Grace Sagola Church

In a world that is sorting through the challenge of increasing uncertainty and fear, we need a reminder of a hope that comes from beyond this world.  Easter is far more than chocolate bunnies and colorful eggs; it contains the very center of the Christian message.

That which is easily received is often easily forgotten. Let's pause for a few minutes to reflect on the miracle inside the miracle we call Easter.

The world we live in today has adopted an attitude towards authority that is marked with distrust, distain, and dysfunction.  The values of individualism and moral relativism have led the charge on the attack of God's authority.  If we are to help our children understand the "fear of the Lord" it begins by modeling for them a proper balance in our approach to authority. 

The nature of our influence upon the next generation isn't only in the negative, we can and must have a strategy for how we can entrench our own Godly strongholds on the battlefield for their souls. 

Everyone makes excuses... it's just human nature - or perhaps I should say, "unfortunately" it's human nature.  Ever since that first sin in the garden, we humans have been trying to place the blame on others or rationalize our way out of our sin predicament.

Everyone has a story for how sin has affect their lives through their parents or grandparents.  We pass down a lot of things to our kids, but unfortunately, they've also inherited a sin nature from us as well. 

The importance of passing on our faith to our children is a "all-hands-on-deck" responsibly in the body of Christ.  Ultimately, how we treat the "little ones" in our church is a indication of how Christ-centered we are in our desires. 

There is a common saying, "Children don't come with instructions."  While this is true for so many aspects of learning the ropes of parenting, there are however instructions given to parents by God for how we are to raise our children.  They may not cover each specific scenario, but they are the general principles that we will find applicable throughout the entire journey.

"Fear of the Lord" teaching is too woefully absent from many families today.  Throughout the marketplace of popular fads and influencers is a common rejection of authority.  Those who seems most admired in our world are those who march to the beat of their own drum: the captain of their own ship.

When you think about it, it is a heavy responsibly to be a parent.  Every little thing we do or say is absorbed by those little spongy eyes and ears of our children.  However, this reality can be an excellent starting point for their discipleship if we take seriously the influence we are on their faith. 

The church in America today is in epidemic decline and is experiencing a falling away that cannot go unaddressed.  The most critical of demographic is seen in the youngest generation where 2/3rds of young adults are leaving the church for good. 

Jesus is coming again!  This statement of fact will soon be proven undisputed, but what to do until then?  For the Christian, we look forward to the return of our King, but for those who reject Jesus, that day will bring about a cold reality of a failure to receive what has been offered. 

Christmas has been coopted and morphed by the world into a facade of manufactured "cheer" but never contentment. We have "more" than ever, but never enough. Jesus offers the seeker something that money cannot buy - "peace".

God's love is radical and ridiculous when viewed against the backdrop of human devotion.  The incredible message of the gospel displays a kind of love that give redefinition to what love actually is.

True joy is undeniable, it affects us and become infectious. However, the source of true joy isn't found haphazardly or indiscriminately. Rather, it is offered exclusively in the gospel. To discover the source of true joy, we must look to the gracious gift of God that He gave to His creatures which found only in the completed work of Jesus Christ. The perspective, if recognized properly, will fore...

It so easy to get caught up in the commercialism of the Christmas season, and Christians today are feeling the pressure of "political correctness" and marginalization of Christian values more and more.  Should we capitulate and admit defeat?  Or is there a virtue in embracing a suffering for the Lord?  

"Judah’s sin is engraved with an iron tool, inscribed with a flint point, on the tablets of their hearts and on the horns of their altars..."

"We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do..."

"Since, then, we know what it is to fear the Lord, we try to persuade others. What we are is plain to God, and I hope it is also plain to your conscience..."

Idolatry can take many form, but the most dangerous is when it is unseen. The church in Laodicea has become spiritually blind because they've focused on cultural values rather than on Christ. They've replaced a dependency on the gospel for a self-sufficiency that has left Jesus outside of the church, and has jeopardized them towards an allotment of judgment with the world.

Without Christ, our world will try to substitute security in any and every way: security in our health, security in our retirement savings or "social-security", or security in what our own 2 hands can accomplish.

One of the easiest things to do in our walk with the Lord is get into a rut: a pattern of living and worshipping that feels routine and too familiar and too comfortable. The danger is, like any rut, we get stuck.

It is a dangerous thing for a church to set its sights for success on programs or events and not on the character of teaching that is embraced by the body. You can have the best ministries and a growing congregation, but if you sacrifice purity in the doctrines of the church you will have pollution in the lives of the people.

The task of the church to evaluate and confront the errors of ungodly behaviors and teachings is not a popular challenge today. Where sexual immorality has become accepted in our world, the church must be careful that it does not fail in discerning the difference between godly and ungodly actions. If we do fail to deal with it, God will deal with us for it.

For many of its first years, the church underwent significant persecution.  There were threats from within and from without.  It was when the government imposed emperor worship that the title of "Christian" was a heavy name to bear.  But Jesus gives the promise of hope to the believers in Smyrna, as one who has triumphed over the grave.