Reset with Bonnie Sala

The law of sowing and reaping is written on the human psyche.  When trouble strikes, we immediately begin to wonder what we've done to end up in the mess we're in.  Why did this happen to me? 

Success is never final, and failure is never fatal.  Need an example of that today?  Meet John Mark, a man who lived in Jerusalem in the first century, mostly known as just Mark .  We're introduced to him at a prayer meeting was held in his mother's home in Jerusalem.  It was at that small group he met a man who was to leave a deep impression on his life named Peter. You can read about all of this...

God.  What's the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear that word? Judge?  Spiritual force? Whatever your response, you may be surprised at the way that God described Himself in the Bible.  God appeared to a man named Moses and represented Himself with a description that may not match the one in your head.

The Bible is God's divine revelation to man, but one of the things that I love most about it, is its depiction of men and women of faith as definitely less than divine.  Real people, with struggles just like you and I face, are God's people.

The Greek storyteller, Aesop, told of a father who took his son and set off to market.  The son rode a donkey, and the father led the animal.  When they passed through the first town, people commented, "What a lazy boy.  Imagine, riding while his father walks."  The father heard the criticism and changed places.  At the next town, people called out, "Old man, how dare you ride and let your son wal...

Abraham was God's man.  The Bible shows Abraham as obedient to God and yet, still human. God told Abraham, "Leave your native country, your relatives and your father's family, and go to the land that I will show you" (Genesis 12:1).  But, then we read that he departed, as God instructed, " and Lot went with him ."

No matter where you live in this world, you're probably interested in a better life--being a better version of yourself.  That's why the global personal development market is valued at over $13 billion a year!  God weighed in on the subject thousands of years ago in the Bible, inspiring a man named Paul to encapsulate the formula. He wrote:  "One thing I do:  Forgetting what is behind and strainin...

We know when we've done wrong.  Even your dog tucks his tail between his legs after he's helped himself to your sandwich sitting on your coffee table when you stepped away. The world's three largest religions: Christianity, Judaism and Hinduism, all recognize a concept of sin.  Christianity is unique, in that its entire message is based on man's redemption from sin through the person of Jesus Chri...

If you're married, are you getting what you want and need from your relationship?  Single and want to be married?  People couple-up for many reasons, including companionship, someone to share long nights and difficult seasons with.  But there's one thing that marriage or a love-relationship won't ever do for you and that's complete or fulfill you.                

Joseph, the husband of Mary, mother of Jesus, was a man who was asked by God to take on a huge responsibility. God picked him out to marry the pregnant Mary and be the early father Jesus grew up with.  God's very specific instructions to Joseph came via dreams. 

If you have kids or grandkids, you know that they can be frustratingly oblivious to the messes they create. My friend Ming shared that one of her biggest pet peeves is having to constantly remind her kids to lean over their bowls when they eat. Ming wants to train them not to waste food or create more work for others through carelessness. She confessed that she tells them this so often, it comes o...

The Bible is full of people whose crimes made them guilty under God's laws and most human laws, too. Moses murdered a man, King David sexually exploited a woman, and the Apostle Paul oversaw the persecution of minorities. Yet they sought and received forgiveness. God's forgiveness toward each of these men didn't undo their guilt. Instead, Jesus transferred the ultimate consequences of their guilt...

When the apostle Paul was counseling the Romans on how to determine what thoughts and actions were in keeping with Jesus' teachings, he wrote, "stop being conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds" (Romans 12:2). The fact is that we are constantly being transformed by something. Renewal is what ensures that the life of follower of Jesus, practically demonstrates a f...

Most, if not all of us, are not going to get out of this life without at least one broken heart.  Without unrequited or lost love, artists, writers and musicians would have to scramble for material.

"I'll give some money and volunteer." Most people think that's what God wants out of us.  If we can do that without pain, fine. But Jesus said, "If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me.  If you try to hang onto your life, you will lose it" (Matthew 16:24-25).

It was still dark when the sounds of the Muslim call to prayer woke me up.  My father said, "Get dressed!  Let's go explore!"  I was probably 11, but not too old to clasp my dad's hand tightly as we left our hotel. I'll never forget wandering the awakening streets and markets of Ammon, Jordon.  I was entranced…and terrified.  But with dad by my side, I knew I was safe.

Do you consistently feel like there aren't enough hours in the day? Michael felt like that.  He worked a fast-paced job, volunteered on weekends, and was raising two kids at the same time. He felt constantly anxious; his health and relationships suffered. He needed a change, but it took several years of careful habit-breaking to truly slow down.

A work deadline was approaching, and I got my laptop mixed up with that of my colleague as I rushed to an appointment.  Later, I panicked when I couldn't log on to the computer, jumped to conclusions based on some strange circumstances, and notified the police of a suspected data attack.  No such thing had happened.  Next, I knocked over a full cup of coffee.  Finally, I calendared an appointment...

Courage.  Maybe you think of it as the stuff of heroes who live extraordinary lives.  But living in this world of uncertainty and living life as a follower of Jesus, takes courage !

Rita El-Mounayer is a small but powerful woman.  She heads SAT-7, the satellite TV network that blankets the Middle East and North Africa with hope in Christ.  Viewers interact with the network and the programming serves as a huge source of encouragement for believers living under persecution. One woman wrote the network saying, "You are our only source of fellowship—just watching the screen.  Whe...

In his book, The Jesus I Never Knew , Philip Yancey tells of a man who was working in an inner city who encountered a woman who had been a prostitute.  She was in poor physical shape, homeless and unable to buy food for her two-year-old daughter.   The Christian worker asked her if she had thought about reaching out to the church to help.  "Church!" she said, "Why would I ever go there?  They'd ju...

Have you noticed that in relationships like marriage, true partnership is usually more desirable than fancy gifts or good looks?  Relationship experts point out that one of the most meaningful ways you can express love, is to notice !  There's a lot of uninteresting work to the business of living and letting the one you love know that you see their actions fills a relationship tank up.

Have you noticed that in relationships like marriage, true partnership is usually more desirable than fancy gifts or good looks?  Relationship experts point out that one of the most meaningful ways you can express love, is to notice !  There's a lot of uninteresting work to the business of living and letting the one you love know that you see their actions fills a relationship tank up.

Many of us picture church as a building - a place where people meet to sing, worship, listen to teaching, and hopefully, eat. But church isn't defined by a place, it's a community. The church is a global network of all people who put their faith in Jesus, even though a member in Somalia may never meet or know a member in Mongolia.     

There's a fascinating story in the New Testament book of John about a man named Nicodemus.  Nicodemus was a leader of the elite religious ruling council, and a curious man.  He'd seen the miracles that Jesus had been doing and he came to talk with Jesus under cover of night.  Nicodemus was a seeker.