Deep down, I knew I'd have to admit I was weak and broken before I could accept Jesus as my Savior....

by Marilynn Chadwick The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent. ( John 6:29 NIV ) I grew up in an era when the threat of nuclear war loomed large. So my childhood television viewing was often interrupted by an annoying, high-pitched, 60-second blast and this announcement:  "This is a test...of the emergency broadcast system...this is only a test." The Bible talks a lot about  test...

by Marilynn Chadwick Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.  ( John 5:8 NIV ) Make a wish. Wish upon a star. I grant you three wishes. All are lines from my favorite fairy tales. A wish is exciting. Magical. But there's something about a wish that seems out of reach. Webster defines a wish as a "a strong desire to have or do something—usually unattainable." It's day five of our 21 Day Experiment. Toda...

by Marilynn Chadwick The man took Jesus at his word and departed. ( John 4:50 NIV ) Some say talk is cheap. But remember, words are the mysterious raw material of God's creative activity. He literally spoke the world into existence. I have always loved words. I'm intrigued by their power both for good and evil. I'm glad you've joined us for the 21 Day Experiment. Today's reading in John 4 brings u...

by Marilynn Chadwick For God did not send the Son into the world to judge and condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. ( John 3:17 AMP ) "Are you saved?" I used to hear that question a lot growing up in the deep South. We were a family of churchgoers. But the message of the Gospel never made its way into my heart until years later.  Saved from what? I'd wonder. Life was go...

by Marilynn Chadwick You have kept the best until now!  John 2:10 (NLT) John records more of Jesus's miracles than any other Gospel. Some even call John "The Book of Miracles." Miracles grab our attention. Just the idea of a miracle makes my heart beat faster. Let's look at Jesus's very first miracle recorded in the Bible. You'd expect the event to be carefully orchestrated and designed for maximu...

by Marilynn Chadwick In him was life, and the life was the light of men.   John 1:4 (ESV) It's been said that it takes 21 days to form a habit. For me, the beginning of every new year is the perfect time to launch a new habit. Forming a habit is much like an experiment. An experiment gives me permission to try something on for size. If I'm pleased with the results, I can repeat the steps. If not,...

by David Chadwick Today we will look at one last hidden gem in the Christmas story. Daniel and the wise men. Wait? Daniel is an Old Testament character. He lived 500 plus years before Jesus was born. What does he have to do with the Christmas story? When Daniel lived in Babylon, he had an excellent spirit and worked very hard. God gifted him with spiritual insights. Eventually, he became like a Pr...

by David Chadwick These hidden gems in the Christmas story are like precious jewels that you can go back to again and again during this time of the year to stir up your faith and renew your hope for Jesus's return. Today's hidden gem: Mary the songwriter. After Gabriel appeared to Mary and told her that Jesus was on the way and explained the role he would play for the world, Mary wrote a song of p...

by David Chadwick We are a little over halfway through a Christmas treasure hunt. Looking for hidden gems found throughout the Christmas story. I believe when you search out the treasures beneath the surface, it stirs your faith and renews your hope. One of my favorite parts of the Christmas story is the number of angels God uses. Angels are everywhere! Hebrews 1:14  says this, "Are they not all m...

by David Chadwick Yes, a virgin. That's today's hidden gem. That a virgin would carry the Savior of the world, conceived by the Holy Spirit. A miraculous phenomena. The normal way the transmission of sin in the world was thwarted by this Holy Spirit conception. Jesus had to be sinless to die for our sins. And this was the only way that could happen. This perfect God/man was the only hope for the f...

by David Chadwick "Be quiet, Zechariah!" This is essentially what God ended up saying to Zechariah after his doubt and unbelief. It's today's "hidden gem" found in the Christmas story. Let me explain. Zechariah was a priest. He served God in the temple. But he and his wife, Elizabeth, really wanted a baby. They had waited so long for one. Finally, an angel named Gabriel appeared in the temple and...

by David Chadwick We are halfway through our Christmas treasure hunt. Looking at hidden gems in the Christmas story. There are so many special messages that can be found in this story. Today's hidden gem is connected to Joseph. We can't forget about Joseph. He, too, had Gabriel visit him just like Mary did. God chose HIM to be Jesus's earthly daddy. Like Mary, he was godly. He was essential in rai...

by David Chadwick We are taking two weeks to look at hidden gems in the Christmas story.  Proverbs 25:2 says, "It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out." I want to help you search out some of the wonders and often overlooked parts of this Christmas story. I believe that with each hidden gem that we seek out, we gain a new appreciation for the wonder...

by David Chadwick Did you know the Christmas story is built on a foundation of family? Ministry that is knit together by a strong family carries such a powerful expression of the heart of God. In fact, I have heard it said that the government of heaven is family. God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit - they work in perfect unity and are a powerful reflection of whole, pure love. And a...

by David Chadwick There are so many hidden gems in the Christmas story. Often overlooked little treasures God has placed to stir up our faith and renew our hope. Nothing generates excitement like a birth announcement. A gender reveal party. The coming of a new baby! I have experienced this first hand with the birth of Marilynn's and my three kids and soon to be ten grandkids. It never gets old. Ea...

by David Chadwick There is something about a treasure hunt that invites every person into wonder and delightful suspense. I want to spend the next two weeks taking you on a treasure hunt. I want to pull out ten gems that are in the Christmas story. Treat them as precious jewels, as treasures you can go back to again and again during this time of the year to stir up your faith and renew your hope f...

by David Chadwick Christmas. Said by many to be the most wonderful time of the year. As followers of Jesus, we know it's even more wonderful than most know. It's a rescue mission full of good news and miracles. Christmas is about the presence of God. Today, we learn it's also about the victory we have through Jesus. Victory is defined as "an act of defeating an enemy or opponent in a battle, game,...

by David Chadwick Christmas is all about Jesus. The true miracle of Christmas is found in the rescue mission God sent Jesus on to save the world. It's a miraculous story full of good news! It's a story that tells the greatest miracle ever told, and this is a time to remember that miracles can still happen today. In a time that often centers around presents in our consumer culture, let's all rememb...

by David Chadwick Christmas is a beautiful time of year to reflect on the birth of Jesus and the historic moment that marked eternity! The first miracle of Christmas: it is a rescue mission. God sent his son to save us from our sins and to rescue us from the effects of sin. Second, Christmas is good news! The goodness of God's love has chased us down and re-established a connection between us and...

by David Chadwick You don't have to look far to find a headline blasting bad news. Bad news is everywhere. Wars and rumors of wars. Creation gone awry and groaning ( Romans 8:22 ). Earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes everywhere. Disease. Unabated anger in the streets. Division, disruption, and chaos seem to be the norm. Yesterday, we learned that the first miracle of Christmas was that it was a res...

by David Chadwick Christmas is a rescue mission. A mission to rescue mankind, the crown of God's creation, from the influence and power of the evil one. To set us free from the curse of sin and death. Before Jesus came as a baby in a manger, we were all dead in our sins and trespasses with no hope of living forever with our eternal Father ( Ephesians 2:1-2 ). The wages of our sin is death. Separat...