Faith Matters Podcast

Mind Renovation We’ve probably all heard how much our thoughts impact our lives. While theologians, leaders, authors, self-help gurus, and CEOs may have different viewpoints about life and politics, most agree that our thoughts are incredibly important and dictate the trajectory of our lives. Take a look at some popular quotes: “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.” — Henry...

Pastor Bob McCartney gave a sermon series on current social issues this fall highlighting the truth found in the Bible. Here are my notes from this seventh sermon in his series, True Colors. Acts 4:32-36 32 And the congregation of those who believed were of one heart and soul; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own, but all things were common property to them. 33 An...

BE READY WHEN YOU GET THERE At age 29 I had been the pastor of a tiny congregation in South Dallas, TX for six years. A huge faith-based event took place in Reunion Arena every year and I typically volunteered there as, essentially, an usher. Right before the event was scheduled to start, the executive director of the conference came to me and told me the main speaker couldn’t make it and that I w...

KNOW WHAT YOU WANT There is a story in the life of Jesus that has always struck me as odd. Jesus was leaving Jericho and a large crowd began to follow him. In the midst of the commotion two blind men were sitting by the road. “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!” they cried out. The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet but they raised their voices even louder. “Lord, Son of David, have m...

DON’T STOP UNTIL YOU ARE FINISHED The concept of The Last Arrow came to me when I was reflecting on a story from the life of the prophet Elisha in the Hebrew Scriptures. In this story, Jehoash is the king of Israel in the midst of a massive war, and he seeks the wisdom and counsel of Elisha in how to win against the armies of Judah. Elisha tells Jehoash to ‘get a bow and some arrows’ and then to ‘...

SET YOUR PAST ON FIRE In 1977 my family’s home erupted in an electrical fire that consumed everything inside. While my mother lamented the loss of my brother’s trophies and promised him they could be fixed, I remember that my brother seemed strangely unmoved. The insight he left me with that day was that if those trophies are the highlights of our life, then our lives were not worth living, going...

DON’T STOP UNTIL YOU ARE FINISHED The concept of The Last Arrow came to me when I was reflecting on a story from the life of the prophet Elisha in the Hebrew Scriptures. In this story, Jehoash is the king of Israel in the midst of a massive war, and he seeks the wisdom and counsel of Elisha in how to win against the armies of Judah. Elisha tells Jehoash to ‘get a bow and some arrows’ and then to ‘...

Pastor Bob McCartney gave a sermon series on current social issues this fall highlighting the truth found in the Bible. Here are my notes from this sixth sermon in his series, True Colors. Racism is rooted in ignorance. It is a reaction without facts and a prejudice based on outward appearances, but it is a reality in a sin-cursed world. A racist says that my ethnicity is superior to yours. 7 from...

Scriptures: Exodus 34:5-7, 1 Kings 17:8-16, 2 Corinthians 9:7-8 When my son Elias was born, my joy doubled—and so did my overwhelm. Early mornings blurred into long afternoons that stretched into sleepless nights. Having babies nineteen months apart was never the plan. I cried constantly out of both gratitude and exhaustion. I felt so alone. I ached to see God. To know He hadn’t abandoned me in th...

For the long haul. Scriptures: Ecclesiastes 4:9-12, John 15:13-17, Romans 12:10 When my friend made the offer, I didn’t even know what to say. I mean, of course the answer was an emphatic yes! But I was also speechless. My boys were five, four, and two that summer when my friend Mindy asked if she could watch them for a couple hours one day a week to give me time to write—or do whatever I needed,...

Several years ago I watched from afar as a dear friend from college battled breast cancer. When Alyssa was diagnosed, she had a toddler the same age as one of my sons and was expecting baby number two. Even though I hadn’t seen Alyssa in years, I cried when I saw photos of her bald head and pregnant belly. I chipped in with friends to send a care package. And I prayed. I often shared Alyssa’s Face...

Courageous Kindness Courageous Kindness Day 2 • Day 2: Exactly what you have. Scriptures: Mark 12:41-44, John 15:9-12 I stood in my kitchen riffling through a small accordion file where we keep money for our monthly budget. It was the end of the month, so the file was mostly empty. My sister was coming over soon, and I was scrambling to find some cash to give her. I checked my wallet. The jar wher...

Scriptures: Romans 5:8, Ephesians 2:4-5, Psalm 103:11-14 I did it again. My husband asked a simple question and I became totally defensive. We were dishing up tacos for dinner and he asked, “Is this all the carnitas?” And by those five words he simply meant, “Is the pulled pork I see here on the tray all there is, or do you have more in the oven?” It wasn’t a trick question. But what I heard was,...

Pastor Bob McCartney gave a sermon series on current social issues this fall highlighting the truth found in the Bible. Here are my notes from this fifth sermon in his series, True Colors. We are living in the midst of a seismic shift, a very real revolution in attitudes on the homosexual lifestyle. In 2004, 60% of the American public said they oppose same-sex marriage. Fast forward 15 years to 20...

As we learned yesterday, a united church brings joy and passion to our faith. But unity is not uniformity. It is not just some static state of being, but rather a powerful movement God is forming that is transforming a people to rise to places of service, opportunity, and identity. There are several components and characteristics of this work of grace. The work of unity will arise and serve to bet...

Enter the Joy of Unity There is a new song arising! Can you hear it? It is deep within and longing to rise from a sacred place of silent hope to be a sound that will pierce the darkness. There is a new song arising! This new song will not be sung exclusively by a black chorus, a white ensemble, a Latino band, or an Asian soloist. No! This new song will be sung by a multiethnic, multi-generational,...

Answering the Prayer of Jesus We ask so many things of God in prayer, but what would it be like if we instead actually answered one of Jesus’ prayers for a change? While the great cities of the world are becoming more diverse and more complex, the prayer that Jesus prayed to the Father seems even more clear and simple than ever: “that they may all be one…even as we are one” (John 17:21-22, ESV). H...

The Third O: Passio Dei The apostle Paul was passionate and soulful in his faith. He emphasized the heights and the depths of knowing Christ. He described faith as “of” this, “through” that, “in” this, “by” that, “for” this, “beyond that” and on and on. The teachings of Jesus and of Paul and the nature of Christianity itself is all about fullness. Christian tradition and theology tend to underscor...

Embracing a More Passionate Faith God loves a heart on fire. There is something about fire, something that catches our attention and makes us want to stop whatever we are doing and draw closer. Whether blazing logs under a living-room mantle or encircled by stones at a campsite, a fire quickly becomes the hearth, and heart, of a family or a community. It keeps people warm, illuminates their intera...

Pastor Bob McCartney gave a sermon series on current social issues this fall highlighting the truth found in the Bible. Here are my notes from this fourth sermon in his series, True Colors. So how we as a church and Christians speak to these hot button topics? We want to think like God thinks. So are we going to compromise or stand on your conviction? The world is saying you either compromise or w...

You might think of your wardrobe as a warrior outlined by Paul in Ephesians - like a travel guide that is given when you are going somewhere you’ve never been before. For example, when a person signs up to go on a safari in some remote region of the world, there is usually a place where that person can go online and find a travel guide that will give him the details about the recommended articles...

As a Warrior, you are fighting the spiritual battle not for victory but from victory. God has already won the war in Christ. He’s given you everything you need in Christ to see His victory lived out in every battle you enter into. But that begs the question: If the war is already won and we have all we need for the individual battles, why don’t more Christians experience spiritual victory? The ene...

It’s easier to do battle in the physical realm, isn't it? It's easier to fight what we can see. We feel wronged in some way and we want someone or something physical at which to lash out. But doing that is like a police officer in his living room trying to shoot at a criminal he sees pulling a gun on him on a reality TV show. If the officer shoots at the television, he will have merely added more...

We are in a war. You are a warrior. In fact, the war we are in is like no other war that any of us have ever known, heard about, or could even conceive. Its implications are further reaching and its casualties are more devastating than any conflict in the history of mankind. Strangely, though, most people walk around completely unaware that it’s taking place. Most people don't realize they are a w...

Warrior Warrior Day 1 • 1 of 3 Devotional Listen to this audio devotional now in the Bible App. In the blockbuster film Inception, the main characters discovered a way to enter into another realm—the realm of dreams. While the dreams appeared to be as vivid and as authentic as the real world where they were currently sleeping, the dream realm was not their reality. Since the dream appeared to be r...